In grades 9-12 music classes, students further develop their skills in performing music, both individually and in a group with other musicians. The music program strives to enhance students’ appreciation and enjoyment of music, which helps build an ideal foundation for future study. Throughout the course, students listen to and learn about music from a wide range of historical periods and major world cultures. Students study various styles of music, and students perform and compose music in a style of their own choice. This encourages aesthetic and emotional development, self-discipline, and creativity. Students who choose to study music are able to showcase the development of their musical talent in the winter and spring music concerts.

The aims of the music program are to:

• Acquire and consolidate a range of basic musical skills, knowledge and understanding, through the activities of listening, performing and composing
• Develop a perceptive and critical response to the main historical periods and styles of Western music
• Recognize and understand the music of selected non-Western traditions and thus to form an appreciation of cultural similarities and differences
• Build a foundation for the development of an informed appreciation of music
• Build a base for further study in music at a higher level