Music
The Roche School encourages a love of music by developing regular opportunities for singing, performing, listening to and creating music. Children develop in confidence, self-discipline and communication through a wide range of musical stimuli.
Our school has a very high standard of singing. Each class has a weekly singing lesson in which a vast repertoire is taught with progressive vocal techniques and a variety of styles. This culminates with multi-part singing, frequently with the whole school, of truly exceptional quality and energy. Every class also has a general music lesson each week which includes the use of instruments and movement in the Lower School and notation and composition in the Upper School.
Each term concludes with a concert in which our choirs, classes, orchestra and soloists perform. The Summer Term includes an Eisteddfod music competition which the children love and is growing each year.
Key Stage 1: We aim to foster each child’s enthusiasm and enjoyment with elements of Kodaly methodology. The Kodaly method is about musicianship. It uses a child developmental approach to sequence and introduces new skills at the child’s pace with singing and movement. By year 2 it uses specific symbols for note values to express their duration and introduces the basics of rhythm, pulse and pitch using solfa. We introduce the children to the instruments of the orchestra and this is a good age to start instrumental lessons that are on offer at The Roche School.
Key Stage 2: In years 3 and 4 the children learn the recorder whilst learning about music notation. Years 5 and 6 learn the ukulele and understanding chords and basic harmony. This often results in a class band with other instruments some children have learnt with the individual instrumental tuition. Throughout their time at The Roche the children are progressively introduced to new techniques vocally and instrumentally to attain quality and emotional responses. They are exposed to music from many cultures and time periods developing their listening and appreciation skills whilst beginning to understand how music is created.
Peripatetic Music: Individual tuition is available in piano, drums, cello, djembe, violin, guitar, voice, trumpet, cornet,clarinet, bassoon and saxophone.
