Being a musician at St Mary's

At St. Mary’s we enjoy a strong tradition of Music.

Last year, we took our ‘Young Voices’ choir to Birmingham to participate with 6,400 other primary aged school children at the Resort World Arena. They had such a memorable and amazing experience that we have had our first meeting on zoom for the next one. The children loved listening to the wide range of music genres, and seeing each other on zoom. Sadly, the event has been moved from June 2021 to Spring 2022. The good news is that the year 6 children, who will be at Secondary school next summer, still want to come with us.

Before the current partial school closure, the children took part in a weekly whole school singing assembly which had a mixture of traditional and contemporary songs from a variety of genres. 

Normally, the classes have regular Music lessons in which children learn the basics of musical terms e.g. pulse, rhythm, timbre and start to learn music notation. The children experience a wide range of musical styles through listening, singing to and accompanying with tuned and un-tuned percussion in our music room. There are also opportunities for composing and collaboration for children to create their own music. We are fortunate to have a number of tuned and un-tuned percussion instruments, and we use the ‘Charanga’ music programme 

There are opportunities for the children to learn stringed, and percussion instruments with three peripatetic teachers. At the moment, our peripetetic teachers are not teaching on site, but operating from home on zoom with many of the children. Mrs Beresford is typically available to teach piano lessons outside of school hours. Our teachers are happy to be contacted directly, so please see the information below.

Our lunchtime music clubs e.g. recorder club and ‘Mini Singers’ are all on hold at the moment. Similarly, whole school masses.  We miss not celebrating mass with our wider school community and seeing Father Millett. 

These are the details of our peripatetic teachers.

The school's interim Lead Musician or Music Subject Leader  is Lucy Smith