“Songs In Europe” is an EU Lifelong Learning Grundtvig funded project that will bring the 5 partner countries together to find a song that is known by all. This project is aimed at adult learners from rural areas who want to take part in informal learning actions, experience different cultures and who want to learn new soft skills with the aim of introducing what they have learnt to other members of the community.
The partners:
Germany – Dübener Heide
Slovakia – Krajina SK
Spain – A.E.P.A. GARROVILLAS De Alconetar
Turkey – Nevşehir Üniversitesi Güzel Sanatlar Fakültesi
UK – Grampus Heritage & Training Ltd
The “Songs In Europe” project developed out of a previous Grampus Grundtvig funded project, “Celebrating Seasons“. During some of the actions, the participants got together in their free time and started exchanging songs. The question of whether there is a song known to all and if it could be sung by all was asked, leading to the development of this project.
During the project, there will be 5 informal learning actions aimed at improving soft skills such as learning to learn, experiencing different cultures and learning computer skills. The actions will be based around singing, dancing and music. These activities are something that is central to rural life and are something that most people take part in at some level. They are also a good activity to use when demonstrating cultural heritage.
The project is specially made for adult learners from rural regions to provide them with a European perspective and show ways of encouraging participation. Participants will look for and present local songs as well as songs known and famous in all countries. That will show the common roots or origin of the songs, how the songs travelled through time, through countries and regions, how they are interpreted in different languages. Studying similar songs in different countries will make people more curious about the interactions between nations. During the actions, there will be a chance to learn songs in the host languange, which will help their cultural understanding of the host country.
As the project progresses, reports and photos will be uploaded to this website, our blog and our Facebook page. After our last action, a songbook will be completed and available on the German action page.
If you would like any information about the project, would like to join us exploring the songs and music of Europe or have any questions, then please contact us. Alternatively, visit our blog to follow the project as it develops.
This project has been funded with support from the European Commission
This publication [communication] reflects the views only of the author, and the Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained therein.
Turkey Action
Nevsehir, Cappadocia
The day after arriving, we were met by Serkan in the morning and taken to the university where we met Anil, one of the tutors in the music department. We were shown presentations from all the partners involved in the project and met the other participants. We were then given a tour around the building, including the theatre where the workshops would be held. We were treated to a song by one of the student using a traditional instrument.
In the evening we had free time to explore Goreme. We walked round the town and saw many horses and ponies which were used for tourist trips. We also discovered the cave and rock dwellings that were used. In some of the uninhabited dwellings, you could see where rooms have been carved out of the rock, which is sandstone.
The next day, we were take back to the campus where we had the singing and dancing workshop. song. We were joined by some of the students. We had a few practices without music, then we had a go with music. Afterwards, Ellen from Germany lead a group song “Bonnie Over the Ocean”. The Turkish students tried to teach us dances, which we had a go at on the stage. Then Slovakia led a workshop, where they showed us some of their dances and got some of the Turkish students to have a go. The evening we were taken to a “Turkish Night”, where we were treated to Turkish food and many performances, including Whirling Dervishes, a Belly dancer, and a variety of traditional Turkish dances performed by both men and women. A fun night for all!
As part of the week, we met the dean of the university, who gave a us a warm welcome and posed for some pictures with us. We had an evaluation, and the rest of the day was for cultural visits, which included one of the many underground cities, an open air museum full of churches carved into the rock, we stopped off at a jewellery place which held very beautiful hand made pieces, and some off use ended the day in a relaxing Turkish bath!
During the evening, we had one last group meal and then we received our certificates, as the Spanish had to leave the next day.
Our last day in Turkey saw us treated to another cultural day. We went on a “Cappodocia Tour”, where we were taken to another city and visited a mosque. We had a lovely few minutes relaxing in the sun by the river. We were taken to a local pottery who offered us the chance to have a go at making something, Miro was volunteered to do this! The pottery workshop also sold what they made, and we were allowed to walk round the shop, which held lots of colourful pottery. Lunch was served out of clay pots which had been sealed so had to be broken open using a large knife, Miro was volunteered to do it. We were also taken to view the Goreme panoramas and were given an opportunity to go to a large shopping mall then headed back to the hotel.
