National Concert Hall date for schools

TWO local schools are to perform at the National Concert Hall in Dublin next week as part of a prestitigious national music competition.
Both Holy Family Senior Primary School and Knockanean National School have made it to the finals of the Waltons Music for Schools Competition.
The finalists in the first annual national competition and celebration of music in Ireland schools were recently announced by Lyric FM presenter Liz Nolan. The 12 finalist schools will travel to and perform at the National Concert Hall in Dublin on Monday, April 16 at 1pm, when six schools, three primary and three post-primary, will be chosen to win first, second and third prizes, as well as €3000, €1500 and €500 vouchers.
In deciding to make Holy Family Senior a finalist, judges acknowledged that in addition to a 120-strong choir and an 80-strong chamber choir, tuition in several instruments and a newly introduced violin teaching programme, Holy Family Senior Primary School has “taken highly creative approaches to developing music in the school”. These include a daily listening programme in which two children speak through their PA system and announce their featured ‘composer of the week’, each day telling the school a little more about the composer, after which a piece is played; and a ‘mobile singing squad’ of children who visit each class to help lead/teach new songs.
The school would use a Waltons Music for Schools Prize to get a range of instruments and replace their keyboard, which has ‘been through the wars’. Their entry is One Small Voice from Sesame Street, performed by the 80-strong Holy Family Chamber Choir.
In the case of Knockanean National School, the judges noted that the school has a vibrant 85-member ‘music club’, for students from second to sixth class, that takes place during an extended lunchtime session once a week.
Students participate in the music club at no cost and the only requirement is full attendance of all sessions. The music club explores all genres of music, which is simplified and arranged to suit a wide range of musical abilities.
“The music club has a clearly developed philosophy of inclusiveness and participation that could be a model for other schools,” the judges noted.  Knockanean National School would use a Waltons Music for Schools prize to purchase a digital piano as well as other instruments that none of the children would otherwise have the opportunity to experience.
Their entry is Unfinished Seasons, made up of an original composition by fifth class students and traditional airs and performed by Cnoc An Éin, a 56-strong group of instrumentalists and singers.
According to a spokesperson for the competition, “It was a very difficult task for our team of four judges – two from Waltons and two from Lyric FM – to choose the 12 finalists in our first annual Waltons Music for Schools Competition from amongst the many excellent entries and the students and teachers of every single school that participated should be very proud of their achievements.
“We not only received a large number of entries but it was also gratifying to see how different schools – small and large, rural and urban – have worked imaginatively to develop fantastic music programmes, often with very limited resources.
“We would like to thank the many schools around the country that participated in this competition for their wonderful effort and creativity. Remember that this year’s is only the first of many competitions, so if your school wasn’t a finalist, there’s always next year.”