'Going on tour is the best part of the year for me and the girls'

Matt O’Keeffe has been Head of Music at a school in the North West of the UK for four years. He says taking his choir on tour is one of his favourite parts of the job.

“I started the choir here from scratch three years ago and it’s amazing that already we’ve sung in the Sagrada Familia in Barcelona, in St Vitus Cathedral in Prague and this year we’ll sing in St Mark’s Cathedral in Venice. We are now a choir with an outstanding international reputation and I’m so proud of my girls. I love spending time with them outside of school, taking them to beautiful parts of the world they wouldn’t otherwise go to.

“We’re in quite a deprived area here and some of the girls have never been abroad before, so I have a sense of huge pride and achievement that I can give them this music tour experience.

“We ensure that every year group is represented in our chamber choir and there’s a lovely atmosphere with Year 7s befriending Year 13s. The choir has developed into a close knit family of pupils of all ages and backgrounds, who use singing as a connection, not only with each other but to the heart and mind of the listener.

“We give out lots of prizes and rewards on tour; for instance we nominate the next Head Chorister, and have lots of team games and time for chilling by the pool. The makes for a lovely relaxed atmosphere which we all really enjoy.

“It’s important to get the right mix of culture and fun on tour. They’re already getting high culture singing in St Vitus Cathedral, so I don’t drag them round museums in the downtime, but just let them relax or go to an aqua park for some fun. It has to be enjoyable.

“The main challenge of touring is the recruitment but when other girls see the wonderful photos of our tours our choristers post on Instagram this can work wonders. There’s no doubt that the busy concert schedule, with the promise of touring and exotic sightseeing has been key to our recruitment and retention. The main benefit of touring is that inevitably it boosts the quality and confidence of the ensemble.

“As a former chorister as a boy, I sung in churches across Europe, so I’m very keen to pass on this experience as a teacher. The main worry is that everything will work out ok and for this it’s great to have the safety net of a tour operator to fall back on – they do remove a lot of the stress.

“For me it’s all about the venues. If you’re planning a tour, make sure you find somewhere exciting to go but somewhere that above all has good performing venues, so you’re not just playing in the middle of nowhere to four people.

“This year we’re off to Venice and I can’t wait. Touring is the thing I look forward to all year. Because it’s all about creating real music in a different setting and it’s just fab!”

Find out more about our music tours to Europe by calling our friendly and expert music team at Travel@club-europe.co.uk. Or click on the links for more on our Spain school music tours, Prague school music tours or Italy school music tours.

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