Then we had to say goodbye and started on our long journey home.
I enjoyed my time in Turkey and I found it educational and it helped me learn that I can do anything I put my mind to and it helped me a lot with my confidence and I also enjoyed making new friends. I had fun learning the Turkish songs and dancing and really enjoyed the Turkish baths too. The food was lovely and the people were really friendly too. I was really happy to be given the opportunity to go to Turkey and I was sad to leave.
Turkey Action
Nevsehir, Cappadocia
The day after arriving, we were met by Serkan in the morning and taken to the university where we met Anil, one of the tutors in the music department. We were shown presentations from all the partners involved in the project and met the other participants. We were then given a tour around the building, including the theatre where the workshops would be held. We were treated to a song by one of the student using a traditional instrument.
In the evening we had free time to explore Goreme. We walked round the town and saw many horses and ponies which were used for tourist trips. We also discovered the cave and rock dwellings that were used. In some of the uninhabited dwellings, you could see where rooms have been carved out of the rock, which is sandstone.
The next day, we were take back to the campus where we had the singing and dancing workshop. song. We were joined by some of the students. We had a few practices without music, then we had a go with music. Afterwards, Ellen from Germany lead a group song “Bonnie Over the Ocean”. The Turkish students tried to teach us dances, which we had a go at on the stage. Then Slovakia led a workshop, where they showed us some of their dances and got some of the Turkish students to have a go. The evening we were taken to a “Turkish Night”, where we were treated to Turkish food and many performances, including Whirling Dervishes, a Belly dancer, and a variety of traditional Turkish dances performed by both men and women. A fun night for all!
As part of the week, we met the dean of the university, who gave a us a warm welcome and posed for some pictures with us. We had an evaluation, and the rest of the day was for cultural visits, which included one of the many underground cities, an open air museum full of churches carved into the rock, we stopped off at a jewellery place which held very beautiful hand made pieces, and some off use ended the day in a relaxing Turkish bath!
During the evening, we had one last group meal and then we received our certificates, as the Spanish had to leave the next day.
Our last day in Turkey saw us treated to another cultural day. We went on a “Cappodocia Tour”, where we were taken to another city and visited a mosque. We had a lovely few minutes relaxing in the sun by the river. We were taken to a local pottery who offered us the chance to have a go at making something, Miro was volunteered to do this! The pottery workshop also sold what they made, and we were allowed to walk round the shop, which held lots of colourful pottery. Lunch was served out of clay pots which had been sealed so had to be broken open using a large knife, Miro was volunteered to do it. We were also taken to view the Goreme panoramas and were given an opportunity to go to a large shopping mall then headed back to the hotel.
Then we had to say goodbye and started on our long journey home.
I enjoyed my time in Turkey and I found it educational and it helped me learn that I can do anything I put my mind to and it helped me a lot with my confidence and I also enjoyed making new friends. I had fun learning the Turkish songs and dancing and really enjoyed the Turkish baths too. The food was lovely and the people were really friendly too. I was really happy to be given the opportunity to go to Turkey and I was sad to leave.
A video summary of the Turkish action can be seen here
Slovakia Action
Stropkov, Slovakia
We were met at the airport by Miro who took us on a tour of Kosice as we were the first to arrive. After a hot afternoon walking round the city, we were taken to our accommodation in Svidnik.
The next morning, we met everyone else who had arrived during the night. After breakfast, we were taken to the town of Stropkov where we would do our presentations and meet some of the other organisations that Krajina works with. We all gave a presentation to the group and then the afternoon was spent learning dances and taking part in them. Towards the end of the day, we were given song sheets and told about the song that we were to learn and perform at the end of the week.
