Cambridge Team Outreach Project “Roots”

As part of a new outreach initiative led by the Faculty of Music at the University of Cambridge, the Cambridge team (Susan Rankin and Adam Mathias) have been working with local schools to introduce students to medieval music in a number of ways. This outreach project, entitled “Roots”, aims to trail a new model for music provision within primary and secondary schools across the Cambridgeshire region, and draws together all ages in teaching and enjoying music.

Its partners include the Faculty of Music, Cambridge Early Music, Cambridgeshire Music, Anglia Ruskin University, The Brook Street Band, and internationally acclaimed vocal ensemble VOCES8. The project is joint funded by SoundMe, the Helen Hamlyn Trust, Cambridgeshire Music, and Cambridge Early Music.

As part of the project, new resources and opportunities are provided for classroom teaching by the SoundMe team, and worksheets developed are dedicated to exploring the use of a medieval musical past and its continued relevance today.

The first phase of the project concluded on 19 March 2019 with a concert given by VOCES8 in Trinity College Chapel, Cambridge. Secondary school students from two local schools came together to sing alongside VOCES8 in front of an audience of over 400, performing a range of medieval pieces, included ‘Sumer is icumen in’ (pictured). The event was live-streamed and reached a further audience of over 13,000 people.

This project video tells and shows more about “Roots”.