Achi news desk-
Hundreds of students gathered in the gymnasium at Shipyard Elementary in Sydney for Music Monday – and this year’s music had a message.
“Our program today was built around the theme of reconciliation,” said Kelli Brewer, arts education consultant for the Cape Breton-Victoria Regional Education Centre.
Two of Monday’s performers were Emma Stevens and Devon Paul, a well-known singer and rapper – respectively – from Eskasoni First Nation.
“Focusing as much as I did on music as a kid, music class was a really big thing for me,” says Paul. “Having people come in and do something like this would have inspired me a lot when I was younger. “
The Mi’kmaq performers were joined by the Cape Breton Orchestra. The organizers say the idea was to show how people from different cultures could be united through song.
“The message we hope students take home with us today is that music is a powerful way to express stories, to communicate truth and to get other people to respond by listening and learning and then we all move forward together,” said Brewer.
Organizers said more than 1,000 students from across the Education Center took part in Music Monday celebrations during three separate shows while more watched via web stream.
Some students may not have fully understood the theme of reconciliation, but they said that music already plays a role in their lives through theater or the school band.
“I like the melody. I like all the different notes you can play, and how you can make it feel,” said Ella MacNeil, a Grade 5 student at Tompkins Elementary in Reserve Mines, NS
As students and the musicians came together for a final number – called We Are One – Paul had one more message for the children.
“That anything is possible,” he said.
Monday also marked the 20th anniversary of Music Monday celebrations across Canada.
