Composing A School Anthem
It is now 60 years since the founding of the Teresian School in Dublin.
I was delighted to be invited to collaborate with students of the Teresian Primary school in creating an anthem to celebrate their school’s Ethos grounded in values of “Joy, Fortitude and Love”.
Below, you can read about the composition of the song and listen to the children’s performance. This was a marathon of focused collaborative engagement between myself, the classes and their teachers :
all in one day!
Thanks to all of the enthusiasm and participation of the children and their teachers. Thanks also to the schools’ Ethos Officer Matet Gayondato who invited me to lead the songwriting workshops. A special thanks to the school principal Lynda Mc Hale for her support.
“60 years of education, let’s have a celebration”
This project was co-ordinated by Matet who introduced me to the three classes of second, third and fourth class.
Together with each of the class pupils and collaborating with class teachers, song lyrics were developed, inspired by themes of the school ethos and the motto
Joy, Fortitude and Love
Áthas, Misneach agus Grá
Alegria, Fortaleza y Amor
Lyrics were developed through a process of discussion and exploration with the children. For example, I asked them questions to invite them to consider these school ethos themes and put them into their own words – what does it feel like when you feel joy ?
“I feel so happy that I could explode !”
And,
“Energy moves from my head to my toes”
Below I share images of a black board that shows the process exploring key words and sentences.
Some more lyrics by the children can be seen on the board below:
“Never stop believing in your dreams, have faith it’s more important than it seems”
Each of the classes worked then on a distinct verse and we collaboratively developed the chorus.
These verses share what is important to the children, their perspectives and insights.
From the above photo you can see some of the thought process that lead to the lyrics
“Stay inspired keep your engines fired
You’ll get there someday
It’s only Monday”
Once the lyrics were coming together, it was time to work on the melody. I offered a few options and together we fine tuned a chord progression and melody until they felt happy with the sound.
In total, I visited each class twice. The first visit was to work on distinct verses – each class focusing on a key theme inspired by the school ethos. The second visit was to return and fine-tune each of their verses and bring to them what had been added by the other classes. In this way, the song was able to grow through the input of all three classes in an organic way.
The chorus was inspired by the school’s motto which we chose to sing in the Spanish Language as a nod to the school’s inspiring founder – Saint Pedro Poveda. A principled and inspired visionary leader and priest, dedicated to a life of prayer and service, Poveda was a trailblazer of his time, paving the way for women and poorer communities to receive education and opportunities.
I share a video of some of the process of composing the song and also the first time it was performed with all three classes in the school hall. Bear in mind that this was the end of an intense day and we are still getting the hang of the timing and melody – but overall, it was an amazing achievement for a single day.
I am delighted to share that the song is to be shared at the school’s 6th class graduation.
Song Lyrics Below
Alegria, Fortaleza y Amor
Joy, Fortitude & Love
Composed with 2nd, 3rd and 4th class pupils
of the Teresian Primary School in Dublin.
I am super brave,
I am super strong,
This is a super song.
( can be repeated as an opening chant x 3)
Alegria, Fortaleza y amor
Tengo un sueno x2
I have a dream
I feel like I could jump up and down
My heart is so light
I feel so amazing, I could take flight
Áthas, misneach agus grá
Tá Aisling gheal agam x2
I have a dream
My dreams are so full of joy
My energy flows from my head to my toes
I feel so happy that I could explode
There is a vision that I see
Deep inside of me
My dreams make me happy and bring my creativity
I dream of a world at peace
I dream of a world at prayer
I dream of a world of kindness and care
Let’s care for the birds and trees, the wildlife and the seas,
And what about the plants and ants
Let’s mind our critters and pick up our litter
Alegria, Fortaleza y amor
Tengo un sueno x2
I have a dream
The rain may fall the storm may come
But I stand tall
My light is strong it guides me on,
guides me on.
When I believe in my dreams
it feels so right
it helps me to shine so bright
I have no fear
With Jesus near
Guiding me on my way
Alegria, Fortaleza y amor
Tengo un sueno x2
I have a dream
Never stop believing in your dreams
Have faith it’s more important than it seems
Come together and see what we can do
The future is in our hands
It’s up to me and you
Alegria, Fortaleza y amor
Tengo un sueno x2
I have a dream
Stay inspired keep your engines fired
You’ll get there someday
It’s only Monday
The pursuit of good
Makes you light
Approach with love
And there’ll be no fight
Alegria, Fortaleza y amor
Tengo un sueno x2
I have a dream
60 years of education
Let’s have a celebration
Alegria, Fortaleza y amor
Tengo un sueno x2
I have a dream
(for me and the entire human race)
Delighted to know that this song has been performed
at the recent 6th Class Graduation, class of 2026
Ag guí gach beannacht ar an obair go léir
God bless the work ( an old Irish saying)
✨🙏🏻✨
ANAM: 