Music
Brookhurst School offers a wide variety of musical experiences both within curriculum time and through extra-curricular clubs and performances. The aim is to be as inclusive as possible and to impact on pupils’ well-being and academic progress through learning to perform in groups, as a soloist and as a confident individual. We believe that collective acts of music-making bring with it a strong sense of belonging and self-worth and the skills involved in performing music enhance the ability to perform well across all other areas of study.
Instrumental teachers from Warwickshire Music Service provide weekly lessons for small groups and individuals in guitar, keyboard, violin, recorder and flute. This list of instrumental provision may change according to demand.
Brookhurst Choir meets on a weekly basis and is open to all Key Stage 2 pupils. The choir perform at School concerts and services and usually experience a public performance at an outside venue. In past years this has included Royal Leamington Spa Centre, Warwick Hall and North Leamington School.
Brookhurst Breakfast Band is open to all instrumentalists and typically comprises recorders, flute, guitar, violin, keyboard, piano and percussion. Weekly rehearsals prepare the band for termly informal concerts for parents and an end of year performance in the Summer Ensembles Concert. Brookhurst Breakfast Band may also support festive occasions such as Harvest Festival and Christmas services.
The Samba Band draws on work done during curriculum lessons to offer all children in years 5 and 6 the opportunity to perform at an internal and external event. Brookhurst Samba Band has performed in Leamington Spa Centre and Warwick Hall and it is traditional for them to make an annual appearance at the PA Summer Fair and Summer Ensembles Concert.
Every class has one hour of curriculum music per week with a specialist class music teacher. The programme of study includes the opportunity to perform using a wide range of pitched and unpitched instruments including xylophones, chime bars, boomwhackers, ukuleles, recorders and a large range of unpitched percussion. Activities involving listening and appraising skills are carefully planned to expose pupils to a wide variety of musical genres and styles including world music, popular music and the western classical tradition. Pupils are encouraged to compose, improvise and perform with some use of graphic and standard notation. Singing together is a key part of curriculum music at Brookhurst.
In addition to curriculum music, Year 3 or Year 4 will be experiencing Upbeat Classes – whole class instrumental teaching. Warwickshire Music Service provide a qualified instrumental Upbeat teacher to teach whole class performance skills including general musicianship. The choice of instrument may vary but has included Ukulele and Woodwind. Upbeat Classes perform to parents at least once a year and some children are then inspired to apply for individual lessons thereafter.
Pupils enjoy annual performances from visiting musicians in collaboration with Leamington Music, Warwickshire Music Service, local Morris Dancing sides and personal contacts. A wide variety of musical ensembles engage the children with lively presentations, skilled performances and informative interactions. Teaching staff at Brookhurst enjoy these informal concerts as much as the children!
A rich and varied musical education is provided for pupils of all needs and abilities at Brookhurst School.