Before last night, my previous trip to the National Stadium was to see an old school mate play with Whole Lotta Zepp last October.
I took the kids to see the matineé, along with a few friends and their kids.
It was unreal. We witnessed an incredibly talented group of musicians putting on an incredible show.
They balanced a fun show for a younger audience with a mighty tribute to Led Zeppelin’s unique sounds.
Edie and Nico enjoyed the spectacle of 3 drummers doing incredible solos as much as they loved the freedom of being at a live gig with kids their ages, running around safely. Not sure they appreciated the renditions of Whola Lotta Love and Stairway to Heaven as much as the ‘oldies’ did.
So what was on last night?
Last night was a different kettle of fish.
Edie and her school mates formed a choir with kids from a handful of other schools across Dublin. The Big Sing gives primary school children the “joy of performing in front of a live audience in a large professional venue”.
There was a whole lotta difference!!
Some parents loved it, others found it hard to sit through
“What a racquet – pure shite! Basically, they charge a large crowd of parents to hear their kids sing out of tune. They should be paying me! I have to listen to enough of that shite at home every day with the pair of them stomping around the house without a note in their head!”, was one particularly amusing review offered by a less enthusiastic critic as we left the venue.
“Amazing, to see her singing is such a rarity. To do so on stage in front of an audience, it will do her wonders”, was a review from the other end of the spectrum.
A few things stood out for me…
The fun. The amount of fun the kids from all schools had. Watching them was far more entertaining than listening.
The teachers. No overtime pay for them on a Tuesday night. And not a hint of passive resistance about being there either. They love their jobs. They love seeing the boys and girls embrace the opportunity, encouraging and supporting them every step of the way.
The inclusion. Children with a range of needs and abilities took part. Music can be like a binding agent sometimes. I saw this last year in a school production of Matilda – they all came together in a new and different way.
It wasn’t long after that production of Matilda last year before the 6th Class girls left primary school.
Edie and her friends have a whole new chapter ahead of them soon too.
So what might you or I take from The Big Sing? My reflections and learnings include….
- We can tune into cynicism and judgement, as I did for a while last night, but it won’t help performance in any way.
- My experience transformed when I tuned into the present moment, and appreciated what I tuned into. That same simple truth is available to us all each and every moment of the day. It didn’t remove my objectivity, nor did it shine a turd. I just had a better night and was a more engaged Dad for Edie afterwards.
- There’ll be parts of your job that you love – double down on them. Leverage your strengths.
- Including everyone works for everyone. It creates a platform for untapped potential to be accessed.