On stage with Madonna
Here are more reports from the local UK press about young members of the Finchley Children’s Music Choir who joined Madonna on stage at Wembley Stadium last Saturday for Live Earth.
• Ellie sings live with Madonna
From wansteadandwoodfordguardian.co.uk
A Leyton schoolgirl sang with Madonna in front of tens of thousands of music-lovers at Wembley last Saturday.
Ellie McLean, 15, of Brewster Road, is a member of the Finchley Children’s Music Choir that joined the famous singer for a rendition of her new song, Hey You.
Ellie, a pupil at Connaught School, Leytonstone, and 40 of her choirmates rehearsed with Madonna for a couple of weeks before her performance at the Live Earth event, which was aimed at highlighting the problem of climate change.
Speaking the day before her performance, Ellie said: “I was very excited when our choir was picked. It has been great working with such a famous person. Madonna is very nice, but I am also quite nervous at the same time.”
Ellie, who’s father is an opera singer, said that climate change was an “important” issue. She said: “I hope the concert will help to make people aware of global warming.”
• Live on stage with the Queen of Pop
From barnettimes.co.uk
Singing with a Beautiful Stranger brought a Ray of Light into the lives of a group of children from Finchley on Saturday.
Forty boys and girls, aged eight to 18, from Finchley Children’s Music Group won the privilege of accompanying Madonna in her final song, Hey You, at the Live Earth Concert after auditioning with a number of other choirs. They only had a week to perfect their performance, practising every night after school with the Queen of Pop herself at the Dukes Island and Black Island recording studios in west London.
Holly Lyne, 13, who hopes to have a career in music, said: “It was really amazing. The Wembley Stadium was massive, I could barely see the people at the back.”
Finchley Children’s Music Group is dedicated to the promotion of choral music for young people. The choir have previously sung backing vocals for other popstars, including Teddy Geiger and Sting, and next year celebrate their 50th anniversary.