Did you hear the angels singing?
All of Sooke’s elementary schools recently got together to celebrate Music Monday.
École Poirier had a school-wide assembly where they watched the live webcast from Ontario with Commander Chris Hadfield on May 5. The webcast ended with a synchronized nationwide performance of I.S.S. (Is Somebody Singing?) with former Canadian Space Agency Astronaut Chris Hadfield, led by Maestro Bramwell Tovey of the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra.
Poirier hosted John Muir’s choir and the two choirs performed together at the assembly. In addition, Poirier students sang their school song, Join In at Poirier.
In the afternoon, all of the Sooke zone elementary choirs (Poirier, Sooke, Sasseenos and John Muir) met on the lawns in front of the Evergreen Centre near the kiosk. They performed a few songs together en masse, and then each group headed out to do a circuit of singing throughout Sooke.
Music Monday marks a special day in May when many Canadians celebrate music in their lives and schools. Many schools in the Sooke School District have participated in this event in past years by singing in their schools or coming together with other schools via Skype or in person.
A part of Music Monday’s purpose is to remind the policy-making adults in the world of the valuable contribution music programs give to our students.
In a video posted on the MusicCanada.com website, Commander Hadfield articulated his thoughts.
“I bought my first record at about nine or 10 years old, and listening to music introduced me to cultures and people who were different than I was. And learning to play the guitar taught me to improvise and to be creative, and to be able to be play with a group. And practicing on that guitar, that taught me self-discipline. And these were all fundamental skills that I have used throughout my career. And that’s why I can confidently say that music helped me be a better astronaut.”
