We offer a high quality music education to engage and inspire pupils so that they develop a love of music and their talent as musicians, which increases their self-confidence, creativity and sense of achievement.
The music curriculum for all year groups is made up of the following strands:
• Understanding pulse, duration, rhythm, pitch, speed ( tempo ) loudness (dynamics ), timbre, texture, structure, expression and sound quality through singing, body sounds and a variety of tuned and untuned percussion instruments.
• Learning a range of cross-curricular songs and hymns, as part of the termly topics in class and in preparation for the various seasonal Christian festivals and monthly church services, as well as for the Key stage productions throughout the year.
• Learning to play melodic instruments and experience of playing some orchestral instruments in class, such as the violin, clarinet, flute and trumpet as well as the guitar and drums. The following are studied in more depth, paying attention to technique and quality of sound produced and as a way of developing an understanding of staff notation:
*Year 3 and 4 ( Descant recorder )
*Year 5 (Ukulele )
*Year ( Keyboard )
• Performing music to a wide variety of audiences with expression and confidence.
• Composing and improvising new music to demonstrate an understanding of musical skills and themes.
• Listening to and discussing a wide variety of musical performances from different genres, both live and recorded
In addition to the weekly class lessons, we are supported by the East Sussex Music School and Red Butler teachers, who offer individual and small group lessons at school on the following instruments: guitar, flute, ukulele, drums, fife, clarinet, violin, piano, keyboard, trumpet and singing
There are various events throughout the year when the children get the chance to perform live in front of an audience, such as school worships, church festivals, the carol service and the end of year summer concert.
We are looking into attending and hosting vocal and instrumental workshops in the future.
We have a flourishing school choir, presently open to all children in Year 3-6, and an orchestra, again open to children from Year 3-6. Both perform regularly in school and in the wider community at events, such as the Christmas Fair, carol singing at local Nursing Homes and at the Summer Fair.
Highlights have included the choir performing at the Proms4Praise concert at the Royal Albert Hall in London and with the world renowned African children's choir at All Saints Church, Crowborough.
Aims for the future are to further expand the musical opportunities available, including at competition level where appropriate, and to collaborate with other schools, where possible, in order to promote music and the performing arts at Fermor School.
Year 5 children attending the Choral Day at Christ's Hospital School
Members of the school choir getting ready to sing at the Christmas Fair 2021
Using the keyboard, drumming and vocal record functions of "Garage Band"
Accompanying "Heads, Shoulders, Knees and Toes" and "Happy Birthday"
Playing instruments in connection with our topic of Animals
It's never too soon to learn to play an instrument
Playing musical chairs using our song "The Animals Went in Two by Two"
So this is what the inside of a piano looks like?
Playing along withy the "Top Gear " car show theme
Playing instruments heard at the "Trooping of the Colour"
Playing instruments heard in the "Dance of the Knights" from the ballet "Romeo and Juliet"
Jousting "Fermor Style"
Playing the "gittern" at a Medieval banquet
Playing the descant recorder in the Medieval minstrel gallery
Learning a Medieval "round" tune on the bells and keyboards
Playing the trumpet and drum in time with "God Save the Queen"
Playing ascending and descending scales along with "Jack and the Beanstalk"
Playing instruments from the Stone Age, including the "bull roarer"
Playing the "We Will Rock You" drum rhythm
Playing the descant recorder
Exploring the sounds of the instruments for their Stone Age sound scores
Playing instruments first heard in Ancient Egypt
Playing along with "Alexander the Great" by Iron Maiden
Dancing along with a song describing Alexander the Great, Greek style
Playing instruments that were first heard in Roman times
Tuba ( trumpet ) Tibia ( clarinet /oboe ) Panpipes ( flute / recorder )
Composing our own "S.P.Q.R" chants
Year 4 Playing the Descant Recorder
Roman Chariot racing Fermor style
Playing the "Can Can" tune and composing our own versions
Playing the C chord on the ukulele
Learning to play the "Eye of the Tiger" on the keyboard
Playing the trumpet and violin, for which concertos were written in Baroque music
Composing our own Pachelbel's Canon melodies using the Ground Bass chord sequence
Performing our own variations to "Twinkle Little Star" in Ternary form