REVEALED: NEW CLIENT!

UK's fastest-growing music college is coming to Sheffield — and they've secured an iconic address

​WaterBear — a rapidly-growing music school founded on a promise to show independent artists and musicians how to build sustainable careers in music for the rest of their lives — is coming to Sheffield; with their first academic year commencing September 2023.

Most celebrated for their dedication to specialist one-to-one mentoring, focused class sizes and exclusive development opportunities across the music industry, WaterBear first opened their doors in Brighton, September 2018. and has since outperformed many of its more established rivals in student surveys for their range of BA (Hons) degrees and Master's qualifications for today's commercial music sector.

WaterBear Brighton Drumming classes

​Founded by music education pioneers Adam Bushell and Bruce John Dickinson, this week, WaterBear announced Sheffield is to be their first college location in the north of England; choosing an iconic address as their base.

"Thanks to our remarkable students — who forever champion us — our unrivalled reputation for specialist music education quickly spread beyond our Brighton borders, and we started attracting attention from talent across the country," recalls co-founder Adam Bushell.

Students @ WaterBear Brighton

"The national recognition of our education philosophy is encouraging, because opening a college in the north was always in our sights, after all, the north itself is somewhat unrivalled in its music talent and industry output," adds WaterBear co-founder Bruce John Dickinson — who, in 2001, co-founded the now widely successful BIMM (British and Irish Modern Music) institute. "Plus, on a purely personal level, I'm originally from Scarborough, so this absolutely feels like a homecoming for me."

The location of WaterBear's Sheffield campus has been shrouded in mystery ever since whispers of their arrival developed last month. Of course, with Dickinson and Bushell being professional musicians themselves, WaterBear is unique in its celebration and respect for music culture, so their decision to regenerate an iconic Sheffield landmark will be unsurprising to many.

"We will be opening our college in the former Gatecrasher nightclub building on Arundel street, which our architect and building teams continue to work tirelessly, and until today, secretly on [laughs]. Our first term for students will be September 2023," confirms Bushell.

​No one is prouder and more aware of this location's legacy than I. Gatecrasher is not only a global icon, but to many, it's a Sheffield treasure," Bushell continues. "Through our rich program of music BA (Hons) Degrees and MA courses, we hope to channel the creative spirit that Gatecrasher pioneered and infuse it with our own educational dynamism."

An educational dynamism that, during their time at BIMM, saw Dickinson and Bushell help shape the music careers of now-celebrated artists, including George Ezra, James Bay, Tom Odell, Beth Rowley, The Kooks, Fickle Friends and more.
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Now enrolling for September 2023, visit WaterBear Sheffield here and watch their exhilarating "Hello Sheffield" film below!

WaterBear founders Bruce Dickinson (left) & Adam Bushell (right)

​For all press and media enquiries, please email Abi Lowell on abi@iconsmachines.com