Choir Exchange

We welcomed Jubilee School Performance Choir to our school today, to kickstart our new choir exchange between the two schools. Queensbridge Junior Choir members were excellent hosts and enjoyed singing with new friends. Both choirs shared a warm up song and then sang each other a short piece. 
Jubilee Choir performed 'Long Way Home' and our choir had the following feedback:

"Everyone was singing in time together."

"I liked the rap"

"I liked how you could hear all of the words."

"The soloist was really confident and sang beautifully."

"What a great song."

Next, Queensbridge performed two contrasting songs from their recent concert with the Classical Roadshow - 'It's the London Life' and 'The Fire Burnt Fiercely'. Jubilee children and adults also had some lovely comments about our singing:

"The singing was really clean and you could hear every words."

"I liked how well they managed the different tempos of the songs."

"I liked the way they sang a big range of notes, from high to low."

"The songs had some impressive vocabulary!"

Choir members also had a chance to talk and hear about how music works in the other school. We're looking forward to visiting Jubilee School soon, and would love to take Chamber Choir too!

Steel Pan Workshops

Queensbridge received a visit from the Steel Pan Agency today, along with their huge set of Steel Pans. We learnt that steel pans are tuned percussion instruments that come from Trinidad and Tobago in the Caribbean. They were invented in the 1930s, after Second World War soldiers left huge oil drums on the beaches. The music developed from Tamboo Bamboo Bands. We enjoyed the assembly performance and singing along with the music. Then Year 3 and 4 children had the chance to play the pans in workshops. Here are some pictures and video. Do you know anyone that plays steel pans? 

 

Fire! Fire! with the Classical Roadshow

52 wonderful members of Junior Choir travelled to the Classical Roadshow today at the Milton Court Concert Hall near the Barbican. We were treated to a retelling of the Great Fire of London, using lots of evidence from the diary of Samuel Pepys. The London Mozart Players were the fantastic orchestra who played the entrie show, and we sang along heartily with all of the audience participation songs. Here are some clips, and some feedback from choir members. 
Thanks to all of the staff who supported the trip and to the parents that came to watch!

"I enjoyed it because it was fun to sing. As a choir we sounded amazing. I liked the acting of the main characters. It made it seem like it was coming back to life. The stage choir knew what they were doing and didn’t forget anything."

"I liked how they made it into a play. When the lights turned on we knew that we were supposed to sing and when the lights turned off, they carried on with the play."

"I liked the bright colours of the lights. When the fire was coming they turned red, and when there was water they turned blue."

"I loved the expressions of the actors. When she saw the fire, Jane was screaming and singing at the same time."

"Our parents came to listen to the music and the singing."

 "I liked how they introduced us to some instruments like the bass clarinet, the Cor Anglais, and the harpsichord."

 "I liked how the parents were singing along."

"The conductor was really funny."

Peace At Last - Opera in the Hall

What a treat for Reception and Nursery Children... Last Wednesday, Opera Up Close brought their production of Peace At Last to Queensbridge School. We loved seeing the bears from this famous picture book come to life, and to hear them singing about going to bed. The singers took on different roles to make all of the noises that bother Mr Bear as he tries to get to sleep.. first in the bedrooms, then downstairs, then in the garden, and finally in the car. 
The singers were accompanied by musicians playing the harp and the clarinet and bass clarinet. It was so interesting to see and hear these instruments up close. You can enjoy some clips from the show below. 

You can hear the full story here: