Climate concert collaboration

Bondholder Sinfonia Viva has performed alongside students from Derby schools as part of a creative project tackling the emotive subject of global warming.

Supported by Bondholders Derby City Council, Foundation Derbyshire and Rolls-Royce, the project included 80 students from fellow Bondholder Derby College Group, The Bemrose School, and Becket and Firs primary schools.

The students worked with science director, film maker and children’s author Emma Murphy at Bondholder Derby Museums, in order to learn more about the world’s reliance on fossil fuels, the impact of these on the earth’s climate and the future of renewable energies.

They then took part in workshops with Viva composers and musicians to learn new songs written by James Redwood and Hazel Gould and compose their own music.

Students performed twice alongside Sinfonia Viva on the stage of Bondholder Derby Theatre, under the baton of Principal Conductor Frank Zielhorst, also incorporating sign language as well as being fully BSL interpreted for the audience by Sarah Gatford.

The afternoon concert was attended by pupils from other schools in the city and county who also learnt and joined in the songs after working with Derby and Derbyshire Music Partnership and working through education packs about renewable energy.

As well as playing alongside the young people, the 14-piece orchestra performed three short pieces including a specially-commissioned composition by female composer Dani Howard which is a contemporary take on Beethoven’s third of six Bagatelles to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the composer’s birth.

Viva composer and workshop leader, Jessie Grimes, said: “It was clear throughout the project that climate change is something that even the youngest of the participants were very engaged with.

“Hearing the emotion that the young people brought to the song lyrics resonated with everyone in the audience that changing our focus from fossil fuels to renewable energy is something we should all care about and strive for.”

Sinfonia Viva Education Manager, Marianne Barraclough, added: “Education projects such as these provide a wonderful creative and learning experience for the young participants. The culmination concert was a wonderful mix of music performed by the young people and pieces performed by the Orchestra.”