When most learners at Skeen Primary School closed their books and called it a day, others picked up their instruments, readying themselves for an after-school lesson in music.

Although the Alexandra Field Band has made these after-school lessons habitual for the young budding instrumentalists, Tuesday afternoon was quite different and wholesome, owing to the presence of the Norwegian Academy of Music.

At first, the lesson sounded like any ordinary practice, at least to ears untrained to catch the makings of a masterpiece. Third-year students from the academy, currently training to become music teachers, guided groups of Skeen learners through different instruments.

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When the group was finally merged to play as a single unit, the learners, with the help of the students, weaved the sounds together into a magical sound one would swear had been in the making for far longer than just these few hours of practice.

The Norwegian students’ preparation began long before they set foot in South Africa. Assistant professor at the academy, Ellen Stabell, explained that the students had been preparing for half a year, without knowing what awaited them.

“A big part of the learning experience also happens beforehand. They have been preparing for this for half a year, and they tried to make arrangements, but they did not know what to expect today,” she said, highlighting what made the students’ first attempt at teaching Skeen learners how to play so remarkable.

What made the session even more remarkable was the way the students learned to teach learners using body language, demonstration, and clarity in performance. “That was a big learning experience, and it is also how you lead without talking, really, so you need to be very clear with your body language and the way you play and demonstrate,” Stabell noted.

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The field band’s programmes officer, Phumzile Twala, who has long witnessed the transformative role of music in the lives of its members, saw the day as a milestone.

“They could be part of the exchange programme because already in the field band, we have students who have been in an exchange programme, also learning music through the same partnership we have with the Norwegians,” she said. She said the lesson was one of the biggest opportunities learners at the foundation phase could experience.

The exchange, however, was not one-sided. Stabell confirmed that the Norwegian students gained just as much.

@caxtonjoburgnorth Norwegian Academy of Music students join Alexandra Field Band youngsters at Skeen Primary for a shared symphony of sound and culture. Video: Itumeleng Maloka #caxtonlocalmedia #News #Community #Localnews #johannesburg #SA #2026 #Alex #Alexnews #Gomora #Art ♬ original sound – Caxton Joburg North

“We hope it means something for the kids, but for the Norwegian students, for many of them, it is the first time they have gone out to experience a completely different culture. It is really important to get the experience of working with kids in big groups.”

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