Winds of the World
A pioneering new singing project in local state primary schools from 2026.
Winds of the World is a fully funded singing and music programme for school children aged 7 to 11, delivered through up to 25 musician-led sessions across two terms. It combines singing, listening, musicianship, creative music-making and performance, culminating in a performance involving all participating primary schools as part of the Amersham Festival in 2027.
Amersham Festival of Music is a charity which has been producing a wide range of high-quality live music in Amersham and surrounding areas for over 40 years, alongside workshops for young people, bursary schemes and many other events. In 2025, we set out an ambitious plan to support singing in our local state schools by providing weekly sessions led by youth singing experts. The main aim is to provide children with an exciting musical experience delivered over two full terms, and to support teachers to continue the project over the longer term. Thanks to the very generous support of several foundations and other organisations this is all provided at no cost to schools or participants.
The programme is based on the Danish educational resource Verdens Vinde (The Winds of the World) which is a set of four books, each exploring different parts of the world from a child’s perspective. The first book in this series is called The Dark Wind and this has been specially translated for this project in Amersham. It will be the first time that the publication has been brought to the UK, having been hugely successful and influential in Denmark for many years.
The Winds of the World is special in the way that it has children as co-creators. Around a hundred middle school students offered their contributions to the stories, lyrics and the music. Based on these suggestions, the work was then created by author Cecilie Eken and composer Kirsten Juul Seidenfaden. The Dark Wind is therefore made by professionals who have a direct connection with the target age group of children at Key Stage 2. It is material for children, made in collaboration with children, and it is about children and their wishes. The songs are both excellent for developing children’s voices, fun to learn, appropriate for all abilities, and they encourage children to think more deeply about what they are singing.
The Dark Wind is the core repertoire for 2026/7. It follows a boy searching for his father after conflict changes his home and family life. Through a sequence of contrasting songs, pupils explore fear, courage, separation, reunion and hope, while developing up to and beyond the musical knowledge and skills specified in the Year 4 and 5 curriculums. In each school, sessions are being delivered to a whole year group – either years 4, 5 or 6, by arrangement with the school.
Alongside The Dark Wind, there will be numerous singing games, fun warm-ups, and specific sessions which enable the children to write their own words and music. This compositional element will also form part of the final performance in Spring 2027.
Every participating pupil will receive a book containing the text and musical scores. Further resources such as rehearsal backing tracks are available (including on this page). Delivery is led by one of our expert music leaders or adapted by arrangement to support the school’s existing music provision. All participants will be invited to come together on Saturday 20th March 2027 to sing together for the first time, accompanied by a live band in a special free performance which opens the Amersham Festival Spring season.
Our primary coordinator and music lead Dr Adriana Festeu has an extraordinary range of experience; an internationally renowned mezzo-soprano, voice teacher, lecturer and researcher, she has a passion for helping people discover the joy of singing. Alongside performing opera, song and oratorio all over the world, she also teaches at the Royal Academy of Music and Leeds Conservatoire. Adriana has extensive experience in Learning and Participation projects and working with young voices, leading inspiring education work with organisations including Garsington Opera and Grange Park Opera. She also co-founded Opera Prelude, a charity dedicated to making singing and opera welcoming and accessible. Adriana brings her exceptional musicianship, warmth and imagination to The Winds, and will encourage every child to develop their voice and discover the excitement of making music together.
Tim Keasley is one of the UK’s leading creative workshop leaders, a teacher and presenter who specialises in making music exciting and accessible to everyone. A qualified primary teacher and experienced Music Lead, he has worked with children in primary schools, nurseries, youth centres and SEND settings across the country. Tim leads imaginative projects for organisations including Wigmore Hall, the Royal Academy of Music and the National Youth Orchestra, where he is an Associate Artist. His work brings together singing, storytelling, composition and performance, giving children the confidence to share their ideas and create music collaboratively – his particular focus in Amersham will be on enabling children to create their own music. Tim brings infectious energy, playfulness and exceptional musicianship to projects, ensuring that every child feels included and inspired.
