Skip to main content

Christmas Treats Concert


If you fancy giving your Christmas jumper an airing in early December, I can think of no better place to go than a Notelets Christmas concert. This morning, the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra Centre, just off Broad Street, was full of children, parents and grandparents wearing a host of Christmas jumpers ready to enjoy some festive music.

There was a real buzz of excitement amongst the families who arrived early to enjoy free craft activities in the foyer before the show. Children were busy making Christmas decorations with plenty of jingle bells attached to shake along in the concert. Alongside the craft, there was an area with various musical instruments for the children to explore. A willing member of the orchestra sat surrounded by children with shakers and tambourines taking requests for Christmas songs on his euphonium. 


The concert itself was very relaxed and lots of fun. Notelets concerts are designed for under fives so wriggling bottoms and excited shouting out is absolutely fine. Children and adults can decide whether to sit on chairs or on  the floor and there is lots to keep children engaged. Today the strings ensemble from the CBSO were dressed as elves and leapt into the room to begin the show with lots of excitement and those all important jingly bells.

The songs in the concert were well know to children and adults with festive favourites such as 'When Santa got Stuck up the Chimney’ and ‘Rudolf the Red Nosed Reindeer.’ The orchestra members were accompanied by a choir and singing along was welcomed. Because we all know that pre school children don’t like sitting still for long, Jane Wright, who presented the show, keep the children busy! They were spotting things, dancing along, listening to a story, marching around or shaking their pre prepared jingle bell decorations. The show, which lasted around an hour, seemed to pass very quickly.


After the performance, children were invited to join members of the CBSO and explore their instruments. Little hands held bows and tried out violins or waited patiently to try out the piano. The interactive elements of the show really did bring music alive for the children. Any Notelets concert would definitely make a great trip for a nursery class.


My family really enjoyed this performance and it made us feel very festive. A word of warning, lots of families are big fans of Notelets concerts and they often sell out. You have to book early particularly if you want the weekend times. We went to our first Notelets concert a few years ago after they were recommended by a friend. Then we went along, enjoyed the show and recommended them to another friend. They really are a badly kept secret amongst families of Birmingham! Tickets for their next concert in March are available now. They are priced at £9 each or £32 for 4. 


Special thanks to CBSO for inviting us along to review the show.



Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Review of Gangsta Granny by Heartbreak Productions.

In 10 years time, my children won’t specifically remember the occasions that I picked them up from school, cooked our favourite pasta dish or watched their swimming lesson. But they will remember some of things that we did that were out of the ordinary. They will remember some of the memories that we made together. As we headed out of the door on Friday evening, I knew we were making memories. I was just hoping it wasn’t going to be because the whole family had got soaked to the skin sitting in a park on a Friday night watching a play. We had a flask full of hot chocolate, a box of malteasers and some large umbrellas borrowed from a neighbour. We were heading to a Heartbreak Productions outdoor show in Walsall Arboretum. It was pretty exciting heading out in the evening and walking through an empty park to get to the bandstand where the show was being staged. When I told Little Lady what we were going to see, she was extremely excited. In fact, we all were because ...
Post a Comment
Read more

MiniBrum

What is it? MiniBrum is a play space for under eights based on the theme of a mini Birmingham. There are different areas for children to explore including a canal barge, a construction zone and a shop. The whole of MiniBrum is designed to support children’s role play and exploration of real life spaces. The unique interactive gallery has been created with the input of over 800 children and families from across Birmingham. Where is it? Mini Brum is part of ThinkTank which is Birmingham’s science museum. MiniBrum is on the third floor next to the recently revamped planetarium. Entry to ThinkTank is £14 per adult and £10.25 per child. Under 3’s are free and during Birmingham term time there is a special adult and toddler (aged 3-5) ticket for £15. Another great offer is the £3 per person entry fee after 3pm on term time weekdays. When does it open? It opens to the public on 25 th May in time for half term. I would expect it to be very busy. My advice woul...
1 comment
Read more

Ocean Odyssey in Times Square

Hitting New York as a family, we were full of excitement and anticipation. We were waiting outside a store for it to open at 9am! We took selfies and videos of the famous sites in Times Square. But soon after that legs were tired. Temperatures were rising and humidity was close to 50%. It was with a sigh of relief that we entered the cool of National Geographic Encounter. Little people will only walk so far and look at so many famous buildings. Ocean Odyssey is an immersive experience that uses the latest technology to take you under the ocean. Our expectations were high as we ‘took the dive’ to our first location- the shallows of the South Pacific. Fish swam under our feet and adults and children jumped around as the creatures interacted with us. Jellyfish responded as we moved our arms and got up close. We loved the fact that Ocean Odyssey isn’t a show that you sit back and watch but an experience that you can interact with. Those tired little legs suddenly weren’t tired anymore...
Post a Comment
Read more