Cambridge choir to sing with Mumbai slum children

For the first time, a choir from the University of Cambridge - the Jesus College Choir - will perform for and work with slum children in Mumbai as part of a project with the charity Songbound, which aims to change the lives of deprived children through music.

Cambridge is well known for its choral music but this trip marks a departure from the international tours normally undertaken by college choirs, a university spokesperson told IANS Saturday.

During this tour, the Choir will visit Worli and Kamathipura, and perform for children before leading workshops and teaching the children songs and singing techniques that the group hopes they will remember for the rest of their lives.

The Choir will perform Indian songs, songs written by children who are in the slum choirs and a selection of secular and sacred choral classics. The visit will culminate with a joint concert with the children at blueFROG in the Zeba Center March 24, the spokesperson added.

Mark Williams, director of music at Jesus College, said: "This is a unique opportunity for Cambridge students to make a difference through their music-making. We can forget what an enormous privilege it is to live and work in this beautiful city, enjoying all its cultural riches, as we strive for academic and musical perfection, but for the children of the Mumbai slums, the opportunity to sing and work together towards a performance is something that is far from ordinary."

The ultimate goal of the project is to build up a relationship between the College and the choirs run by Songbound, with the hope that, one day, some of the children will be able to come to Britain to perform alongside Jesus College Choir, the spokesperson said.