Chris Hopkins is an award-winning conductor, pianist and creative leader, and Artistic Director of the Amersham Festival of Music. He has conducted more than sixty performances at English National Opera and worked with organisations including the BBC Symphony Orchestra, Royal Opera House, Glyndebourne and Opera North. Chris is also Principal Conductor of English Sinfonia and Orchestra of the City and coaches young singers as Head of Vocal Faculty and Preparatory Opera at the Royal Academy of Music. As the initiator of the Winds of the World project in Amersham, Chris has brought together artists, schools and partner organisations, shaping the project’s creative vision and helping to coordinate its delivery. His ambition is to enable all children to access inspiring and meaningful musical experiences, both as listeners and as music makers.
Cecilie Eken is an award-winning author who writes with beauty and imagination in a style of prose that encompasses both the everyday and the poetical. Since her debut in 1993, she has written for children and young people within many genres, from picture books to novels. She has been nominated for the prestigious Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award for three years in a row.
Cecilie is the recipient of numerous awards including the Cultural Ministry's Children's Book Prize twice, the School Librarians' Children's Book Prize and the Danish Academy's Silas Prize. She has also received the Certificate of Honour for Writing for her novel, Sikka's Tale.
'She is one of the country's best fantasy writers', Danish newspaper Politiken wrote.
Kirsten Juul Seidenfaden trained as a pianist and music & movement teacher at the Rhythmic Music Conservatory in Copenhagen, 1998-2003. She also holds a BA from the Department of Musicology at the University of Copenhagen, with a minor in ethnology. Kirsten has an extensive CV in which her work in music for and with children plays a prominent role. She has worked in children’s theatre, music workshops and teaching, and has held roles as diverse as music teacher, composer, music arranger, actor and stomp choreographer.
At the Royal Danish Academy of Music, Kirsten teaches music pedagogy, rhythmic training and the communication of classical music to children and young people. In addition to her teaching, Kirsten also works as a composer, actor, stomp choreographer, music arranger, conductor and pianist.
Since 2003, Kirsten has held several music workshops, including as a Stomp instructor for schools, kindergartens and upper secondary schools, and on the basis of her own material “Lige i øret”, she has held over 50 courses and organised around six annual children’s choral events since 2004. Over the past 12 years she has also provided courses and supplementary training for music teachers, music educators and music school teachers.
Murray Hipkin is a conductor, pianist and répétiteur whose career has centred on singers and the stage. A longstanding member of English National Opera, he has prepared and conducted an extensive range of opera and musical theatre, working closely with performers across more than three decades. Murray is a qualified proofreader and has contributed numerous translations to choral and opera companies. He has also served as Musical Director of North London Chorus and, from 2010 to 2023, the Pink Singers. This deep practical understanding of voices, music and theatre has informed his translation of The Dark Wind, resulting in an English text that is vivid, dramatically direct and natural to sing whilst staying true to the child’s voice at its core.
Tracey Mathias is a writer whose work spans fiction for young adults and translation for performance. Raised in Cardiff and educated in history at Oxford, she worked as a teacher before turning to writing. Her novels Night of
the Party and Silence Is Also a Lie explore belonging, prejudice and political division through compelling personal stories. For The Dark Wind, Tracey has translated the spoken narration, bringing a novelist’s sensitivity to voice, atmosphere and narrative clarity to the work, and helping its story speak directly to a new audience.
Our partner schools in 2026/27 are:
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Chalfont Valley E-ACT Primary Academy
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Chesham Bois C of E Combined School
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Great Missenden C of E Combined School
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Our Lady's Catholic Primary School
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Robertswood School.
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Sponsors
We are hugely grateful to all the individuals and organisations whose generous support has made this project possible. These include:
Scouloudi Foundation
The Coln Trust
An anonymous donor
Friends of Amersham Festival