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Stamford harpist Eleanor Turner teams up with dancer to help Invisible Kids Academy in war-hit Democratic Republic of Congo




A classically-trained musician is hoping her compositions will go some way to helping children escape war.

Eleanor Turner has spent much of her career travelling the world to perform to audiences as an internationally-acclaimed harpist.

Now, as a mum of three, Eleanor can more often be found at home in Stamford, but she continues to collaborate with performers across the globe - albeit through social media and via wifi than sharing a stage.

Eleanor Turner has performed all over the world and works with artists across the globe
Eleanor Turner has performed all over the world and works with artists across the globe

Currently she is writing music to gift to Bush Sebar, a dancer and co-founder of the Invisible Kids Academy in Goma, a city in the Central African country of Congo.

“I'm writing some music which I will just give him for free, so he will own that piece of music and his children can dance to it,” she said.

The videos the academy produces are then shared to an international online audience through social media to help bring in donations to keep the academy going.

Eleanor Turner last year launched a book of music to help children in Gaza
Eleanor Turner last year launched a book of music to help children in Gaza

They’re designed not just to showcase the talent there but also, more crucially, to highlight the dangers of living in a city caught in the crossfire of a long-running civil war.

“He's trying to find enough money to get passports for them all and and get them across the border to Rwanda where it's much safer,” Eleanor explained. “He's desperate to get them out of danger.

“They are just incredibly talented and all of their videos are really amazing quality, but it’s all just to reach out to the world say ‘please don't forget about us’.

“Congo is in a genocide, but to beat the algorithm, they have to send out these incredibly positive videos while actually living in a terrible situation, really overcrowded, hardly any food, flooding.”

The pair found each other by “random coincidence” through social media platform Instagram and the pair began to work together as performers. Eleanor gradually learned more about his mission.

“His whole life is now devoted to anything that promotes what the children are doing because that's the only way they've got to get money,” she said.

“It doesn't take much for me really in the grand scheme of things - I'm writing music and practicing playing the harp anyway.

“I'm happy to give any time that I can squeeze out of the day or the night to do what little I can to help people.”

Last year she released a music book, Lullabies for the Land, to raise money for two charities supporting children in Gaza.

It has so far raised just shy of £3,000 and is keen to raise its profile further, adding more lullabies and creating a version of it for guitar.

Eleanor now wants her music to be more than simply something for theatre audiences to enjoy.

She wants to harness it to help others and also help preserve cultures that are being persecuted and marginalised.

“I've been an international soloist, but I don't want to keep doing the same thing and just keep playing for classical music audiences around the world,” Eleanor said.

“That's fine, of course, but I just feel I've been called to do something more with my skills.

“My parents made such huge sacrifices so I could be a musician and this just feels like an appropriate way to carry on that musical journey - using my music to connect with people around the world.

“That's much more exciting.”



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