Main menu

Search

Article

The Education Diaries: March 2025

Monday 24 March 2025

Last month, our musicians performed an incredible 10 concerts for children in schools and concert venues across London in 5 days.

Over this duration, the OAE was heard by a total of 1,387 children and 352 adults. This includes 644 attendees at our Early Years concerts, 730 at our Key Stage 1 concerts, and 210 for OAE TOTS: A Day at the Pond.

Each year we offer Early Years and KS1 programmes to our partner schools across London. We provide in-depth resources (printed & digital) for use by teachers and music specialists to support the projects and give a lasting legacy. Our players who visit schools then perform in the schools’ concerts, breaking down the barriers between audience and performer. Pupils become active performers in our concerts: singing, playing and listening.

In the Early Years and OAE TOTS ‘A Day at the Pond / Mausam’ concerts (for ages 2-5), we explored Western and Asian classical music and dance in a beautifully crafted show by Hazel Gould, a collaboration between the OAE, Orchestras Live, Amazing Music Projects (AMP) and South Asian Arts-uk (SAA-uk).

Begun in 2021, this collaboration has seen SAA-uk and the OAE introduce children across the UK to their respective musical traditions through a series of digital resources – including five short films narrated by Seetal Kaur, a fully illustrated resource pack, and a scheme of work linked to the curriculum – as well as through workshops and live shows.

"We felt very privileged to be able to experience a performance like this. The children and accompanying parents all loved it and at least one of the children has asked for double bass lessons!"

Early Years teacher

"I liked the dancing and all the instruments and I liked the lovely music. I was loving the story and I liked the actions. "

Early Years student

Students in Years 1 and 2 took part in the Key Stage 1 (KS1) ‘Full of Surprises’ concerts by composer James Redwood where they delved into six Haydn symphonies. They discovered the composer’s unusual sense of humour and learned about musical building blocks and the instruments of the orchestra.

"It was fantastic. We’ve got Year 1s who are five and six and if I try and talk to them for more than about two minutes in a row they get very fidgety and this was an hour-long concert and they all were so engaged throughout which was fantastic."

KS1 teacher

"It was a top-class performance, wasn’t it, and the children aren’t used to seeing orchestras and being in a venue like this, so it was a really good experience for them. Even just sitting and listening to music and not having to do anything else – it’s a really good skill for them to learn. I think they really, really enjoyed it."

KS1 teacher

Both the Early Years and KS1 concerts were the culmination of months of workshops with teachers and students in London primary schools. These annual OAE projects (which also include a KS2 strand, due to take place this summer) give children the chance to be both performers and audience members in concerts.

"They're telling all their friends about it. The other year groups are also talking about it, who haven't even been part of it."

KS1 teacher

The two OAE TOTS concerts gave younger children (and their adults) the opportunity to experience the music and story of ‘A Day at the Pond’ in an interactive concert.

"The session was so beautifully curated and put together. Very special."

Tots parent

Our next OAE TOTS at Acland Burghley will be on 1 June – we hope to see you there for our new show, Enchanted TOTS in Tufnell Park.

A student participating in an open workshop with violinist Matthew Truscott and other members of the OAE

Japanese conductor Masaaki Suzuki conducts the OAE with singer Florian Stortz

OAE musicians run a workshop in a school classroom

Did you know you can support the OAE?

We are redefining what it means to be an orchestra in the 2020s. Support the OAE today.

£20

£50

£180

Support us

Be part of our story

Main menu

Support us

Our Mission

Support us

Be part of our story

Search

Support us

Be part of our story

The Education Diaries: March 2025

Monday 24 March 2025

Last month, our musicians performed an incredible 10 concerts for children in schools and concert venues across London in 5 days.

"We felt very privileged to be able to experience a performance like this. The children and accompanying parents all loved it and at least one of the children has asked for double bass lessons!"

"I liked the dancing and all the instruments and I liked the lovely music. I was loving the story and I liked the actions. "

Key Stage 1 'Full of Surprises' concerts

"It was fantastic. We’ve got Year 1s who are five and six and if I try and talk to them for more than about two minutes in a row they get very fidgety and this was an hour-long concert and they all were so engaged throughout which was fantastic."

"They're telling all their friends about it. The other year groups are also talking about it, who haven't even been part of it."

OAE Tots: A Day at the Pond

"The session was so beautifully curated and put together. Very special."

Did you know you can support the OAE?

Hear it first

Sign up to our newsletter

Last month, our musicians performed an incredible 10 concerts for children in schools and concert venues across London in 5 days.

"We felt very privileged to be able to experience a performance like this. The children and accompanying parents all loved it and at least one of the children has asked for double bass lessons!"

"I liked the dancing and all the instruments and I liked the lovely music. I was loving the story and I liked the actions. "

"It was fantastic. We’ve got Year 1s who are five and six and if I try and talk to them for more than about two minutes in a row they get very fidgety and this was an hour-long concert and they all were so engaged throughout which was fantastic."

"They're telling all their friends about it. The other year groups are also talking about it, who haven't even been part of it."

"The session was so beautifully curated and put together. Very special."

Did you know you can support the OAE?

You might also be interested in

Enchanted Tots in Tufnell Park

When it's good to be loud!

Tea with Netty #33: Cherry Forbes, OAE Education Director

Hear it first

Sign up to our newsletter