In the Victorian period, Christmas celebrations and caroling experienced something of a revival. Their love of parlour songs led to many traditional medieval carols being collected and reworked with new lyrics, and to new songs being composed. Just as many of the other traditions the Victorians brought to Christmas survive to this day (greetings cards, crackers, etc) these carols now form an important part of modern Christmas celebrations.
Using traditional fiddle playing as an accompaniment, Alison will lead students in the singing of several traditional Christmas carols, whilst incorporating elements of social and musical history into the experience. Students might also enjoy dressing as Victorians for the day!
Alison can also provide CPD sessions for teachers. In addition to teaching songs and their history, she can suggest suitable warmups, links to the rest of the curriculum, confidence building for ‘non-singers’, ways of catering to different abilities and achieving high standards.
Details
Age group: foundation, KS1, KS2, KS3+, teacher training
Skills developed: music, rhythm, singing tone and intonation, harmonising ability, creativity, memorisation, teamwork, knowledge of traditional music, history, poetry, English language
