Beethoven in Nature

Composer Paul Griffiths has put together a series of musical activities for you to get involved with, using the composer Ludwig van Beethoven and his love of nature as inspiration.

In the videos, you will:

♫ Find out more about Beethoven

♫ Learn some songs with Paul

♫ Make your own music inspired by nature

How to watch
We suggest watching the videos in the order they appear on this page, and you can rewatch them as many times as you want.

The videos on this page have been produced as part of Barbican Guildhall Creative Learning’s Associate Schools programme.

Video 1: Introduction and Hello Song

Yasmin, our Schools Engagement Manager, introduces the Barbican and the Associate Schools Programme, followed by a participatory song led by Paul called ‘Hello Everybody’.

Video 2: Beethoven and Nature

Find out more about the composer Beethoven and his love of nature, and learn a song with Paul to the tune of Beethoven’s 'Pastoral Symphony'.

Video 3: Make Your Own Musical Thunderstorm
In this video, Paul will guide you through making your own music using instruments found in the classroom or at home. You’ll just need to find something that makes an interesting sound!

Video 4: Goodbye Song
In the final video, Paul sings a goodbye song – feel free to join in!

About Barbican Guildhall Creative Learning

Our Creative Learning department is a creative alliance pioneering new models for cultural learning across the art forms. Our mission is Creative Skills for Life and every year we deliver more than 40 programmes and events alongside 150 partners to over 22,000 participants.

About Associate Schools
Our award-winning Associate Schools model involves a school-wide approach that aims to inspire senior leaders and teachers to harness the power and value of creativity within educational settings, and to widen access to the arts for all their students. We work with a small selection of schools over a three-year period to develop and deliver a menu of activities, events and projects in each academic year – working towards mutually-agreed objectives. The aim is to embed an ethos of creative and cultural education within the school that continues beyond the life of the programme itself.