On the second day of the action, we had a bit of a cultural experience in the Svidnik museum, where we met up with Ivan, a participant we had met in Turkey. Later on we were taken to a music school, where we were treated to many performances by some of the students, who it turned out, attended this school after their normal school. They sang danced and played instruments for us. The headmistress than took us around the school and showed us the classrooms. Having never been to a music school, it was interesting to see the set up, most are getting renovated so it is one to one lessons. our translator during the tour was Ivan’s granddaughter, who had been learning English from a young age. We also met a young group who are made up of the local teenagers between 14 – 18years old who learn the traditional dances and songs. They usually give up the group once they move away for university or work, which is why there are very few people in the group over the age of 18.
On the Saturday, we had another cultural day and saw Bardejov, a UNESCO heritage town. we had free time to walk around the centre, seeing the Medieval walls and buildings, before having a tour in the idol museum. We were then taken to an open air museum where they conserved and preserved traditional wooden buildings, including churches, traditional homes, barns, storage buildings etc all made of local wood by traditional methods. This museum was also on the site of a spa where people travel form all over to drink the water, which runs from several springs, each tasting distinctly different (definitely not to everyone’s taste!). We then prepared for an evening of music at the sacred concert in St Cyril Methodist church, where we saw the local groups perform, including the young group who we met earlier in the week. this was done after evening mass. We also held out project evaluation meeting. The Spanish group wore their traditional costumes for this performance and sang Ave Maria with the rest of the Slovak group.
Sunday was Mother’s Day and to celebrate this day, we were taken to the village of Nizna Olsava where we were introduced to the mayor of the village over some lunch. We were then introduced to the village during the festival, which included performances by primary school children and the local folk groups. the young group we met earlier in the week performed songs and traditional dances. They also performed the Turkish dance we learnt at the Turkish action for the village. The Spanish group performed one of their traditional dances in their costumes and Germany showed everyone their costumes. The celebration ended with us receiving our certificates and then singing the song we had been expertly taught during the week “Tancuj Tancuj” with the rest of the other performers.
We then finished the week by going to watch a popular folk group who were touring the area – The Kandracs in the village of Brusnica, who played traditional folk songs with a modern twist. it was an enjoyable evening to all.
We departed Slovakia with more of an understanding of how important traditional folk music and dances are to each region, something that is not seen that much in the UK. It was a great week and it was sad to leave everyone, but we will meet most again plus new people during the UK action.
A video summary of the Slovakian action can be seen here
UK Action
Cumbria, UK
After arriving and meeting everyone the previous day, the first day saw the group spend some cultural time in Carlisle, which included a guided city tour before going to the cathedral for the first of our musical experiences to listen to the evening song mass, as choir songs had been one of the genres discussed during the skype meetings, and will ink in to future actions. We then finished the day by having a meal in the city, getting to know each other a bit more, before heading back to the accommodation.
The following day saw the group spend an afternoon in Keswick, for the group to see this lovely market town, but also so we could visit Castlerigg stone circle which sits above the town. When we arrived at the circle, it was decided that we would have a quick session of singing and dancing at this lovely site, with the circle as our back drop. We revisited songs we were taught in Turkey and one of the dances we were taught in Slovakia, all the while entertaining the public who had gathered to the circle on such a lovely sunny day. After this, we made our way to Rydal to meet with some future participants, Lynda and Jan, who would lead us in a singing workshop which would be located in one of the Rydal caves. The caves are manmade as a result of the quarrying for the roofing slate used in the area. These caves have amazing acoustics for singing and are used by local groups for sing meets.
After a short picnic by the lakeside in the very hot evening sun, Jan and Lynda, otherwise known as “Tan Yows”, then started off by singing some traditional songs from a variety of countries, including “Rose, Rose”, “The Glow Worm”, “My Johnny was a Shoe Maker”, “Crossing the Bar” and “All Things Are Silent”, sometimes with a guitar as an instrumental accompaniment. They taught the group “Rose, Rose”, and once the groups confidence had grown, they split us up onto groups and set off each group on rounds, starting the song after the previous group sang the first line.
During the workshop, we invited the Turkish group, who had brought a flute and clarinet with them, to perform some music and songs so Jan and Lynda could hear examples of the songs and music that the project has so far experienced. Lynda and Jan then finished off with a few more songs.
