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Singing Schools is a project run by the Music Department of St Edmundsbury Cathedral to support and encourage singing in primary-age schools in and around Bury St Edmunds. Through the vocal workshops which we run in our partner schools, and exciting performance opportunities which bring together children from across the whole programme, our aim is to give as many children as possible in our area the chance to discover and develop a joy for singing. Many of our Cathedral Choristers joined the choir as a result of having participated in the Singing Schools programme.

 

What are the benefits?

 

  • Each school will receive singing workshops from the Cathedral’s music team (up to five per term)
  • Flexible approach tailored to each school’s musical needs
  • Enhances schools’ culture capital
  • Broadens children’s horizons and gives them an enriching new experience
  • Fulfils musical criteria in the National Curriculum
  • Singing is proven to benefit mental health and well-being
  • Gives children opportunities to perform at the Cathedral, either in the context of a service or in a concert. In March 2023, students from Ickworth Park Primary School sang alongside the Bury Bach Choir at the Apex concert hall.
Future Plans

 

Singing Schools aims to hold two or more exciting performance opportunities each year. Current plans include:
  • November 2023: Messy Messiah. A chance for children to be involved with a performance of the first part of Handel’s masterpiece, including the famous Halleluia Chorus, with an orchestra and professional soloists
  • Summer 2024: a summer concert giving schools the opportunity to perform on their own as well as together
  • November 2024: Noye’s Fludde. This work by Benjamin Britten combines music, art, drama and dance in an extraordinary account of the story of Noah’s Ark.

 

Partner Schools

 

Here is a list of some of the schools with whom we have worked, or have plans to work with in future:

  • Abbots Green Academy
  • Bardwell Primary School
  • Barrow Primary School
  • Cheveley Primary School
  • Culford School (Prep)
  • Howard Primary Academy
  • Ickworth Park Primary School
  • Kersey Primary School
  • Mildenhall Primary School
  • South Lee School
  • St Edmundsbury Primary School
  • Tollgate Primary School
  • Westgate Primary School

 

For more information about Singing Schools and how you can get involved, email Director of Music, Claudia Grinnell, at claudiagrinnell@stedscathedral.org