Over the weekend our brilliant Yew Chung International School of Beijing choir performed at the Ambassador’s Residence for the British Embassy Christmas Bazaar, and at the Hilton Hotel for the Christmas tree-lighting ceremony. We speak to Mr Devreaux Poole, Primary Learning and Teaching Coordinator, about the performances.

Please give some background to the YCIS Beijing choir.

Our Primary choir has been rehearsing hard since September – following invitations from the Hilton and the British Embassy to perform at their Christmas events.

The choir is open to all students from Years 3-5 and we were overwhelmed by the number of students who signed up this term! At present, our choir is 45-strong and Ms Landy Hwang and I take practices three times a week – two of which take place during break time so it requires lots of commitment from the students.

Please discuss the performances that took place over the weekend.

The performances at the weekend were our choir’s first. On Friday, students brought a lot of festive cheer to the ambassador’s garden with four of their Christmas songs. Guests were so impressed that we have already received an invitation to perform at the German Embassy’s Christmas Bazaar next year!

At the Hilton, we performed two songs with children from the local charity, Migrant Children’s Foundation. It was very special to come together with these fellow students from different backgrounds and celebrate Christmas together.

What do the children get out of performing?

Singing together in a choir generates a brilliant sense of belonging, reinforcing our community, and students and families are always proud to be representatives of the school.

It has other positive effects too, including helping our children build self-confidence and allowing them the valuable experience of performing in public.

It is also great to see how families have come together to support the choir – not just by practicing songs with their children at home, but also by coming out to the events to watch and cheer.

Most importantly, it is great to see the children enjoy themselves onstage and show off all the hard work they have put in.

What was the highlight of the weekend’s shows?

The very first song on Friday. I was a little apprehensive beforehand, but the moment they started that apprehension melted away. They were loud, confident, jolly and beautifully clear. It made all the hours we’d put in absolutely worthwhile.

When can we see them next?

The choir will be performing at BICF (Liangmaqiao Road) this Sunday, and again at the Primary Christmas concerts on the 11^th and 12^th of December. Come along and support!