About our music lessons for children

Would you like to introduce your child to the thrill of learning and making music? Surrey Arts provide many opportunities for children and young people to play, learn and perform across a range of types of music.

Learning an instrument allows children and young people to express themselves and grow in self-confidence whilst developing other skills such as: hand and eye coordination, spatial and social skills, and self-reliance and develop better memories. Visit the Surrey Music Hub to find out more about the benefits of learning music and see information for students.

The recommended age for instrumental teaching will vary depending on the instrument. Please see our webpage: What instruments we teach and how to hire them for information or contact Surrey Arts.

You may also be interested in our singing, choirs and vocal groups, for children.

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Music classes for early years children

Stringbabies

Surrey Arts and Stringbabies Ltd. have come together to offer Surrey's schools and young children a fun way to learn stringed instruments. Currently, in a number of schools in the county, the programme is available county-wide for children between 3 and 7 years.

Children work with specialist Surrey Arts Stringbabies teachers to learn an instrument whilst developing general music skills using games, toys and movement in an innovative way.

If your school is interested in introducing the programme, please contact Surrey Arts for more information about Stringbabies in your area.

Music lessons for primary and secondary school children

Our expert tutors help 15,000 children and young people in Surrey to learn to sing and play all sorts of different musical instruments by visiting schools to give one-to-one or small group instrumental lessons. Our Surrey Arts film gives to an idea of what our music lessons offer.

Lessons may change over time to accommodate children's individual needs and in these cases we will offer the most appropriate group or individual lesson.

We teach all the usual orchestral and band instruments in our lessons such as: strings, woodwind, brass and percussion, as well as kit drums, guitar, piano, keyboard, recorder and singing. Find out more about:

We aim to teach as many instruments as possible at each school and music centre. However, this is restricted by the teaching rooms available to us, and the number of pupils interested in learning any given instrument.

  • We offer music lessons for children from the age of Reception class to 19 years of age, but the instruments taught will depend upon the age of the child.
  • Music lessons run for a school term. There are 33 lessons per year spread over three terms.
  • Music lessons whether provided within a group or a one to one session are usually between 20 to 30 minutes long.
  • Lessons for primary and secondary school pupils normally take place at their school during the school day. However, if we are unable to provide a lesson during the school day you may be offered lessons after school or on Saturday mornings at local music centres or schools used as music centres.
  • Lessons are also available remotely online from home. Guidelines are available to help with setting up online lessons.
  • We have provided many online resources to help learning at home and introductions to a variety of instruments.

To find out about the music lessons we offer online and which schools and music centres we offer music lessons at, please contact Surrey Arts.

Apply and pay

Music Tech and Djing

Our lessons teach students of all ages in the creative arts of music production including DJing. Students will learn recording and composition skills using industry-standard digital audio workstations to learn the tools of music production. We also teach beat-matching and other DJing skills, so students can use their own compositions in the mix!

No need to own any equipment or play an instrument. All you need is a computer and sense of rhythm! We will help students to improve their listening and motor skills and build confidence, so students will be composing tunes and DJing in no time.

Lessons for beginners work towards the Grade 1 Rock School award in music production. Lessons are currently taught online after school and are 30 minutes.

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Music exams

Surrey Arts pupils can be entered for grade examinations through Trinity Guildhall or Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music (ABRSM). Your child's teacher will notify you when they are ready and provide you with the relevant information.

Music theory lessons

Music theory lessons are available for beginners and advanced students. These are additional lessons for students to learn music theory outside of their weekly music lessons.

In order to progress beyond Grade 5 with the ABRSM (Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music) instrumental exams, students are required to be at Grade 5 theory level. These music theory classes teach all theory grades and are particularly useful for Grade 5 theory.

We are currently offering:

  • Individual beginner music theory lessons online. Suitable for young people taking beginner instrumental lessons, Grades 1 to 3 on their instrument. 30 minutes per lesson. Aimed at pupils aiming towards Grades 1, 2 or 3 ABRSM exams. £23.00 per session
  • Group music theory lessons online on Monday 7pm to 8pm, Tuesdays 6pm to 7pm, Wednesday 7pm to 8pm or Thursdays 7pm to 8pm. Groups suitable for pupils who have reached grade 3+ standard on their instrument. Aimed at pupils working towards the grade 5 exam. £10.00 per session.
  • Individual advanced music theory lessons online. Suitable for young people taking instrumental lessons, only grade 5+ standard on their instrument. 30 minutes per lesson. Aimed at pupils aiming towards Grades 6 – 8 ABRSM exams. £23.00 per session

Autumn term lessons: 12 weeks: week commencing 9 September to week commencing 9 December 2023.
Spring term lessons: 10 weeks: week commencing 6 January to week commencing 23 March 2024.
Summer term lessons: 11 weeks: week commencing 6 April to week commencing 8 July 2024 (Monday 8 July week 11).

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Support for schools teaching music

If you are a school or teacher and require support with teaching music, Surrey Arts can provide help and advice on all aspects of the Primary Music Curriculum, whether it be:

  • classroom workshops
  • singing assemblies
  • staff meetings
  • inset training
  • sorting resources,
  • or ideas to enhance your music curriculum.

Find out more about support for schools or email our Surrey Schools Team at: surreyartsschools@surreycc.gov.uk

Music workshops and courses

Surrey Arts offer many opportunities for young people to extend their learning with a variety of music and arts workshops. These take place throughout the year and include orchestral courses, singing workshops, piano master classes, guitar skills workshops and many more.

Ensembles

There are a number of ensembles available for all levels of ability. If you already play to an advanced level, you can join one of our Area or County Ensembles.

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