About lmfl

Language and Music for Life was born in Spring 1997 and is committed to providing training in both music and foreign languages to students of all ages, with a lower age limit of 10 years old and no upper age limit.

The first LMFL summer course was held in 1998 and has grown in size and quality ever since.

We organise:

Residential and non residential courses: the Musical Summers

Language and music summer course for young children (4 to 10 inclusive)

Residential and non-residential Winter Course

Our approach to learning:

Our music and language project functions in a context which is rich in individual ability, motivation, language, culture and generations. Learning is not to be restricted to its manifestation in performance, though this is an essential part, but is to be intimately linked to the dynamics of the whole individual who is able to learn while changing, and able to change while learning.

Our linguistic premise: a language is learned not just for its own sake but also for a purpose. Language is used to communicate, to organise music making with others, to facilitate professional development and because we want to enjoy exchanges with those whom we have chosen to be with, and like, and because we don't want to live like a "foreigner" in an English speaking environment.

We learn a language to live and, as the name of our organisation puts it, to survive.

Our music project:

We have a dual approach

·          ·    Music for keen amateurs: participants are required to have a minimum of Grade 7 in one instrument, while the second or third instrument can be of a lower grade.

·          ·     Music for future professionals: we prepare young instrumentalists for entrance auditions for the Higher Music Schools (Royal College of Music, Royal Academy, Guildhall, or Conservatoires Supérieurs de Musique etc…

·          Please note that for non-English speakers, who wish to enter the Royal College of Music, Royal Academy, Guildhall, acquiring an acceptable level of spoken English is a must. We provide this sort of coaching during the course

 Our Annual International Language and Music Course

The founder and organizer of the course is music lover, pedagogue and psychoanalyst, Arlette Herrenschmidt.Moller

She prepares each course with great care and passion in conjunction with the Artistic Director, Jean-Luc Borsarello, and the Director of Language, Alan D Moller.

She is bilingual in French and English and has some knowledge in Telugu and Hindi

She is the mother of 6 children Anne-Sophie, Marine, (voice) Axelle (clarinettist) Grégoire (voice), Fleur Herrenschmidt, barrister, singer and pianist and Ashley Herrenschmidt-Moller, Airbus engineer, oboist, singer and composer.

They all play an instrument, some two, and they all sing. All are bilingual (English and French) most have German as a foreign language, one speaks Telugu and Tamil, and one some Hindi and Bahasa Melayu.

She is also grandmother to 12 grandchildren.

Jean-Luc Borsarello, Artistic Director

Jean-Luc Borsarello obtained his first prize for violin at the Conservatoire National Regional de Toulon at the age of 14 and entered the Conservatoire National de Musique de Paris where he won a medal for violin (first class) in June 1968.

He is a member of the Orchestre de Chambre de Versailles and of the Orchestre Lyrique in the Paris Opera.

He is leader of the Borsarello String Trio, which has performed in France, Japan, New Caledonia, Malaysia, Australia, Germany and U.S.A and made numerous CDs. He has also given interpretation classes in Japan and at the Flaine Summer Academy in France. Jean-Luc Borsarello is on the permanent staff of the official music school in Montgeron and has recently been appointed to the Conservatoire National Regional de Versailles.

Jean-Luc is a born teacher. His rich, warm and gentle personality is reflected in his music as well as in his paintings.

He is father of 6 children Hugues, professional violinist, Delphine, professional cellist) Mathilde (professional violinist, Camille professional violist, Gauthier double bass student and Baptiste oboe student

Dr Alan D Moller MA (Cambridge), PGCE (London), Dip App Ling (Edinburgh), Director of Language

Academic and one of the top British applied linguists specialized in language testing, Dr Moller is a retired British Council Officer, former Director of the British Council English Language Teaching Services. Among his many duties he advised the British Council and other Language schools worldwide on their teaching, training and testing programmes.

Alan was posted in Africa, Singapore, and Malaysia and was Cultural attaché at the New Delhi British High Commission in charge of organizing the Henry Moore in India Exhibition in 1987/88.

After retiring from the British Council Alan was Chief Examiner for Trinity College London. He left Trinity in 1999 and worked for it as a freelance consultant for some of its projects (China).

Alan tours as Consultant for Language Teacher Training schools and regularly moderates teacher training courses in Europe and Asia. (China, Korea, Thailand Italy and Spain). He is the founder and Academic Director for IATQuO

In summer 2003 he was appointed Chair of Examiners for the London Tests of English by the British Examinations Board EDEXCEL.

Alan speaks French, German and is knowledgeable in Swahili and Hindi

 He is father of three children, all bilingual English/French, the first one Dawn Moller -Bellino bilingual English/French speak German as a foreign language, the  second one Dr Joanne Moller- Arghiros an anthropologist, speaks, also French, Hindi, Thai and Khmer and two with German as a foreign language. and the youngest one Ashley an Airbus engineer is bilingual  English/French with some knowledge in German, Hindi, Bahasa Melayu.,  and Mandarin. Ashley sings, plays the obo and composes.

Each contributes to the course a wealth of specialist knowledge and a shared caring for quality in their respective fields.

For English-speaking students we offer opportunities to learn or improve French (FFL), German (GFL), Spanish (SFL) Italian (IFL) as well as Russian (conversational for advanced students only) as Foreign Languages.

Classes are conducted by specialist teachers, all of whom are native speakers.

We offer quality tuition in intensive English by specialist teachers of English as a Foreign Language (EFL) who are themselves native speakers.

The language classes can be taken in small groups or one to one, according to the student's precise needs.

Group classes consist of 4 to 6 students.

The basic course, consisting of one, two, three or five one hour sessions a day, aims to help develop competency in oral communication, to develop a more in-depth knowledge of grammar, and to enrich the student’s vocabulary by using appropriate teaching material suited to individual needs.

A range of different types of material is used, including video and audio cassettes, but the accent is always on improving listening and speaking skills.

The Music Tutors

The music tutors are all experienced teachers and internationally known performers. During the course they expect their students to work between each tutorial. An updated list of teachers with their qualifications and CVs is o this website at Faculty

There are masterclasses in harp, flute, piccolo, piano, violin, viola, double bass, recorder for professional students

The Language Tutors

The language tutors have received specialised training in foreign language teaching and are all native speakers or true bilingual of the language they teach

Almost all of them are musician.

The Jazz Programme

The jazz programme allows students to develop techniques of jazz improvisation and to apply these skills within the context and disciplines of small jazz groups. All students are given tuition in their own instruments and the opportunity to play a variety of styles of music in small groups directed by the tutors.

All tutors are experienced teachers as well as skilled improvisers.

End of Course Concerts

At the end of the course, students and teachers will give several public concerts.

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