Family & Education
New school choir takes bow for interfaith harmony
Retired head Alan Shaw is bringing children of different faiths together to sing
October 31, 2022 16:15
Retired head Alan Shaw is bringing children of different faiths together to sing
October 31, 2022 16:15Alan Shaw may have retired last year after more than 30 years’ service at the helm of three Jewish primaries.
But you will still find him popping regularly into school to promote his new project — a children’s interfaith choir.
The Barnet Sacre Interfaith Choir brings together 60 children from three primary schools in the North London borough: one Jewish, Rosh Pinah: one Hindu, Krishna Avanti; and one Catholic, St Joseph’s. (Sacres are standing advisory councils on religious education).
They made their public debut at an interfaith event at Hendon Town Hall in summer this year, which Dr Shaw hopes will be the first appearance of many.
The aim, he said, is to “show members of the choir that they can be proud of and loyal to their own cherished traditions, while being respectful to adherents of other faiths who have their own paths to follow. And to show that they can work together in a spirit of cooperation to perform music that can be enjoyed by everyone.”
Their repertoire consists of “feel-good songs” like The Circle of Life, What A Wonderful World and Lean on Me. They also have their own theme song, We Can Get Along — sung to his own tune, originally composed for a rock-musical on Moses he did when he was head of Moriah School.
He directed the school choirs at Moriah and Hasmonean, performing at the Chanukah reception at 10, Downing Street and at the Imperial War Museum. He also took his Jewish choirs to sing at other schools. .
His new venture is proving popular judging from recent auditions, with 69 pupils trying for 20 places at Krishna Avanti and 50 for 20 at St Joseph’s.
He hopes he can get other faith schools on board, too.
He tries to visit each school weekly to rehearse with its “mini-choir”. The full choir of 60 came together four times before their public performance.
Krishna Avanti pupils Yara and Stuti, reflecting on the experience, said, “We never dreamed that we would be able to sing so beautifully together. We hardly knew each other, for starters!
“But as days turned into weeks, and weeks turned into months, we started to realise our musical capability together and it soared higher than the clouds.”