The next day, the group met Dave Camlin and some members of the community choir SingOwt! At the Kirkgate Centre in Cockermouth for a workshop in traditional Cumbrian songs. Dave started us off by introducing us to the members of the SingOwt! Choir, who were able to join us and then started warm up exercises. He introduced us to a variety of Cumbrian songs including “Place Where You Earned Your Name”, and got the group to sing rounds with “Rose, Rose” and “Bop You Bippety Boo!”. During the workshop, the Turkish and Slovak groups were invited to teach the group some of their songs – the participants who had been to their actions knew them, but this was the first time Dave and the SingOwt! members had heard them. The Slovak group also taught the group their dance that goes with “Tancuj, Tancuj”. After a break for lunch, Dave lead a few more songs, then decided to try and change “This Land Is Your Land” to include an area from each country represented in the group and the following chorus was created:
“This land is your land, High Tatras my land, (Slovakia)
From Catalunia, to Dubener Heide, (Spain and Germany)
From Cappadoccia up to Blencathra, (Turkey and Cumbria)
These lands were made for you and me”
This ended the workshop in Cockermouth, so the group were transferred to their next accommodation in Workington for evening meal and then we set off to meet Dave and others from the community choirs in a local pub for an informal evening of singing. We set off with Yellow submarine, Dave sang some of his own songs, Spanish songs were included and the Turkish group entertained us with some romantic songs. For some of our songs, the whole pub would join in and we were asked to sing “Happy Birthday” to a regular who was celebrating, which set off a long song including rounds of various other songs, which hopefully helped the celebrations!
The next day saw the Turkish group leave us and the rest of us went to a local festival, Sealy Spyatstock, to listen to a variety of music. The group listened to the acoustic stage mainly, hearing a range of cover bands, more traditional songs and own music, before heading over to the main stage to hear more of a metal/rock genre. The festival ended the itinerary, with the remaining groups departing in the days after. We hope to meet some of them again during the action in Spain.
A video of the UK workshop can be seen here.
Spain Action
Garrovillas and Caceres, Extramadura, Spain
We arrived in Madrid to be greeted by Marisa and Ana who were picking us up along with the Turkish and Slovak groups. After a very late arrival to our hostel, we met the German group in the morning, along with some of the Spanish participants who had travelled to previous actions to start our week in Spain.
After a lovely and varied breakfast, which included freshly squeezed orange juice using oranges from the tree in the yard, we started off with some culture, visiting the UNESCO World Heritage site of Merida, walking around the Roman ruins in the lovely sunshine. In the amphitheatre, members of the group did some impromptu singing, taking advantage of the acoustics of the ruins. Our guide continued the tour around the town, as there are Roman ruins and monuments still standing around the town, including a Roman bridge that is nearly 1 km long. During our tour, we came across a celebration march, as it was the memorial day of a local priest who had started the first schools for children, so we saw the local brass band accompany the march whilst the children of the town carried a podium with dedications to him around the town.
After a long relaxing lunch, we headed back to Caceres to watch a Flamenco performance. We were treated to different styles of traditional dress, solo performances and group dancing. After this, we then headed to the Sbelta dance school to take part in a Flamenco workshop. Our teacher, Armando, very patiently showed the group some steps before having the group divided into the men and women to do their sections. This was followed by a lovely long dinner of traditional dishes.
Our cultural experience continued into the second day as we were given a guided tour of Garrovillas. We visited the churches and heard nuns sing in both Spanish and Indian, which is their mother tongue. One of the Turkish members is a singer, and she gave a stunning performance of Ave Maria for the nuns and the group in the church, in a mixture of Turkish and Latin. After this we were invited to purchase the lovely cakes the nuns make. This tour was followed by lunch in a local restaurant. After a couple of hours sampling yet more lovely cuisine and discussions, we moved onto the folk lore workshop.
