Music

September 14, 2023

The Lower School Music program prepares students to be lifelong musical people. By focusing on many aspects of music education, students become well-rounded in their musical experiences. These include developing a healthy head voice, performing steady beats and rhythms independently and then as part of an ensemble, moving expressively to the form and emotional response to music, moving with others to folk dances, music history, reading notation, composition, improvisation, recorder, percussion instruments, and performing. Students also explore and respond to music from American folk and popular songs as well as songs from many different time periods, genres, cultures, and decades. Students also have many opportunities to connect their classroom instruction to music. Students have created jingles for their own businesses, theme songs for fairytales as well as using poetry to create their own songs. By the end of their lower school years, students can create their own tunes, dances, read many rhythms and melodic patterns and songs, be proficient at recorder and are ready to expand upon their musical creativity and instrumental skills in middle school.