The Marsh family is from Faversham, Kent, about fifty miles to the east of London. Dr Ben Marsh, 44, is a professor in American history at the University of Kent. If you read his biography, he comes across as a serious researcher and academic. He met his wife, Danielle, 42, at the University of Cambridge where they were both students. She is now also a professor at the University of Kent. Alfie, 13, Thomas, 12, Ella, 10, and Tess, 8, their four children attend school or rather did before the start of the lockdown in March 2020.
In March, Danielle’s mother had a birthday. It was
impossible to meet or to celebrate the day with her. The family decided to send
her a virtual gift. Children had no schoolwork; the professors didn’t have any
papers to mark. Music became a welcome distraction for the family.
*****
Their living room became the stage, flowery curtains
and family photos the stage background. Bathrobes and pajamas were the costumes.
The six-voice musical ensemble was born.
Dad Dr Ben picked up “One Day More” from the musical Les
Misérables and wrote lockdown lyrics where the parents complain about
online grocery shopping, and the children lament: “Our grandparents can’t Skype,
we’re brokenhearted,” and “watch our daddy drink, see our mummy sigh”.
Their clip posted on FB attracted 400,000 views in the
first week. (Only the children’s grandfather protested saying he can Skype
and Zoom).
*****
This was just the beginning of a long journey. By day
six of the lockdown, the Marshes sang a song dedicated to the NHS, teachers and
community heroes. It was the remake of “When will my life begin” from Disney’s Tangled,
praising workers for all the chores they were doing.
On Twitter, Bonnie Tyler herself admired the family’s
rendition of the reworked “total eclipse of the heart”.
So far, the family has posted twenty videos. The
latest video, “have the new jab” (to the tune of Leonard Cohen’s Hallelujah)
has been watched four million times. The lyrics encourage listeners to go and
get the vaccine. Several TV channels interviewed them on Zoom. Jimmy Kimmel invited
them to appear on “Good morning America”.
Fans compared them to the Von Trapps made famous by
the Sound of Music. Danielle Marsh objected to the comparison saying she
is definitely not a nun, neither can she make dresses out of curtains.
In the clips, the family not only sings and plays on
the instruments, the children have dramatic moments of bickering and improvised
dances.
All proceeds raised from the videos are directly
donated to the WHO’s Covid Relief Fund.
*****
Though none of them have music as a profession,
reworking lyrics was a family hobby even before the pandemic. In the car, they
usually sang songs. For a
non-professional family, their performances are of a pretty decent quality. Now
that they have become a global sensation, would they consider turning this into
a profession? Not really. The parents are keen to get back to the university,
the kids to the schools. Schools in England are expected to begin on 8 March.
But Dr Ben says with a straight face they want to
leave their options open. “Nobody’s job is secure in the post-pandemic world.”
He explains.
Ravi
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