Regular performance opportunities (both low-stakes and high-stakes) begin as early as PreSchool. With support and guidance from both the music teacher and classroom teachers, students in grades PreSchool through 5 share their musical learning and speak publicly at weekly WTCS meetings, which are hosted by grades 4 and 5. The Intermediate and Middle School band, chorus, and select chamber chorus perform concerts in the winter and spring every year, and all students in PreSchool through Grade 8 participate in a holiday performance in December. In addition to a variety of public speaking opportunities, students in grades 7 and 8 are encouraged to participate in a yearly Broadway-style musical production. Many of our alumni go on to perform at their respective high schools and colleges. Several continue to perform professionally.
Choral singing begins in the earliest grades with regularly scheduled music classes that focus on basic tonal and rhythmic competency. The choral curriculum intensifies in the intermediate and middle school grade levels, when students sing in the 4th/5th grade chorus, the 6th/7th/8th grade chorus, or audition and participate in the select chamber chorus. On the instrumental music side, the Lower School uses a blend of Kodaly, Orff, and Suzuki teaching methods, and students are introduced to Solfege, recorder, xylophone, and various percussion instruments. Students may opt to study instrumental music, first with the 5th Grade Band followed by the Middle School Band.
In addition to the regular performing arts curriculum, TCS provides many after-school and outside-of-school arts opportunities including the Young Musicians Program, which provides additional private instruction for interested students; optional choral and band auditions and festivals; as well as various theatrical opportunities.