Music

We shape our ensembles each year around the talents and passions of our musicians, celebrating every style and every level of experience. At present Alleyn's is home to three orchestras, four choirs, two jazz bands, a concert band, and a host of wind and brass ensembles, guitar orchestras and over twenty string and piano chamber groups, alongside countless pupil-led vocal groups and bands. Every instrumentalist meets staff individually each year to talk through their goals, take guidance, and find the right balance between music and the rest of school life.

There is nothing quite like performing in front of an audience. Hours of practice, dedication and imagination all meet in a single live moment, and it is the reason we practise so hard: we have something to express. We offer two concert platforms most weeks, and more in our busiest periods, from informal Friday lunchtime recitals to our biggest events. Our theatre, the MCT, hosts our largest concerts, such as Battle of the Bands and the Year 7 Concerts, while the Great Hall and Lanchbery Rehearsal Room suit more intimate recitals.

Performing beyond school matters just as much. Our ensembles appear regularly at venues such as Southwark Cathedral, St John's Smith Square, Blackheath Halls and St Barnabas Church in Dulwich. Many pupils also perform with national organisations including the National Youth Orchestra, the National Children's Orchestra, and the National Youth Choir, while others study each weekend at the junior departments of London's leading conservatoires. We also host biannual competitions for all our instrumentalists, with distinguished professional musicians visiting to adjudicate and give masterclasses, and we join the Dulwich Foundation schools for concerts at the Royal Festival Hall.

The WJ Smith Trust was established in 1988 by Alleyn's alumnus, composer and conductor Jack Lanchbery (Roper's 1942), in memory of WJ Smith, Alleyn's Music Master from 1923 to 1948. Its purpose is to enable musically gifted children to access an Alleyn's education through exhibitions and fees bursary support, with up to 100% means-tested funding for very able musicians to join pupils entering the school at 11+.

Upon Jack Lanchbery's passing in 2003, the Trust was overseen for more than two decades by his old school friend, the late Lord Terence Higgins (Dutton's 1946), under whose dedicated stewardship the charity went from strength to strength. The Trust today is overseen by our Governors and Madeleine Campbell (Duttons 1986) continues to support many musical pupils at Alleyn’s and counts among its former beneficiaries many alumni who have gone on to prestigious careers in music.

Every two years our musicians take their playing abroad on a summer tour in July, performing in some of Europe's most memorable settings, with the next tour coming in July 2027. Recent tours have taken pupils to Tuscany, Rome, Barcelona and Paris, from the Pantheon and Notre Dame to sunlit piazzas and great cathedrals, giving them experiences that bring their music to life well beyond the classroom.

Our music team is made up of dedicated musicians who bring performing and professional experience to the classroom and the stage, and who share it generously with every pupil.

• Luis Parés, Director of Music
• Jonathan Beatty, Assistant Director of Music (Performance)
• Chris Fish, Assistant Director of Music (Academic)
• Jo Doley, Head of Strings and Assistant Head of Performance
• Ned Bennett, Head of Woodwind, Brass and Jazz
• Pamela Hay, Head of Vocal Studies
• Harry Houseago, Head of Popular Music
• Felix Fardell, Teacher of Music
• Jackie James, Music Administrator
• Daniel Liggins, Music Department Technician
• Jennie Gillespie, Graduate Music Assistant

Each term Alleyn's welcomes world-class musicians to perform in our theatre. These evenings bring exceptional live music to our community, and give pupils the rare chance to learn directly from the artists through masterclasses and coaching. Recent guests have included the Castalian, Endellion, Dante, Heath and Sacconi String Quartets, the Fibonacci Sequence Trio, the Swingles, Voces8, Onyx Brass and the Endymion Wind Ensemble, alongside pianist Danny Driver, trumpeter Alison Balsom, violinist Thomas Gould and cellist Guy Johnston.