Carnival of the Animals Workshop

The youngest pupils at King's School were treated to a fantastic musical workshop given by pianists Philippa Harrison and James Willshire. The Ivor Gurney Hall became the perfect concert venue for the young audience. Pupils from Kindergarten to Upper Transition (Year Two) were asked to march and conduct to Schubert, raise their hands when hearing a cuckoo, and give an almighty 'roar' when the bass of the piano sounded like a lion! Accomplished pianists, Philippa and James, asked the children to listen out for various musical elements between playing each movement of 'The Carnival of the Animals' by Saint-Saens.

There were plenty of volunteers to sit at the piano and play the black keys, whilst James accompanied them with some music by Ravel. The children were eager to give answers about their thoughts when they heard the piano duo play the magical sounding 'The Aquarium', including "stars" and "Harry Potter". There are already some budding pianists amongst these pupils, and I am sure that hearing these distinguished musicians playing wonderful classical music will have really inspired them!