Pupils in Spain for filming of musical project

Lindisfarne is one of five middle schools taking part in The European Music Show, a two-year intercultural arts project, supported by the EU’s ERASMUS+ programme.

It will culminate in the production of a musical film created by the students themselves in which the pupils sing songs in their own language, but also in others’.

The other four schools are in Palermo, Sicily; Paris, France; Algarrobo, Spain; and Böblingen, Germany, in a project that is the first of its kind.

Following preparatory work such as getting to know one another online and writing lyrics, the first scenes were shot during the first European Musical Week, which took place in Algarrobo in Andalusia this month.

Lindisfarne Middle School’s subject leader for French, Sofi Dixon, said: “The atmosphere in Spain was unbelievable. For the children, it really exceeded their expectations.

“They made lots and lots of friends and, as a teacher, it was one of the most, if not the most, heart-warming things of my career.”

Next up is a trip to Paris at the end of April, followed by Palermo in May before Alnwick is the host in September, where filming is to take place in the town centre, possibly at The Alnwick Garden and in some of the neighbouring villages.

Böblingen, near Stuttgart, will be the final host, in November, before the editing process begins and it is hoped to hold a premiere in June next year.

For reports from the pupils on the first musical week in Spain, visit our website.

See the-european-music-show.org for more.

Stewart O: The European Musical is a project funded by Erasmus+ and is a great opportunity for the kids from 5 different countries to meet up, make friends and work together to produce a movie.

It has given me the opportunity to try new things, become more confident and make lots of new friends.

Anna M: The European Musical is a once in a life time opportunity to get middle school students from five different European counties to work together on a musical in five different languages, filmed in five different countries.

The lucky schools taking part are:: Lise-Meitner Gymnasium from Germany, College Alberto Giacometti from France, IES Trayamar-Spain, ICS Padre Pino Puglisi – Italy and Lindisfarne Middle School –England.

To complete the filming, students spend a week in all these countries once they practiced some basic language, the songs, script and dance routines in their own schools. It is a fabulous opportunity to take part in workshops, to mix with children of similar age without the classroom pressures. We get to learn languages from each other, experience different cultures and find friends for life.

At the end of the week in Algarrobo, Spain, where we started filming our movie, we all felt we had grown so much as people!

Eve H: Once we landed in Malaga, we met the German team and travelled together to our accommodation. We got to know each other and took a trip down to the beach and soaked up the sun. Afterwards, when we got back, we welcomed the French! The Italian team came the next day.

We met the Spanish and we had a quick tour of their school. We enjoyed seeing how different the school and the atmosphere were there! We also discussed how the filming was going to happen. This was something new for all of us and it was very exciting! Some parts of the upcoming film were shot there, at the school.

We filmed in Nerja and on the beautiful beach in Algarrobo, only 5 minutes away from our hostel.

In addition, we got the opportunity to visit the famous Alhambra and we had a very interesting tour guide who taught us many things we didn’t know. We also filmed some beautiful scenes there, so watch out for our movie!

Other scenes were done in the beautiful town of Granada where we took the advantage to have more icecream in the sunshine!

Finally, the last parts were filmed in the gorgeous gardens of the hostel. We had a paella feast under a most beautiful tree, with breath-taking views of the Mediterranean, enjoyed traditional singing and flamenco dancing.

Friends were made throughout the week and bonds that could last a lifetime!

Finlay W: On the 5th of March, eight British students flew to Malaga airoport with high heads. We arrived at Algarrobo and met children from France, Germany, Italy and Spain, and teachers from there too.

It was an amazing opportunity to learn new languages. It was an awkward sensation, everyone speaking a different language- but it was exciting and interesting. My favourite parts of the trip were on the sunny beaches and when we filmed in Nerja. I made lots of new friends and built up my self-esteem throughout the trip. We are filming the first ever musical in five different languages – it’s incredible!