Lower School Collaborates with Scottish Opera

A partnership that has flourished for more than a decade, this annual collaboration gives children the unique opportunity to experience the magic of live theatre, working with professional performers while developing confidence, resilience and teamwork. This year marked an exciting milestone as Primary 4 pupils joined the production for the very first time extending this incredible opportunity to even more pupils.

Ahead of the performance, we caught up with Mr Somerville, Principal Teacher of Music, to find out more about what makes this collaboration so special, the skills our pupils develop along the way, and why experiences like these leave a lasting impression long after the final applause.

Can you tell us about the recent collaboration with Scottish Opera and what our Lower School pupils have been involved in?

Our collaboration with Scottish Opera goes back over ten years and it is always a joy to work with them. They provide us with everything needed to teach our pupils the songs and actions ahead of a final performance to parents and families. In our recent collaboration for the ‘The Dragon of the Western Sea,’ each class was given a different role to learn; one class were the Pirates, another represented India and another Africa.

Miss Addison and Mr Cowling teach each group the songs and actions before the day and then the Scottish Opera cast sprinkled their magic on the morning of the performance. The Scottish Opera play the main roles with our pupils being the chorus.

What opportunities does working with an organisation like Scottish Opera give to children at this age?

It gives our pupils an unforgettable opportunity and something to aspire to when they are older. Many of the children at this stage will not have been involved in the theatre and it gives them a real insight into what goes into putting on a production. The thrill of achieving something like this and hearing the applause is a real boost for their confidence. For those who are new to performing it is also a reward for showing resilience. We hope this experience will help them to get involved in our other music and drama activities throughout the year.

How have the pupils responded to learning and performing for parents?

As you can imagine the pupils have loved every minute of the attention, support and encouragement! It really reinforces the benefits of teamwork and the mental health benefits that the creative arts bring. It is the first time we have involved our Primary 4 class which could be a daunting prospect at such a young age however they embraced the challenge with confidence and enthusiasm. Every one of them was incredible, and it was clear they enjoyed every minute of the experience.

What skills, both musical and personal, do pupils develop through experiences like this?

I would say resilience and confidence, and combining pitch, rhythm and movement.  It takes a lot of determination to learn the melodies, some of which are quite challenging as they have hints of the intervals used by the different cultures such as India and Africa.  Then you have to add on the words, sometimes in other languages, as well as actions and knowing where you are supposed to be and when.  It is an excellent way to exercise your brain using cross-hemispheric learning.

In what ways does this partnership support the wider music education we offer at school?

It is an activity that will stay with pupils for the rest of their lives and it moves music outside of the classroom into a magical environment. The skills that are being used and developed by the Scottish Opera are things that we have been training the pupils in since nursery; skills in listening, singing, word recital and how to perform in different situations in a positive way.

Were there any standout moments during rehearsals or the final performance that particularly captured the spirit of the project?

For me it was the kindness shown by the children to each other when they were putting everything together on the morning of the performance. They gently helped one another, if someone forgot where they were supposed to be or what they were doing. They were so naturally supportive to everyone and all wanted to do the best they possibly could.

Looking ahead, how do experiences like this help inspire pupils’ confidence, creativity, and long-term love of music?

These experiences always have a huge impact on our pupils' confidence, creativity and love of music. There is always a lot of singing of the songs in the playground and lots of little performances of their own creation. It shows another side to singing and gives it a focus and a purpose.  

A big thank you to Scottish Opera for continuing to inspire our young performers and helping to create such memorable opportunities for our pupils. We look forward to welcoming them back for many more collaborations in the years to come.