ENO Engage Opera Squad in Leeds ǀ English National Opera
Community Engagement Facilitating
Making Classical Music Inclusive to All
Ben uses his skills and voice in the wider community, sharing and creating with people from all walks of life, specialising in performance and devising.
An Open Academy Fellow at the Royal Academy of Music, Ben specialised in creative work with both young people and communities living with dementia. Projects worked with include; English National Opera, Glyndebourne Opera, Royal Opera House and The Wigmore Hall.
Ben was a Trainee Workshop Leader (2022) with Spitalfields Music and Welsh National Opera. Working on project round the UK with young people.
Ben is a current Vocal Artist with the Royal Opera House Create and Sing team. A creative learning resource, created with teachers, providing songs for pupils in primary schools across England.
Further projects involved as a Vocal Artist include English National Opera Engage, where he traveled around the UK performing with the Opera Squad team. The was a project sponsored by Sky Arts.
Ben is also leading a set of workshops with Opera Prelude, where he is also a Young Artist (2022-24). The workshop, which is in partnership with Age Unlimited will use a combination of music, singing and mindfulness.
Ben is also the Co-Founder of InToto Music Collective. Into Toto Music workshops have taken place across the UK and Europe, including Verbier Music Festival.
"Ben trained our freelance workshopleaders in opera education with the focus on working with special needs! He give us insight into the world of these children with a clear and well-thought out guidance-model, we learned how we can see each child and help their world of music. We are looking forward to the next occasion we can get him on board!"
Ineke Gelegijns - Education Manager
Dutch Nationale Opera & Ballet
"I am inspired by Ben's artistry, tenacity, good humour and his ability to work in an inclusive and supportive way. Ben has excellent communication skills and shows great empathy and skill particularly when communicating with people with SEND, young children, and vulnerable adults."
Bradley Travis - Head of L&P at English Touring Opera
Projects
Royal Ballet and Opera BIG SING
50,000 students - 500 schools - 3 live venues - 1 live broadcast - RBO #CreateDay24
Royal Ballet and Opera Healthy Singing Series
Working with teachers in the UK to feel confident with their own voices; equipping them with the tools to engage with singing and their voices in school, and enrich the children through healthy dramatic singing.
ENO @ Benenden
Royal Ballet and Opera SEND/ PMLD
Musicians, singers and directors from ENO visited Benenden across three weeks to hold a series of Opera Takeover workshops for local schools, culminating in a spectacular closing concert.
Resources designed to give teachers the confidence to explore the multi-sensory world of opera with your learners. Empowering classroom teachers (without a Music specialism OR SEND specialism) to feel confident in exploring music in the classroom
Engage learners across the spectrum of needs and abilities in the multisensory world of opera.
Dutch Nationale Opera
Training workshop leaders at Dutch Nationale Opera, Amsterdam. Ben
facilitated the development of new 2 workshops for SEND audiences over the course of two days with the workshop leaders.
Verbier Festival - InToto Music
Along with Emma Jüngling and Elli Welsh visited Verbier Festival to run a series of workshops with young people over the course of a week.
Royal Ballet and Opera - Family Sunday
Our World - Big Sing. Ben along with the fantastic Sam Penã lifted singing voices through the atmosphere and into outer space in this fun filled Big Sing activity for the whole family!
ENO Opera Squad
Alongside ENO Engage team, singers and a creative team, Ben delivered a devised programme of work across schools in Manchester.
Vauxhall Festival
InToto Music Collective introduced Opera to young people of Vauxhall and performed a devised piece of opera compiled by Emma Jüngling and Elli Welsh.
Royal Ballet and Opera - Digital Culmination
Ben has been part of multiple digital culminations at RBO. Schools from all over the UK join in for a like rehearsal with RBO artists, where the students get an opportunity to perform live and share their dramatic responses to Magic Flute resources.