Colourstrings
Welcome to 'Colourstrings' at Brittens Music School
Brittens Music School in Tunbridge Wells is home to our Colourstrings Classes, for children aged 1 to 7 years old. Colourstrings is a child-centred approach to music and instrumental teaching based on the work of Kodaly, Dalcroze and Orff. It replaces conventional teaching in the early stages and provides the best opportunity for children to learn musicianship in an enjoyable, stimulating and extraordinarily musical way... more
Use our Registration Form if you are interested in signing-up or to request more detail.
Colourstrings Classes from 5th September 2025
Brittens Colourstrings classes from Friday 5th September 2025 |
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| Wrens | 1s to 2s - Mainly children who turn 2 by September 2026 |
Friday 10.30 - 11.15 |
| Robins | 2s to 3s - Mainly children who turn 3 by September 2026 |
Friday 09.30 - 10.15 |
| Blackbirds | 3s to 4s - Mainly children who turn 4 by September 2025 |
Friday |
| Swallows* | 4s to 6s - Children in the age group for Reception and Year 1 |
Wednesday 16.30 - 17.15 begins mid-October |
| Skylarks | 5s to 7s - Children in the age group for Y1, Y2 and Y3 who have completed the Swallows class or equivalent - please ask |
Wednesday 17.20 - 18:05 |
*Swallows classes will begin in October when registered children will attend a free introductory class. Children can then enrol to join the regular classes after half-term which will be charged at the usual class rates for the remainder of the term.
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Colourstrings class times by day from Friday 5th September 2025 |
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Wednesday |
16.30 - 17.15 |
Swallows |
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Wednesday |
17.20 - 18.05 |
Skylarks |
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Friday |
09.30 - 10.15 |
Robins |
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Friday |
10.30 - 11.15 |
Wrens |
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Friday |
13.30 - 14.15 |
Blackbirds |
Classes are held in our large upstairs teaching room at Brittens Music school. Class sizes are limited and we offer places on a first come first served basis. If you are interested in signing up and would like to know more, please complete the registration form. We will invite you to try the appropriate class and send you the joining instructions and terms and conditions. There is nothing to pay for the trial class. When you decide to sign up for the term we will send you an invoice. Classes cost £9.00 each and are invoiced for the term in advance.
If you have any questions please email brittensmusic@gmail.com. We look forward to hearing from you.
Brittens Colourstrings and Musicianship Classes Term Dates 2025-26
Autumn Term - 2025
Skylarks - 12 Weeks
Wednesday 10th September to Wednesday 15th October (6 weeks)
Half term (2 weeks) Monday 20th October to Friday 31st October
Wednesday 5th November to Wednesday 10th December (6 weeks)
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Swallows - 6 weeks
8th and 15th October - Preview Classes
Half term (2 weeks) Monday 20th October to Friday 31st October
Term begins Wednesday 5th November to Wednesday 10th December (6 weeks)
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Robins & Blackbirds - 13 weeks
Friday 5th September to Friday 17th October (7 weeks)
Half term (2 weeks) Monday 20th October to Friday 31st October
Friday 7th November to Friday 12th December (6 weeks)
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Spring Term - 2026
Swallows & Skylarks - 11 Weeks
Wednesday 7th January to Wednesday 11th February (6 weeks)
Half term (1 week) Monday 16th to Friday 20th February
Wednesday 25th February to Wednesday 25th March (5 weeks)
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Robins & Blackbirds - 11 Weeks
Friday 9th January to Friday 13th February (6 weeks)
Half term (1 week) Monday 16th to Friday 20th February
Friday 27th February to Friday 27th March (5 weeks)
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Summer Term - 2026
Swallows & Skylarks - 12 Weeks
Wednesday 22nd April to Wednesday 20th May (5 weeks)
Half term (1 week) Monday 25th to Friday 29th May
Wednesday 3rd June to Wednesday 15th July (7 weeks)
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Robins & Blackbirds - 12 Weeks
Friday 24th April to Friday 22nd May (5 weeks)
Half term (1 week) Monday 25th to Friday 29th May
Friday 5th June to Friday 17th July (7 weeks)
What is Colourstrings?
