Camden Music Festival returns to Royal Albert Hall

The 13th Camden Music Festival took place on Monday, which also marked the 25th anniversary of the event, which takes place every two years.

Pupils from 53 Camden schools, teachers, music tutors, musicians and composers came together to perform an eclectic array of original, classical, jazz and international songs.

Camden's Concert Band, Camden Youth Orchestra and the Youth Jazz Band with classic, nostalgic and contemporary pieces.

Among the many standout performances, the Camden Primary Choir used British Sign Language as they sang Come On All Children.

Camden primary pupils used sign language when singing one of their songs 'Come on All Children' (Image: Camden Council)

Argyle and Edith Neville pupils sang and danced to Bengali tune Momer Putul, with accompanying dance.

Any fan of Netflix's Stranger Things would recognise the Secondary Choir adaption of Kate Bush's Running Up That Hill (A Deal With God). 

Hold On by the pupils from Hawley and Holy Trinity & St Silas, with its layered technological beat, was haunting and hugely entertaining with voices interjecting with familiar phrases such as 'your position in the queue is 97'.

Massed choirs and musicians from Camden's schools in the Royal Albert Hall (Image: Camden Clean Air)

Camden to the Caribbean was a specially commissioned piece created with pupils from St Alban’s, St Mary and St Pancras and Fleet primary schools, and Regent High School as part of a Windrush project.

School pupils perform 'Camden to the Caribbean' with Kinetika Bloco, which was part of a Windrush project (Image: Camden Council)

Performance group Kinetika Bloco worked with students on drums, steel pans and brass instruments bringing calypso, soca and ska music into the hall.

The event, organised by Camden's Music Service, with support from the Camden Music Trust, Camden Learning, Arts Council England and London Music Fund, was hosted by former Ryhl and Haverstock pupil Nelufar Hedayat.

Coming from Afganistan as a youngster, the journalist and presenter wanted to "personally thank" her music teacher for "saving my life".

Camden Council leader Cllr Georgia Gould with former education director Bob Litchfield (Image: Camden Council)

Watching the show was founder and Camden's former head of education Bob Litchfield, whose idea it was to "bring all schools together".

"We did it, we tried it and it was a great success," he said.

Camden Youth Orchestra at the Royal Albert Hall (Image: Camden Council)

"I'm very proud of what's gone on in those last 25 years and the fact Camden Council has kept its commitment to music and young people, that's good to see so I feel really pleased to be part of it all."