Kodály Elementary Class 
Unlock your musical skills; learn to sight sing and to play by ear with fluency and ease.
About the Kodály approach:
Zoltan Kodály was a Hungarian composer who developed the teaching of music in Hungary using musical and educational ideas from various countries. Central to his work was the use of Solfa syllables as practised in Britain in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries and the French rhythm names. Several core principles underpin this music education:
  • music belongs to everyone; everyone has the ability and the right to participate in music making
  • the voice is the first instrument; through singing we can learn the fundamental skills of ensemble music making without being distracted by the technical demands of an instrument
  • progression from simple to complex in small steps
  • unconscious learning precedes conscious learning which is then reinforced in new contexts
  • musical material should be of the highest quality and mainly consist of song material rather than exercises
Venue:
Wheatsheaf Hall
Wheatsheaf Lane 
Vauxhall
http://www.wheatsheafhall.org.uk/directions/
Course times:
Tuesday evening 6.30-9.30 Elementary class*
Tuesday evening 8.15-9.30 Singing in solfa
*6.30-8 will be the 'teaching' part of the class and 8.15-9.30 will be a more open practice session.

Course dates:
Term 1:
24 September then every Tuesday until 22 October
Half term 29 October
5 November to 3 December
Term 2: TBC
Term 3: TBC

What will I learn?
Starting with very simple two note songs you will learn to connect sound and symbol so that you can sing what you see on the page, just as you can read words without spelling out letters. The curriculum will cover:
  • Recognising pitch relationships in songs
  • Recognising and reading rhythms 
  • Singing in parts, canon and harmony
  • Understanding form
  • Understanding basic harmony
  • Introducing the five pentatonic scales
  • Major and minor scales
  • Developing inner hearing
  • Developing musical memory
  • Coordination
FAQ:

Do I have to have musical skills?
No, you don't have to be able to play an instrument or know anything about music theory to participate in this course. The course will be tailored to suit the participants and musicians with a degree of musical skill and knowledge can learn alongside beginners. The class is structured in two parts, in the first half I will teach the elementary curriculum and then in the second half I hope that people who know more about the approach but who want to practice singing in solfa will come and join the group, so the elementary students will have the opportunity to stay and sing with the more experienced musicians and put their learning into context. 
Cost:
Elementary class: £150 per term 
Solfege Practise £75 per term

Apply or enquire using the contact form below: