Music is a subject that we feel very passionately about at Balmoral. All year levels participate in specialist music and we hope all children will gain intrinsic appreciation for the artform. As music is a huge part of all of our cultures it can also be a window into many other topics such as history, geography, anthropology and many more. We have two music teachers at our school. Below is a brief overview of their programmes.
Year 0-4 Sarah Dunn
Sarah’s ethos in teaching lower primary students is to offer a broad landscape of musical experiences that might foster a lifelong joy for music. She weaves a variety of pedagogies such as Orff, Kodaly and inquiry-based learning into her teaching practice. Both child and teacher engage with mātauranga Māori (Māori knowledge) and te ao Māori (a Māori way of seeing the world) as they together learn from taonga pūoro (singing treasures – Māori musical instruments), the whakapapa of Māori music and the creative world around us.
Every class receives one hour of music per week in a range of experiences that include singing, movement and musical skills. Specifically, the following foundational skills are taught throughout the year:
Beat and rhythm are taught through the Kodaly method, body percussion and drumming.
Melody is taught through simple songs on glockenspiels, chime bars, marimba, keyboard and piano.
Chords (and TAB melodies) are taught on ukulele through a range of musical genres.
Every session also has a large emphasis placed on musical exploration and creative music-making (improvisation and composition) in which children are encouraged to both informally and formally create their own music either individually, in small groups, and as a whole class. Throughout the year each class also learns songwriting by creating and performing a class song that draws inspiration from children's inquiry provocations and wonderings from music class as well as from across the wider school curriculum. This is also where the specific musical skills children have been learning throughout the year are interwoven, showcased and celebrated.
Year 5-8 Alex Urlich
Alex believes in active participation as opposed to a lot of theory writing so all children will have plenty of opportunities to play instruments and sing. This comes from the concept that music is a language that can be taught aurally and is something that everyone can take part in. There should be no barrier to entry for music education and sometimes heavy reliance on European, classical theory can deter students.
We study the meaning of music and delve into different inquiries such as finding out about a country's culture through their music, researching songs about historical events and people and examining how music can be an expression of all human emotion with a huge impact on our lives.
Songwriting and being creative is a core part of Alex’s music lessons so children will be allowed to explore their ideas and learn how to connect their ideas into something meaningful
Alex introduces musical technology at Year 5 starting from easy, drag and drop loops to full recordings, editing and mixing at Year 8.
All instruments that we have in our department will get a spotlight and children will be able to try out and learn, piano, drums, guitar, bass, ukulele, marimba, and many more
Balmoral School Bands and Choirs
Alex and Sarah also take the school bands and choirs respectively where we aim to give as many performance opportunities as possible throughout the year.
We have had great successes with our bands playing around our community at the Sandringham Festival, Maungawhau School Fair, Eden Albert Cultural Festival and even to a conference of the NZ Primary Principals Association.
We have also begun entering bands into the Rockshop Bandquest, the junior version of the Rockquest many of us remember from high school. In 2022, on just our first try, our band Tīwaiwaka came second in the Auckland region
We have the following groups children can audition for at our school:
Intermediate
Kaiawa and Ruru - Pop/Rock bands with classic band instruments i.e. electric guitar, keyboards, drums, etc.
Kororā - Mini orchestra with strings, brass and woodwind
Intermediate Choir - Vocal group that welcomes any intermediate students that would like to sing
Primary
Tūī - Pop/Rock band for Year 4-6 with classic band instruments i.e. electric guitar, keyboards, drums, etc.
Kororā - Mini orchestra with strings, brass and woodwind
Primary Choir - Vocal group that welcomes primary students from Year 3-6 that would like to sing
Music Itinerant Teachers
We are lucky to have highly skilled musicians who teach their instruments at Balmoral School. For more information on our itinerant teachers, including their contact details, please click here.