Here the local group showed us another type of traditional dance and songs. We were treated to their traditional costumes, which consisted of brightly coloured skirts, aprons and shawls. We were taught a song in Spanish and then then we were invited to learn a dance. The dancers also allowed us to have a go with their castanets, with very mixed results! Once the Spanish group had finished, the rest of us were invited to perform songs or dances. The Turks taught us another song, the Slovaks taught us a circle dance and the UK group taught a dance and song. As well as this, there was the opportunity to show presentations about the organisations or other activities that have happened since the last action in the UK. We were then treated to dinner.
The Monday saw us move accommodation, so after very warm good byes from Joan, our hostel owner, we made our way to Caceres. We were then treated to a tour of the old town of Caceres, but unfortunately the rain cut short the excursions, so lunch was a little earlier than planned. After lunch, we were able to have some free time before we went to see a local choir group rehearse. The group has been together for around 20 years and have performed all over the area at various events as well as the cathedrals. The have a “boast” wall with posters and photos from all the events that they have performed in. Their singing was outstanding and you could really sense how close this group were form how their rehearsal performance went. We were also given the honour of being the first people to hear a new song that they were learning. This was followed by tapas in a bar.
The next day was departure day for the Turkish group, so the rest of us were taken back to Sbelta for a morning of modern dance, taught to us by Cristina, with quite often humerous results! Despite most of the group never before encountering modern dance, we all had a go at working on routines and performing them. After this, we were taken to the “Los Barruecos” National park to visit the “Vostell Museum”. Here we saw more of the countryside of the area and saw the storks that breed in the park. It was nice to have a short walk around the dam, which had been created to serve the wool washing industry that had been housed in the buildings before being converted into the museum and restaurant that you can visit today. This visit and lunch took us into the late afternoon, where we were given a little more free time in Caceres, before having a final meal with Marisa and Anan and saying our goodbyes for our early morning departure to Madrid airport.
Our time in Spain opened our eyes to a range of different dance types. We were given plenty of opportunity to take part in the dances as well as learn the traditional songs in a lovely rural backdrop. The cultural heritage proved to be very mixed in that area and we were delighted by the towns we saw and the impact their history has had on them. This history can be seen in the song and dance. We enjoyed every moment of the action and look forward to the finale in Germany.
A summary video of the Spanish action can be seen here
German Action
Torgau, Germany
After a late arrival to Torgau and a warm reception from Ellen, we met the rest of the group at breakfast the next morning. Ellen arrived at the hotel and gave us a quick introduction to the week before we made our way to the first activity of the action.
We drove to the main office of the Naturpark Dübener Heide, which is based in Bad Duben. There we were met by other staff members and the boss Thomas, who gave us a welcome talk. Ellen then went through the project so far and the activities that her volunteers had been doing before the group did a quick introduction round of who we were and where from. Ellen then gave us a tour of the centre before we had lunch and discussions about the rest of the action.
We then set off for Bad Schmiedeberg where we greeted by the lovely sight of 2 horse drawn carriages which would take us round one of the hiking paths. During the afternoon, the group sang hiking songs as well as taught each other new songs. This was a lovely way to spend the afternoon and we added to our collection of new songs. The UK group played the fiddle and ukele’s to aid with the singing in our carriage. When we returned to town, we were then treated to some coffee and a gorgeous selection of cakes. This set us up for the last part of the day, which saw us return to Torgau and have a guided tour of the town, which was lead by the German participants. We learned about Martin Luther and his wife as well as Johan Walther. We were shown round the church and the castle and were shown where we would be eating the next night. On our way back into town, we walked down one of the narrow streets that surround the castle and met a local lady, who upon hearing that we were a group of new people to Torgau, insisted on showing us the basement of her building. this was a typical 2 level basement which was common for the style of houses in the area. We learned that people had been given the streets around the castle, but in return, they would have to look after them and provide defence if it was needed. After a relaxed walk back to the hotel, we then sat down for dinner, discussing the packed day and singing a few songs.
