Opera from Scratch: The Case of Raanana Metro-West High School

This paper describes the insights gained from a project born more than 20 years ago as an initiative of the teaching staff of the music department in a high school in Ra`anana.

Creating and making music are often associated to individualistic activities may be due historical traditions and beliefs that had influence on educational practices. But, as suggested by Burnard (2012): "Our practices need to promote the power of relationships over individual minds, multiple worlds over singular realities, collaborative interdependence over individual heroism, and dialogue over alienation"

Opera, as a multi-disciplinary art form, provides music students with diverse opportunities to participate and express their musical talents in a variety of artistic practices and according to their individual capabilities (composing, singing as soloists, singing in the choir, acting, playing in the orchestra, producing). The aim of this project was to guide students into creating a libretto, setting it to music, and performing it in its entirety.

Although composing and playing opera could be considered distant to the musical preferences of young people, this project has reached such a success that it has become a tradition in this high school music department, lasting for two decades, with 14 operas performed on stage, composed by music students aged 15-17. The importance of this initiative is that, despite being an extracurricular project, it can harness all music department students and teachers in a collaborative artistic work from which they get no academic credits or reward, just the joy of creating and making music together. An added value of this project was the cooperation with students with special needs from the high school’s design department that made the set and props for the productions. Likewise, the project had a community outreach component that included performances for elementary school and kindergarten children and senior citizens from elderly care centers, thus strengthening intergenerational relationship.

The case reported here can give interesting insights on how collaborative creativity and collaborative music making might be promoted within educational contexts, also within the framework of public education, while at the same time demanding and achieving a high artistic level.