May 21st - Day 33

Ivydale Primary School International Evening, featuring steel pans, samba band, African percussion, choirs, dancing and good food.

December 4th - Day 230

Earlier this year a very special picture book was created (with the help of teachers, staff, parents and carers and members of the local community) by the children of Ivydale Primary School.

"The project started with a number of artists, writers and illustrators working alongside the children of the school to create a story book written entirely by the children themselves. Each development in the story and each design of the pages were decided by the children. The book they created is called Bob and the Magical Globe." That is quoted from the London Bubble Theatre website and it was they who collaborated with the school and the children on the next step - to turn the book into a stage version.

Tonight, after nine weeks of rehearsal, was the public show at The Albany Theatre in Deptford. Frankly I didn't know what was going on and it was brilliant. A grinning, psychedelic feast of colour and movement and sound. The songs were generally existing pieces of music imaginatively re-jigged for the show. My favourite was the punky closing number originally called The Motorbike Song (need to check original artist), that had the kids gloriously chanting the eponymous chorus "Bob, Bob and The Magic Globe!! Bob, Bob and the Magic Globe!!" (that's what it sounded like to me anyway).

The link below details the transformation from book to stage, chronicled by Adam from the London Bubble Theatre...
http://www.londonbubble.org.uk/explore_stuff/message_boards/thread/117

January 22nd - Day 279

This quartet weren't valiantly performing in the lounge of a sinking ship, but at Ye Olde Rose And Crown in Walthamstow. They were led by pianist Soh Breezy, performing "jazz and popular standards" and featuring a very lovely flute sound...apart from when the flautist was a saxophonist. Soh wasn't shy to comment on the lack of applause between songs, a situation we tried our best to rectify. The cause wasn't helped by the decision to have the musicians playing in a room which may have as well have been in the next door building with the wall knocked down.

Soh and her comrades were my second musical experience of the day. The first was utterly unexpected. My phone rang around eight in the morning. Liz told me that Oliver had just told her that he was performing in a school assembly an hour later. He hadn't mentioned it before, because he was being a girl. By that I mean he was playing the part of a girl, not that he was being a wuss for not telling us. Liz had to work, but I was able to go. It turned out that Year 5 had written an opera. Well, sort of. Well, yes, they had written an opera! With the help of the Pegasus Opera Company and, as ever, the fantastic music staff of Ivydale School. They showcased some of the piece to the rest of the school. Then, at first expertly led by a couple of Year 5 children, and secondly by two members of Pegasus, the pupils, the parents and the teachers were led through an interactive workshop of song and movement. In March, the Year 5 children will be performing with 400 others at the Royal Festival Hall, all of whom have written their own operas, the best songs of which are being chosen for the one big performance. At least I think that's what's happening. Click the link below to find out. All in all this was a pretty awe-inspiring way to start the day.

And, after yesterday's double hit of musicians formerly encountered during the project, there was another one today. The guy from Pegasus was Aga, the same Aga I saw playing clarinet at Chelsea and Westminster Hospital on November 5th. After I'd re-introduced myself to him, I remembered that I haven't yet added words to the photo for that day. I will sort that out...in a minute...

sohbreezy.com

pegopera.org

roseandcrowntheatrepub.webeden.co.uk

February 3rd - Day 291

When I set out on my quest, the rules I set were, as it says at the top, "to experience live music in any form every day for a year. No one experience the same." From that I have not wavered. I also told myself that I couldn't go to the same place more than ten times in the year. It wasn't long before going back even once to the same place felt lazy, so I think I've done pretty well with that. The nearest I've got to ten is Trafalgar Square (eight times - a mix of buskers, plinthers, festivals, parades and a Michael Jackson flash tribute). Venue-wise I've done the National Theatre Foyer four times (thinking about it, might be five) and The Old Nun's Head four times...no, that's five times too (my labels are less reilable than I thought), though that's divided into Easycome Acoustic thrice and jazz downstairs twice. Even The Bedford, which I felt was treading old ground on Monday, only features three times.

The reason I mention this now is because one place that feels like it now features very heavily is Ivydale School. The label says only three times, but it must be twice as much...I'll have a look after posting this. Each occasion has, however, been a different exprience...steel pans at the international evening, choir rehearsal, Nunhead Community Choir performing at the school, the schoolchildren performing at The Albany...couple more I'm sure...and today, children busking. In the main hall a string quintet/sextet, accompanied by Margaret on piano, performed as parents brought their children in to school. In front of them was a see-through plastic bucket and a sign saying "Donations for Haiti please". "It's lovely coming here in the morning," said one of the mums, "Very uplifting". Different children are busking every day this week. It's Oliver's turn tomorrow. He doesn't know yet.

It turns out today was only the fifth to directly feature the school or its children, though it does pop up on other non-featured days, not least the operatic assembly from a couple of weeks back.

March 24th - Day 340

Not for the first time I find myself sitting in front of my computer, with a few days catching-up to do, and not immediately able to remember what I saw today. Oh yes. Ivydale School again. But not the children. This evening was "Mamas and Papas" cabaret evening, when parents get on stage and perform whatever takes their fancy. Fortunately, due to Ivydale's above average quota of arty parents, some of whom perform for a living, this was not as teeth-clenching as it sounds. I had the children with me - a creche was set up in one of the classrooms - and the length of my attendance collerated directly with Daisy's tiredness and "want to go home" levels. So my hope was for a musical turn early on. First up was Oliver and Daisy's mum...

...Liz, who does perform music, but, for the first half at least, stuck to her role of non-musical compere. Next up...

...Tim. Tim has already appeared five times during my musical year, though naturally he has only been the "featured artist" once. A prize for anyone who can find Tim's five other days. Next up...

...four members of staff dancing to Abba's Dancing Queen. I think they may have been singing along, but with Daisy holding up well, it made sense to hang on a bit. Next on stage was Richard...

...a poet who doesn't sing and thus of no use to me at this time. After Richard came John...

 

...who sang and played guitar. Hoorah. And just in the nick of leg of time, because after his performance I had to go into the school playground to hunt pterodactyls. Daisy came with me. It was her idea.