Music

Academics

Music Curriculum

From the Threes program all the way through 12th grade, Trevor’s Music Department emphasizes the importance of both performing music and appreciating it as an art form, at age-appropriate levels. It is our hope that all members of the community can experience the power of Trevor student music throughout the year.

The Lower School curriculum incorporates the approaches of Carl Orff, Zoltan Kodaly, and Jacques Dalcroze. Music is experiential, and each child is encouraged to participate, based on the premise that experiencing music precedes intellectually understanding it. Our music program involves movement, singing, ear training games, and, beginning in Kindergarten, playing the rhythm and pitched instruments included in the Orff instrumentarium, both for improvisation and to learn structured accompaniments.

In Middle School, students begin to specialize in elective choral and instrumental music ensembles and perform in two major concerts each year. Many students also perform as members of the cast and pit band for the annual MiniTerm musical.

The Upper School music curriculum offers both open-admission ensembles and higher-level auditioned groups in instrumental and choral music. Performances are an integral part of the music program. Formal evening concerts in the fall and spring are supplemented by in-school assembly performances and by special, off-campus performance opportunities, adjudication events, and singing camps throughout the year.

Signature Trevor

From vocal and instrumental training and performances led by lauded teacher-musicians, to creative collaborations with visiting artists and exposure to a wide range of musical genres, Trevor musicians are immersed in a dynamic Music program that harnesses and celebrates the immense power of music.

Trevor:

List of 3 items.

Sings to an audience

Sings to an audience of thousands when performing the National Anthem annually at Citi Field or Yankee Stadium.
Shares Music

Shares music with the community in diverse ways including music videos in 5th grade, recorded activism songs in 3rd grade, and film scores in collaboration with Upper School Video Arts films.
Looks for opportunities

Looks for opportunities to expose our musicians to the broad world of music including performing at the Berklee College of Music High School Jazz Festival or at Carnegie Hall with The Cecilia Chorus of New York.

“Thanks for sending my kids home singing every day.” - Trevor Parent

Faculty

The Music Department faculty are adept teachers and talented musicians with a wide range of vocal and instrumental backgrounds. In working with ensembles, they take on a role akin to a coach, marshalling the various talents of a team toward a shared goal. In the Lower School we employ the diverse approaches of Carl Orff, Zoltan Kodaly, and Jacques Dalcroze so that our students enter Middle School and Upper School prepared to grow and perform in traditional music ensembles.

College Ready

The Music Department’s goal is for all students to both appreciate and perform music throughout their trajectory at Trevor. Trevor students are encouraged as budding musicians, taking consistent courses and performing on multiple occasions through the 6th grade. For those who elect to continue their study of music beyond 6th grade, we help students further develop an appreciation for the many forms that music can take, and nurture the craft of music making through the study of vocal and instrumental music, as well as music theory and musical composition. The Music department is one of our most public-facing departments, and as such, when students head off to college and beyond they are ready to be sophisticated audience members, comfortable and knowledgeable public performers, and for many, talented artists who are well prepared to continue their craft.