Paul Calvert spoke with Michele Cantoni from the Amwaj Children's Choir, about the difference they're making to the lives of children from Hebron and Bethlehem.

On stage, with the Petits Chanteurs de Lyon, at UNESCO (Paris, 29 November 2018) (Photo: Fares Mansour)

Paul: Do the children get the chance to travel abroad?

Michele: We managed through our artistic partnerships with international artists in particular, with the children's choir in France, which is of an amazing level from a cathedral in Lyon, we managed to get the interest of people abroad, in particular in France.

Because we have many connections there and also due to the intensive tuition, the intensive character of the pedagogy of Amwaj, already after three years or so in the summer of 2018, we were able to tour France. We sang in the most amazing halls in France like the Philharmonic in Paris.

It was the first time the kids left the country and definitely not the last.

Paul: Do you also invite other choirs to come here?

Michele: Yes absolutely. This was really something which we were very happy about. It was to have in the summer of 2017 30 children, I think aged 10 to 13, from Lyon, come to Palestine. They stayed in the families of our kids, which is the first time it happens.

Choirs of children have come to Palestine in the past, but usually they were staying in Jerusalem. They were maybe just performing in Jerusalem and not interacting with local musicians and children.

Amwaj in front of the Eiffel Tower (Paris, November 2018) (Photo: Fares Mansour)

It took a while to reassure the families that they were not coming to a war zone and that they would not be in danger.

So these 30 children came and it was an amazing experience. It is also thanks to that we went to France to them the following year.

Paul: Do they all wear traditional dress or traditional uniform?

Michele: No, not traditional. For the first two years we have used some basic T-shirts. Since Amwaj means waves, T-shirts of two shades of blue with the logo of Amwaj on them.

Now we are starting to think of getting some more formal and traditional, maybe embroidered uniforms.

For now they have either the coloured T-shirt, or black shirts and black trousers.

Paul: Can music touch someone's life?