Musical activities for young people Raising awareness of music from an early age is an entertaining support to a formal education
Music plays a key role in the development of individuals and societies. In fact, it contributes significantly to the development of intellectual and manual skills as well as personality from an early age. Furthermore, musical expression has a positive influence on group cohesion when it is experienced together.
Hence, the organisation of workshops and festivals for children and adolescents is an entertaining initiation to a formal education in music. Whether it is to awaken the senses or to encourage active participation, these opportunities have been available in Luxembourg for several years. Do you want to share your musical passion or just play with the younger members of the family? Are you looking for inspiration to awaken your teenage son's taste for music? Here is our selection of musical activities, both face-to-face and digital, aimed at young audiences!
Family activities to inspire toddlers
This summer, neimënster is offering two musical events for children and their families.
On 19th June 2022, at 11 a.m., Rap & Jazz for Kids with the show Nikki Ninja & Afrobeathoven.
Nikki Ninja & Afrobeathoven is a musical show for children aged 7 and upwards, bringing together the world of Luxembourgish hip-hop and jazz through the assembly of the Nicool Project (Nicole Bausch, Nadja Prange and Dennis Scholtes) and Pol Belardi & Afrobeathoven, and a production by Dan Tanson.
Nikki wants to talk about exciting expeditions and sing about her incredible passions in the streets of Räppeldange, the quiet village where she grew up with her friends. Quiet? Not so much! When the evenings are too quiet, Nikki Ninja comes out of the forest and raps with her gang in town!
On 2nd and 3rd July 2022, at 11 a.m., the Big Bang Festival will be packed with jazz, electro and classical concerts.
After a very successful first edition in Luxembourg, the Big Bang Festival will once again take place in neimënster and transform the site into a gigantic playground for children from 5 years old! Interactive shows, visual concerts and musical installations: the Big Bang Festival unfolds original and poetic universes that will amaze the young public.
Kulturhaus Niederanven is also offering musical activities for children in June 2022, so do not miss the agenda.
Just like Caku, the cultural programme for children organised at the Centre des Arts Pluriels Ettelbruck and the Mierscher Kulturhaus. Regularly check the programme of events!
Do you want to learn about music?
The training course "Artistic animation and musical awakening in the crèche" is offered by the Lifelong Learning Portal - lifelong-learning.lu to better stimulate children's creativity and motor skills, as well as to develop their auditory sensitivity and their listening skills.
Don't miss the Hip Hop Marathon, ideal for kids aged 12 and upwards
For several years, the Hip Hop Marathon has been the unmissable event for young people who want to develop their knowledge of hip-hop culture via the creation of rap songs, graffiti murals, hip-hop choreography and learning beatbox, a technique which consists of making music by imitating instruments with your vocal chords and through singing.
Les Rotondes will host the event again on 2nd and 3rd June 2022. This 11th edition will take place around the theme "About time". The Hip Hop Marathon is a large-scale project and Les Rotondes is now counting on two new partners: CAPE - Centre des Arts Pluriels d'Ettelbruck and the Rocklab. This means that the young people will not only perform in Luxembourg, but will also tour the north and south of the country.
Rotondes is a unique location situated in heart of Luxembourg city; it is housed in the former abandoned railway roundhouses. Under the guise of cultural exploration, the cultural centre hosts a wide range of events from live performance to visual arts and music. Its programme essentially caters for young people. Always on the lookout for new talent, the Rotondes has become a hub for new ideas while nurturing a strong link between culture and education. The Rotondes is also a platform where important social issues are addressed in a practical way through workshops and conferences.
An increase in the digital musical offer
Although many stakeholders in the Luxembourg cultural sector have embraced digital media for several years, the health crisis has prompted a re-imagining of the range of musical activities for young audiences, which have multiplied since the spring of 2020.
For many years the Philharmonie has been committed to developing a range of digital content aimed at children of all ages:
- D'Loopino saust duerch héich Wellen is a musical audio book for children from 3 years old. Echoing to the rhythms of Mendelssohn, Bartholdy, Piazzola and Schumann, among others, young children can meet the inhabitants of the sea with the hero Loopino and his friends. The Philharmonie has developed a project based on this hero; it also offers many complementary videos presenting creative and songs. It's a fabulous opportunity not only for children who speak Luxembourgish at home but also for those who are learning this language: the combination of music and language works a treat!
- Do you want to want to discover the instruments used by the orchestra and even build your own mini instruments? The Orchesterinstrumente entdecken mit Juri series of videos (in German) is worth a visit; it also offers tips on how to make a drum using everyday objects.
The Be A HEAR(o) concert series for young audiences, organised by the Rocklab, is also available online. Both educational and entertaining, these videos, aimed at children aged between 9 and 12 invite them to discover and explore the world of pop/rock music from the backstage of a concert at the Rockhal and to get acquainted with the concepts of rhythm, melody and harmony.
The Rocklab completes its digital offer with a series of videos subtitled in French and English to discover tips, games and easy-to-use websites to learn how to make music while having fun. So do not miss the Rocklab for Youngstars and Rocklab New Generation videos.
Also, the Department for the Coordination of Educational and Technological Research and Innovation (SCRIPT, in French), an entity of the Ministry of Education, Children and Youth, has developed several didactic tools to support musical education in schools; they are also available to other interested parties:
- The Zinglibooks e-books have been designed to preserve the music and texts of Luxembourg's heritage.
- The Mir maache Musek project aims to foster innovative activities in the field of music education.
- The Didactic booklets – De Litty aims to raise awareness amongst young people of the cultural life in Luxembourg; they were developed in collaboration with the Musical documentation centre of The National Library of Luxembourg, where they are available. A special edition has been created with Zentrum fir politesch Bildung, which shines a light on the history of Luxembourg from 1830 to 1945 through a representative selection of folk songs: De Litty 7: Lëtzebuerger Fräiheetslidder – Geschicht a Politik am Lidd.
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