Our Tunbridge Wells branch is home to our Colourstrings Classes, for children aged 1 to 7 years old. Colourstrings is a child-centred approach to music and instrumental teaching based on the work of Kodaly, Dalcroze and Orff. It replaces conventional teaching in the early stages and provides the best opportunity for children to learn musicianship in an enjoyable, stimulating and extraordinarily musical way.
It was developed by the Hungarian brothers, Géza and Csaba Szilvay who have gained international recognition as conductors, educators and string teachers. Colourstrings has been established in Finland for over 45 years and the rest of the world since the early 1990s with outstanding results. The number of teachers following this approach to teaching young children grows annually around the world.
Everyone is Musical!
Musical experiences are very important during the early years. Every child is born with an inherent musical ability which needs nurturing early on so that it can develop fully.
Use our Registration Form if you are interested in signing-up or to find out more.
Return to Colourstrings Classes Table
Music Kindergarten Classes
Training begins in the Music Kindergarten where you can join your child on a wonderful adventure travelling to Musicland. They learn through experience about basic musical concepts such as high and low (pitch), loud and soft (dynamics), short and long sounds (rhythm), mood and style (character), fast and slow (tempo) and develop their singing voices and inner hearing.
Brittens Music Colourstrings Kindergarten aims to surround children with a positive, friendly and stimulating environment where they will have a multi-sensory and active musical experience through singing, listening, performing and accompaniment with percussion instruments. Pictures, musical stories, puppets and games are used to bring alive the musical elements so that children learn unconsciously and effortlessly. By introducing music in a playful yet structured manner we believe parents and carers are giving their children the opportunity to develop a love and appreciation of music which will last a lifetime. A feature of every Colourstrings class is a short period of quiet, focused listening to classical or folk music from different periods and cultures, both recorded and live.
Enhance All Areas of Development
The Colourstrings approach of multi-sensory learning encourages not only musicianship but develops the whole child, training the attention, supporting social, academic and motor development and helping each child grow into a confident individual. Interestingly, research indicates an early musical education helps build new neural pathways which, put more simply, means growing more routes and connections in the brain along which information can travel and be processed.
Age Appropriate Classes
Classes are offered for specific age group as follows:
Wrens - 1s to 2s, mainly children who turn 2 by September 2026
Robins - 2s to 3s, mainly children who turn 3 by September 2026
Blackbirds - 3s to 4s, mainly children who turn 4 by September 2025
Swallows - 4s to 6s, children in the age group for Reception and Year 1
Skylarks - 5s to 7s, children in the age group for Y1, Y2 and Y3 who have completed the Swallows class or equivalent - please ask
The songs and activities lie within each age group’s capabilities, allowing room to develop and stretch their skills further whilst taking into account the emotional, developmental and musical needs of each individual child. Class size is limited to between 6 and 10 children at the teachers’ discretion.
Graded Song Books, CDs and Work Books
Multicultural folk songs, rhymes and traditional nursery songs are a weekly feature with the core song material featured in a series of books and CDs called the Singing and Rhythm Rascals. These are designed for pre-school, Early Years and Key Stage 1 children with the aim of awakening their interest in music and creating a musical environment in the child’s home.
The primary purpose of the CDs is to encourage the child to sing and sing well. The graded repertoire helps develop the best intonation/pitch accuracy. A story links each song to the next and at the end of each sequence the song is heard as a string orchestral performance of high artistic quality which leads the child naturally from singing to listening. The Rascals songs reappear in workbooks and instrumental tutor books, creating an integrated system of learning which has been tried and tested and established in Finland for over 45 years with outstanding results.
