Harris Federation Raises The Roof At Fairfield Halls With Fantastic Festival Of Music
Fairfield Halls in Croydon was filled with the sound of music earlier this month as hundreds of students from across the Harris Federation came together to perform in a fantastic Festival of Music.
At a time when music education is in decline across the country, the Harris Federation has placed a strong focus on providing students with opportunities to participate in music and, importantly, perform and showcase their talents.
In recent years, the Federation has developed a rich and ambitious music curriculum for both its primary and secondary pupils.
This has included greater access to instrumental tuition, the recruitment of music specialist teachers and an expansion of the co-curricular music programme which now includes a range of choirs, orchestras and ensembles.
The culmination of this work was realised this term with the Federation’s first-ever Festival of Music at Fairfield Halls. The students delivered a packed programme which featured the Harris Harmony Choir and Orchestra comprising students from across the Federation’s schools. The 250-strong choir and orchestra gave a rousing rendition of the Harris Anthem which has been composed by Harris students and the Head of Primary Music at Harris Academy Chobham.
Other stand-out performances included:
- The cross-federation 100-piece Symphony Orchestra performing ‘Mars’ by Holst;
- 'Charleston Dixieland', arranged by a Year 9 student at Harris Academy Beckenham and performed by the Academy’s Dixieland Band;
- An improvised, Jimi Hendrix-inspired epic guitar solo by an incredibly talented Year 5 guitarist from Harris Primary Academy Haling Park;
- 'Never Too Much', arranged and performed by the Year 9 Steel Pan Ensemble from Harris City Academy Crystal Palace;
- A DJ set performed by a Harris Academy Chafford Hundred Student DJ.
As well as the superb group performances which often included students from a number of different schools, there were some awe-inspiring solo performances from students in all years.
Jacqui Lomas (HF), Director of School Improvement, said:
“This has been such an incredible opportunity for our students. Up until now, they have mostly performed in their school halls to their own school communities but this Festival of Music has given them the chance to perform in one south London’s most iconic venues and to a much larger audience.
“The students’ performances were sensational. They were the result of many hours of practising and rehearsals and it was truly inspiring to watch them perform.
"This festival has only been made possible thanks to the Federation’s investment in music education, supported by the generous contributions from the incredible charity Restore the Music over the past four years. Our investment in Central Federation Music Consultants has been key in developing music provision across our Academies. Judging by the quality of today’s performances, it is clear that this combined investment has made a real difference — it has been a joy to see the students flourish and showcase their talents.”
Diane Stirling, the Harris Federation’s Music Consultant, said:
“The talent on display was formidable. Not only were we treated to fantastic classical music performances but we also enjoyed an eclectic range of musical genres from steel pans to DJ sets to jazz. The breadth of music on offer reflects our commitment to giving students opportunities to embrace styles that interest and excite them so that they can explore and showcase their musical talents – whatever they may be.”
Harris Academy Peckham student Esther Olubunmi said:
"I loved the rehearsals because it was great to meet and work with students from other schools.”
Harris Academy Beckenham student Ben Storey said:
"It's been really exciting being involved in this project. The Harris Federation has really developed the music programmes in recent years. We now get so many opportunities and performing at our first Fairfield Halls concert will be something I will remember forever.”
Another Harris Academy Beckenham student, Jan Olak, said:
“It feels really fulfilling to perform in something like this. I've made so much progress and I feel so proud to be able to show this to other people.”