On 10th November 2017, 30 pupils from year 5 went to the UK Centre for Carnival Arts in Luton to perform in a concert with Amjad Ali Khan who is a famous musician from India. He has written a new work called ‘Roots of Fire’, a fusion of Asian and English traditions, in collaboration with renowned conductor David Murphy. We were one of only three schools in the country chosen to take part in a series of workshops in school with David to learn rhythms and vocal techniques from India to perform with Amjad Ali Khan. He brought some musicians to the workshops so that we could learn about different instruments, and also gave pupils the opportunity to practise conducting. 

At the concert, we performed excerpts from `Roots of Fire` with the Sinfonia Verdi Orchestra and Amjad Ali Khan under David`s direction. One pupil sang a solo backed by Amjad and the orchestra. Another pupil had the opportunity to conduct the orchestra. After the concert we had photos taken with David and Amjad. The orchestra and Amjad Ali Khan went on to perform the whole of `Roots Of Fire` at a more formal evening concert and used some of the pupils` ideas in that concert. The whole project was an exciting and enjoyable learning experience and we thank David Murphy and all those involved.