Music Academy Online
Our Music Academy – what is it?
The St. George’s King’s Music Academy provides local Key Stage 2 children (7-11 years age bracket) with a unique form of ‘whole’ musical education by teaching several disciplines: singing and vocal coaching, keyboard lessons, recorder lessons and small group percussion and theory classes. The Academy provides a fun and broad curriculum and provides opportunities for students to make music together and to proceed at their own pace individually, in the case of keyboards, and to develop wider musical skills by playing theory games and group percussion work.
Where and when do we meet?
We meet in St. George’s church on Thursdays for an hour during the school-term. Each child takes part in three of the above each week in groups of no more than 10 students.
We visit Kings College on the Strand twice a year to perform, and we also perform at St. George’s and have two luxurious parties each year!
The Team
The Academy is led by our experienced Director of Music, Jonathan Pix, and run in conjunction with six expert students from Kings College Music Dept. who have an interest in Music Education. King’s College students have the opportunity to develop teaching relationships with young students at an early stage in Southwark and children at the Academy visit King’s College to experience life at a nearby higher education institution. All our staff are fully DRB cleared and we have implemented and follow the Southwark Diocese guidance for Child Protection and Safeguarding.
We aim to encourage students to study theory at a higher level at secondary school so that they will be able to more confidently undertake courses that will enable them to consider continuing their musical learning at an academic degree level.
If you child interested in joining the Music Academy then please contact jonathanpix@stgeorge-themartyr.co.uk.
Our Award
We were delighted to receive an award at the Kings Widening Participation Ceremony in 2018. We were awarded the prestigious King’s Award for Most Significant Commitment to Widening Participation and Social Mobility. Our award was collected by Dr. Katherine Schofield.
Our Schools
Pupils at the St. George's King's Music Academy have come from the following primary schools:
St. Joseph's RC Primary - Borough, St. Jude's CE Primary - Elephant & Castle, Ark Globe Academy, Pilgrims Way Primary School, Snowsfield's Primary School, Goodrich Primary School, Tower Bridge Primary School, Rotherhithe Primary School, St. Joseph's RC - Rotherhithe, Charlotte Sharman Community Primary, Archbishop Sumner CE Primary, Friars Community Primary and Charles Dickens Community Primary schools.
Our Supporters
The Academy is funded by a King’s College Widening Participation Grant which provides collaborative training opportunities for students on the music undergraduate course. We are also very grateful to the St.Olave’s Foundation for providing funding for musical instruments and music books.
In particular we would like to thank Dr. Esther Cavett, Dr. Flora Wilson and Dr. Katherine Schofield and the Revd. Andrew Nunn
Kings College Campus Trip - Tour of Music Dept. & Chapel Rehearsal - 6th March 2020
We had a fun trip to the King's College Strand Campus to see what it is like to be a student studying Music at the Music Dept. We saw the lecture rooms where students receive tuition, explored the insides of enormous grand pianos, watched a singing lesson and a chamber rehearsal in the beautiful chapel. We also explored lots of quirky hidden entrances and exits between lecture rooms! We are grateful for the high level of parental help on this trip and our thanks go to Jonathan Davies at Kings for organising the King's side of things.
Kings College Music Theatre Band - 'Annie' Visit - 6th February 2020
The Kings College Music Theatre Band made a spectacular visit to the crypt of St. George's Crypt on February 6th 2020. We were delighted to hear the full overture from 'Annie' and were expertly led by Kings students in song, collaborating in a superb scratch performance of 'It's A Hard Knock Life'. Children also saw and heard very close up three 3 different types of saxophone, a violin, an electric bass, trumpets, trombones, horns, drum kit, flutes and the piccolo. Our students were also able to learn conducting skills and helped to lead excerpts themselves.
Photos courtesy of Carmen Gowie/Jonathan Pix
Our Trip to Kings College
We visited Kings College on the Stra
nd and sang with the sublime Chapel Choir and played some tunes on the recorder accompanied by the newly restored organ. Thank you to Kings College for your warm welcome to such a beautiful place, and thank you to all the parents who joined us for Choral Evensong.
Payments
Click here to pay for your Music Academy books and recorders
Visit by Michael Bochmann and Esther Cavett
On 1st November students at St. George's Kings Music Academy took part in a fantastic workshop with violinist Michael Bochmann and pianist Esther Cavett. Students learnt about the history of the violin and how it makes its sound. We played duets together and every child had a chance to improvise using their recorder with Michael in an extended group piece. We finished the session by listening to an amazing performance of The Lark Ascending by Ralph Vaughan Williams, performed by Michael and Esther.