Use our Registration Form if you are interested in signing-up or to find out more.
Books and CDs are available from Brittens Music.
Return to Colourstrings Classes Table
The Colourstrings Classes Explained
Robins | Wrens | Blackbirds | Swallows | Skylarks
Wrens - 1 to 2 Years
Colourstrings Music Kindergarten aims to provide a calm, gently guided musical experience for all to enjoy, giving you an opportunity to bond with your child as you learn together.
Young babies eagerly respond to music when given the opportunity to experience it and the human voice is their preferred vehicle. Parents/carers learn to relax with their babies and together develop confidence while enjoying musical games, songs and rhymes with a strong pulse. Bouncing songs, tickling and peekaboo games, lullabies, circle dances, rolling and seesaw activities all encourage babies and toddlers to become aware of their bodies as they start to gain more control over their movements and to develop their language and communication skills through listening and hearing others sing. It is also an opportunity for the carers to develop confidence in their own singing voice and increase their repertoire of songs and rhymes. All are designed to develop confidence between adult and child and gently increase your baby’s concentration.
Starting classes at this young age will make your child familiar with the Colourstrings songs and rhymes and give your child an excellent start in encouraging speaking and singing when they are ready in later classes.
Back to our classes for 2025/26
Robins - 2 to 3 Years
At this age we aim to expose the children to as many different musical experiences as possible. We explore counting songs and rhymes, action songs, respond to music physically with our bodies, scarves and teddies, start moving (with assistance!) at different speeds and enjoy being rocked, bounced and swung. The children develop favourite songs, try out a variety of percussion instruments and meet Mummy and Baby Bear in Musicland. The structure of the class helps keep things familiar and secure as well as giving a sense of discipline and routine.
As the children are growing, the class includes more movement, circle dances and musical activities that focus on keeping the beat along with developing co-ordination, listening and language skills. As your child develops they can join in with action songs, start to contribute ideas for what to do next or whether to go fast or slow and start to sing themselves and take on solo roles with parental support. We meet Three Bears in Musicland and explore the musical concepts through the Colourstrings books as well as other songs and rhymes. We try out a variety of percussion instruments and develop our imagination through the story within the songs.
Back to our classes for 2025/26
Blackbirds - 3 to 4 years
As their confidence develops, children continue to explore musical concepts through fun songs and games, rhymes, movement and dances and add in the very beginning of musical notation through finding Middle Bear (TA) and Little Bear (titi) paw prints and tapping different melodic rhythms with words and with the rhythm syllables.
Through the familiar Colourstrings songs, solo and ensemble singing is encouraged with games to develop listening, pitch matching and aurally recognising and identifying songs. Children learn to interact and co-operate in small groups and express different moods through songs, instruments and creative movement. We explore different ways to play percussion instruments and accompany our singing.
Back to our classes for 2025/26
Swallows & Skylarks - after school groups
Swallows - 4s to 6s (children in the age group for Reception and Year 1)
Skylarks - 5s to 7s for children who have completed the Swallows year or have similar experience
Children generally come to the after-school classes without a parent or carer but you are welcome to sit in for a week or two if that will help your child settle in.
In the after-school programme, the children start to link the songs they have learned to the musical concepts we have previously explored, as well as beginning to consciously understand rhythm and pitch. They start to translate the rhythm of the songs into ‘bear language’ which then moves them towards reading musical notation. They also begin translating the pitches within the songs with the help of Solfa Sam, learning the pitches through tonic solfa (Do, Re, Mi) and hand signs. This class is lots of fun, with musical games, exploration of percussion instruments, clapping games and dances.
We recommend that any children new to Colourstrings starting this class purchase the Pentatonic book and CD (these are available at Brittens Music). Progress depends on the children knowing the songs well.
Back to our classes for 2025/26
If you are interested in signing up and would like to know more, please complete the registration form. If you have any questions please email brittensmusic@gmail.com. We look forward to singing with you.