March Musical Madness held at the Lochgelly Centre

The March Musical Madness event at the Lochgelly Centre brought together keen musicians ranging in age from 4 to 74.

More than 100 individuals, including entire families, participated in the five-week programme of workshops led by expert tutors from across Fife.

Many attendees returned for multiple sessions.

The musicians taking part in the March Musical Madness workshops (Image: OnFife) Each Saturday, music enthusiasts of all abilities, from complete novices to seasoned players, took part in a series of events focusing on different instruments.

The events marked the culmination of volunteer efforts to enhance the instrument library’s cataloguing system, making it easier for visitors to access over 100 instruments, including guitars, trumpets, keyboards, and violins.

March Musical Madness began with an open morning on March 1, followed by Only Strings Attached on March 8, Band on the Run on March 15, All Things Brass and Beautiful on March 22, and concluded with the Big Jam Session on the last weekend.

The tutors, including Denise Ward, Gareth Lloyd, Robert Maguire, Robbie Davison, and Richard Michael, led their students in enjoyable and inclusive sessions.

The musicians taking part in the March Musical Madness workshops (Image: OnFife) Members of the Community Instrumental Service for Rural Scotland, who had borrowed violins from the library, also participated in the final session.

Debra Salem, creative instigator with OnFife, said: "It was indeed a mad five weeks, offering musical opportunities for people who had never thought about playing before to those revisiting their musical past.

"There was a huge amount of enthusiasm, both from those attending and the tutors who said they loved every minute.

"Denise, who led the brass session, was so impressed that she’s starting up a beginners’ group in the brass band that she is involved in."

The musicians taking part in the March Musical Madness workshops (Image: OnFife) The Musical Instrument Library is part of a national programme initiated by We Make Music Scotland, aimed at getting musical instruments into libraries across Scotland.

The organisation also provided funding, through Creative Scotland's Youth Music initiative, for March Music Madness, in addition to some new instruments for the library.

Instruments will be available to borrow from Saturday, April 12.

They can be reserved online by visiting the OnFife website and looking under Libraries and Archives, where there is more information about the library.

Instruments can be collected or returned on Saturdays from 11am-1pm, when Musical Instrument Library volunteers will be on hand to help.

The new beginners’ group will start after the Easter break at 3pm in the Kingdom of Brass Band Hall in Kelty.

People who don’t already own a brass instrument can borrow one from the musical instrument library and join the sessions.