This year, over 1,700 school children across Manchester marked the end of the Spring Term with the Sing Arounds, a fun and interactive musical performance held at The Gallery in Manchester Recording Studios. What better way to kick off the Easter break than with a wonderful showcase of musical talent and creative expression!
The Sing Arounds is an annual event organised by One Education to ensure every child has the opportunity to sing and make music together. Singing is known to support brain development by building neural pathways, laying the foundations for language acquisition, memory and problem-solving. It also has a positive impact on health and wellbeing, whilst bringing people together and strengthening social ties.
As a multi-service provider for schools and academy trusts, One Education is passionate about ensuring each and every child can reach their full potential in music and beyond. The One Education Music service currently works with 186 schools across Manchester to provide a high-quality music education with many opportunities for performance and progression.
In the lead up to the event, the vocal team at One Education Music delivered a series of workshops in schools to help both children and their teachers to develop their singing skills and learn the lyrics to new songs. They selected fun and age-friendly music in partnership with Sing Up, an organisation that provides accessible and easy-to-use resources to ensure all children have the opportunity to experience the wider learning and developmental benefits that singing can bring.
After working very hard in their singing masterclasses, children were excited to take to the stage and showcase their new skills. In the past, Sing Arounds have taken place at a number of prestigious venues, including the Royal Northern College of Music, the Royal Exchange Theatre, and the Martin Harris Centre at Manchester University.
This year, children had the opportunity to perform at Manchester Recording Studios, the largest recording and creative space in Manchester. This was a unique opportunity for children to visit a real studio setting, where professional artists and producers work to create the next chart-topping single or mind-blowing movie soundtrack. The Gallery is the studio’s cutting-edge entertainment space, combining the very best in music, audio and visual technology. Over the course of two days, pupils from 14 schools gathered here to participate in a musical extravaganza they’ll never forget.
The Sing Arounds started with some vocal and body warmups – children practised singing in very, very loud voices, to soft and gentle whispers; they sang high, they sang low, they even sang in the voice of a wicked witch, a monotone robot, and lots of other silly characters. They also practised clapping their hands and stomping their feet to the music. Children learned that singing isn’t just about using their voices, but using body language and facial expression to communicate emotion and ensure their voices are heard. Once their muscles and vocal chords were thoroughly warmed up, they were ready to put on a show.
Children performed a show-stopping medley of fun and lively songs, including Barbecue Blues, Minibeast Rave, and the Mexican Wave song. Pupils were led by the wonderful musicians on stage, Jo Buckler, Jules Kent, and Michael Mukiibi. The audience enjoyed following their directions and listening to their performances on the ukulele, clarinet, and keyboard.
Children got a taste for the spotlight as they were invited to stand on stage and play musical instruments of their own! For their spectacular rendition of I Once Saw An Elephant, a lucky pupil from each school was given the chance to play on the keyboard, drum, flute, guitar and the fiddle. Their terrific performance earned a loud and enthusiastic applause from the audience.
The Sing Arounds also saw performances from Angus and Matthew, talented students from the Royal Northern College of Music. They played the violin and viola, a profound and inspiring testament to what children can achieve if they continue to harness their musical talent, knowledge and skill.
For another year, the Sing Arounds proved to be a resounding success, bringing together children from across Manchester to share musical moments and memories that will be cherished for years to come. One Education is set to host many more exciting performance opportunities in the future, inspiring creativity, confidence and collaboration amongst the city’s children and young people.
The next event will be the EYFS Musical Celebration, taking place on Wednesday, 8 May. Nursery and Reception children are invited to the Stoller Hall to take part in a musical minibeast adventure.
The Big Sing will take place later in the year on Friday 28 June. This year’s event gives primary school pupils the chance to sing and dance along to Country Music at the Bridgewater Hall.
If you would like to find out more about the musical opportunities we offer, please get in touch. A member of our team will be happy to help.
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