The Windsinger Inspires Musical Compositions
The Sixth Grade summer reading book, The Wind Singer, by British author William Nicholson, centered on the lost sounds of the mystical instrument, the Wind Singer, and children's resolve to hear it once more.
In the book's Aramanth community, with its mantra of "Better today than yesterday. Better tomorrow than today," the hard-working citizens no longer enjoy the songs of The Wind Singer. But the sweet notes had become derelict: The Wind Singer's “voice” had been stolen by the enemy, the Morah.Three youngsters set off to find and reclaim the voice and allow the Windsinger to sing again.With this first volume of a planned trilogy, author Nicholson illustrates values such as tolerance and the importance of individuality.
Led by Lower School music teacher Matthew Etherington, sixth graders aimed to create the sound of the Wind Singer – imagining how it might "sing." Working in small groups, they used a variety of instruments (percussion, keyboards, voices, recorders) to create a short composition, which was recorded on video and played at the summer reading assembly.