After breakfast the next day, drove to Gräfenhainichen, where we were taken to a chapel and given a history of the town and in particular, composer Paul Gerhardt, the composer who wrote the melodies for a lot of the hymns that people are familiar with. We went to the Paul Gerhardt church where we were given the chance to perform for the local German singing group. Each country performed either a song or piece of music and in return, the German singing group gave us a performance of one of their songs. We were also treated to an impromptu organ performances by the German, Turkish and Slovakian participants.
We then transferred to Ferropolis, a closed down mine that is now a museum and site for festivals. They have kept and conserved some of the huge machinery, one of which people can walk around. These machines also make up some of the festival site, with some becoming the stages themselves and VIP areas. We had a guided tour of the site followed by a video session during which Ellen showed us her videos from the Turkish and Slovakian actions. We then had a break to record a video on one of the machines. We took our instruments – the UK with ukele’s and fiddle, Turkish with clarinet, and Slovakian with their accordion and chose several songs to sing. There were multiple “making of the video” recordings going on around the performances, and included songs we had learned/sang together on past actions. Once we “wrapped up” the video, we went back to the room Ellen had hired for a quick lunch and to continue watching the videos that she had put together of the UK and Spanish actions, before she presented a performance that she did along with some of her volunteers at a local festival.
Once we had finished these videos, we made our way back to the hotel, where we had about an hours down time before we made our way to the “Herr Kathe” restaurant for our evening meal. Whilst seated together in the lovely restaurant with its wooden beams, we decided to start singing a few songs to see where it would take us and spent a few hours happily teaching each other songs, with the aid of the ukele and fiddle, entertaining the restaurant staff as they politely tidied round us before we thought we had better make a timely exit.
The next morning, a slight change in plan as we headed for the train station to make our way to Leipzig, rather than drive through. After a 45 minute trip, we arrived to be warmly greeted by more of the German participants, who gave us time to find lunch in the huge Leipzig station, before we were to get the tram to the centre. We headed for Thomas church to listen to performances by the Thomaner choir and the Gewandhaus orchestra. Those who could speak a little German managed to join in with some of the songs, or sang their language equivalent once they recognised the songs.
After this performance, we were then taken round Leipzig on a guided tour by our participants, including the theatre, many of the interesting shopping halls and taking in the amazing buildings. We were given free time to wander about and explore on our own, including getting a little shopping in before meeting at a Kartoffel house for our evening meal. We then got the train back to Torgau.
Sunday was the last day of the action. After breakfast, we were trusted to make our way back to Bad Duben to the Naturpark office where we met Ellen. we set up for the day, which was to be a day of workshops. As it was such a lovely day, we decided to host the workshops outside. Each country performed a couple of songs and/or dances, before attempting to show the rest of the group how to sing/dance. After the first round of workshops, we had a break and after a brief discussion, it was decided that we were to have tours of the castle next door to the centre, which included a brief tour of the watermill that has been relocated away from the river back and renovated. A tour of the town was then offered, or a chance to have some free time.
Once everyone had returned, we did one last round of singing and dancing before receiving our certificates. We finished off the project action by singing the European hymn. We headed back tot he hotel for our farewell meal with Ellen, who was visibly saddened by the end of the project but we managed to squeeze in a few farewell songs before retiring for the night and preparing to leave the next day.
The action rounded up the project nicely and it was fantastic to meet new people and meet up with others we had previously met in the other actions. Many songs were exchanged and promises were made to send out lyrics and melodies so that the songs we had encountered during the project could be taught to groups back home. This project has allowed us to meet new people who we hope to meet again in the future and encounter new songs and dances, the origins of which come from a diverse cultural heritage.
A summary video of the German action can be seen here
Songs In Europe Outcomes
On this page you will find all the links relating to the actions. These are downloadable as a pdf which contain the links.
These are intended to be used by anyone who is interested in learning songs and dances and who wants to have a glimpse of the cultural heritage of each partner country.
If you have any questions about the project, or want to enquire about any of the material available, please do not hesitate to contact us.
This project has been funded with support from the European Commission
This publication [communication] reflects the views only of the author, and the Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained therein.