Welcome to the Queen's Music department
At Queen’s, the Music Department celebrates the joy of music-making and is committed to nurturing a lifelong love of music in every pupil. A visit to the College will typically be accompanied by the sound of pupils rehearsing, performing as soloists, or taking part in one of our choirs or many instrumental ensembles.
Music is studied by all pupils from Years 7 to 9 and remains a popular option at GCSE and A-level, with numbers continuing to grow. Many of our A-level musicians progress to leading conservatoires and universities, with recent destinations including the Royal College of Music, the University of Cambridge, and Carnegie Mellon University (USA).
Our thriving concert programme is central to the co-curricular life of the College. Pupils take part in our Informal Concert series, termly concerts, regular masterclasses – recent guests include Jeneba Kanneh-Mason and the award-winning trombone quartet Slide Action – our annual Jazz Evening, charity events including the much-loved Come and Sing concert, and end-of-term services at St Marylebone Parish Church. We also run a thriving Music Scholarship Programme to support our most dedicated and experienced young musicians.
Co-Curricular Music opportunities
We offer a diverse range of ensembles, including three choirs, a performing arts group, specialist string, brass and woodwind groups, a percussion ensemble, a rock band, and a number of smaller chamber groups, many of which are pupil-led. These groups perform frequently in concerts, assemblies, and services.
The College also stages a musical production every two years; past productions include Beauty and the Beast, Oliver! and our 175th anniversary production of Annie at the Shaftesbury Theatre in 2023. Our recent production of Les Misérables was a resounding success, involving over 150 pupils from the College and Preparatory School. Choir, orchestra and brass tours also form an exciting part of our provision, with recent tours to Belgium, Cyprus and St Lucia.
Music facilities
The department is well-equipped, with two dedicated teaching classrooms and six practice rooms, and a suite of Mac laptops installed with Sibelius, Garageband and Logic to support composition work. A team of twenty Visiting Music Teachers works closely with the Director of Music, Second in Department, Graduate Music Assistant and Music Administrator to deliver high-quality tuition, with more than half of our pupils receiving weekly individual lessons.