HUDDERSFIELD is bursting with musical talent!
And a total of 1,750 young people from schools across Kirklees have proudly shown off their musical expertise.
They have been taking part in a series of musical showcase events as part of the Sing Up for Kirklees project.
Some 250 children from local high schools took part in the Kirklees Musical Showcase at St Paul’s Hall.
And yesterday, 1,500 pupils packed Huddersfield Town Hall in two polished singing performances as part of Kirklees Council’s massive musical project.
Barbara Lawson, school improvement officer for Kirklees Council, said: “It has been outstanding.
“We’ve got so much talent in Kirklees I feel very proud to be part of it all.
“The teachers have really brought out the best in the children and the children have really risen to the occasion.”
Katy Field, head of music at Colne Valley Specialist Arts College, thought up the idea of a musical showcase at St Paul’s Hall, in the grounds of Huddersfield University.
She said: “It just occurred to me that there was never any opportunity for secondary or middle school pupils to see one another’s musical work and what happens in one another’s schools.”
Students from Kirkburton Middle School, Salendine Nook High School, The Mirfield Free Grammar and Sixth Form, The Community Science College at Thornhill, Whitcliffe Mount, Castle Hall, Colne Valley Specialist Arts College, Scissett Middle School and Earlsheaton Technology College all took part.
Scissett Middle School boys Adam Maloney and Seth Morley performed a rock medley with their school’s group “Only Boys Aloud”.
Adam, the lead guitarist, said: “We are a choir but we’ve also got guitars and drums.”
The 13-year-old said their teachers had let the boys-only group have a lot of input into the performance and they had chosen a selection of rock music including hits by Guns N’ Roses and The White Stripes.
Brother and sister Laura and Peter Turner, from Salendine Nook High School, brought drama to the stage in a theatrical performance of The Phantom of the Opera.
The pair decided to perform the song from the Andrew Lloyd Webber musical after winning a school talent show.
Mum Andrea Turner helped out by making their outfits.
She said: “It has been a family affair because my husband found the backing track and I’ve made the costumes. We’re like the Von Trapps.”
Children from primary schools performed a range of songs at the town hall. Parents packed out the hall for the morning and afternoon concerts.
Sing Up is a national singing programme to encourage singing in primary schools. The initiative is championed by the composer and broadcaster Howard Goodall and is supported by a £40m Government investment.
