Music

Lower School Music at TVS is full of laughter and joy and a vital part of the arts experience at Trinity Valley School! We sing, move and play every single day. Our youngest Trojans come to a 20-minute music class two days a week in Pre-K and three days a week in Kindergarten. In these first two years we focus on the building blocks of music: steady beat, singing voice and opposites like loud/soft, high/low, fast/slow, beat/rhythm and speaking voice/singing voice. Beginning in 1st Grade, music class times are lengthened in time and/or frequency based on what is developmentally appropriate for the age of students. 

Our curriculum is a blend of the Kodaly Method and Orff Schulwerk. Kodaly gives us a solid sequence and foundation for learning music notation and singing, while Orff allows us to apply that to instruments as well as bring in the creative elements of improvisation and creation. Our repertoire incorporates speech (poems and rhymes), singing of folk songs, folk dances and other movement activities, and instrumental music in a creative environment. We also discuss composers and their works with a composer of the week. In addition to all students do in music class, they also get to perform in grade level plays, as well as our Holiday Program for Kindergarten through 4th Grade. All of these different opportunities encourage the development of the whole child giving each one a voice and choice, as well as a place and a space to grow musically, emotionally, intellectually and socially. 

Students in fifth and sixth grades have five days of music in our six-day schedule, alternating rotations with art class. Students learn rhythmic concepts, along with staff note names for instrumentalists and solfege for vocal sight-reading. Techniques for playing Orff instruments and recorders are part of the curriculum. Folk songs from different cultures are presented, as well as folk dancing and games requiring movement. Students watch and study a musical.

The Trojan Treble Clef Choir meets after school and presents three to four performances annually. These include TCU sporting events and NRH2O Music Festival.

Seventh-grade students rotate between choir, creative dramatics, and visual art, spending six weeks in each rotation per semester. As eighth graders, students elect to study two of our three fine arts courses for 18 weeks each.

The Upper School Choir Program offers students diverse opportunities to grow as musicians, performers, and leaders. It includes two curricular choirs—Varsity Choir and JV Choir—and an auditioned a cappella ensemble, The Trinitones.

The Varsity Choir, the school’s premier ensemble, performs regularly throughout the year. Highlights include singing the National Anthem at football games, the annual Winter Choir Concert, Fall and Spring Coffeehouses, and the Winter Honors Society Ceremony. In spring, the ensemble travels to the ISAS Arts Festival and presents a themed concert in the Black Box Theater.

The JV Choir helps students develop vocal technique, musicianship, and performance skills. It performs in the Winter Choir Concert, sings the National Anthem at a football game, participates in the spring-themed concert with Varsity Choir, and performs at Upper School assemblies.

Students in both choirs are encouraged to audition for honor ensembles, including the TPSMEA All-State Choir and the OAKE National Honor Choir.

The a cappella ensemble meets regularly and performs both on and off campus. It participates in major Varsity Choir events, including the Winter Concert, spring concert, and Coffeehouses, as well as assemblies, donor events, and other performances.

The program fosters an inclusive environment where students of all experience levels build confidence, artistry, collaboration, and a lasting appreciation for music.