As you walk into the historical site of Lithgow's pottery, you hear the thump of the drums. The keys of the keyboard begin their melody.
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The angelic voice of one of the members of Lithgow's Pottery Rockers will have you excited before you even walk in to greet them.
The Pottery Rockers are a group of people living with disabilities who come together and explore music as both a form of creative expression and socialisation.
The program is run through local organisation 'One2one support services' and is facilitated by Jillian Ashworth and Stephen Hall, who is an experienced music teacher.
"It allows the guys to socialise on levels they may not necessarily do in their day-to-day life and it also gets them thinking in a way they may not ordinarily think," Ms Ashworth said.
The Pottery Rockers started approximately a year ago, and brought with it many opportunities for the participants.
"We just take them through basic music tuition, mainly to get the participants involved in the percussion instruments and singing, just easy songs we all do," Mr Hall said.
"They love it and not only from a social aspect, they get a lot out of it to be able to sing and to be part of it."
Locally renowned singer, Glenda Phipps fell in love with the Pottery Rockers program after she attended a session. She now volunteers to assist the group.
"I came along one day and saw the group and thought 'would you like a hand?' so I'm here in a volunteer capacity," Ms Phipps said.
According to Mr Hall, a talented participant named Emmanuel is a great source of encouragement for the others.
"He is quite a talent. He's done a little bit of training with the conservatorium in Lithgow. He plays violin, drums, guitar, bass, keyboards," Mr Hall said.
"It's quite encouraging because he is a great influence as well. He gets the participants to play different things."
Due to the pottery's isolated location, noise isn't an issue. This means the participants are able to express themselves freely.
"We can make a lot of racket here because there aren't any neighbours," Mr Hall said.
The Pottery Rockers are a fun-loving group of individuals, you can tell as they play their instruments or sing along to the songs.
The participants are perfectly themselves and according to Mr Hall, there is no expectation to be anything otherwise.
"It's just fun to play music with a group of people. There's no prequisite, you just do the best you can."
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Reidun Berntsen
Reidun is a Journalist and writer who lives in a country town 3 hours from Sydney, Australia. From a young age, Reidun has been in love with words and the infinite possibilities they bring. Stories, features and poems have been a major part of her writing career.
Reidun is a Journalist and writer who lives in a country town 3 hours from Sydney, Australia. From a young age, Reidun has been in love with words and the infinite possibilities they bring. Stories, features and poems have been a major part of her writing career.
