WASO launch 2024 Education Program

WASO’s 2024 Education program sees the Orchestra present new excursions for primary and secondary students and continue its incursion offerings, enabling students to experience WA’s State Orchestra in small ensemble, chamber orchestra and full symphony orchestra formats.

Over 7,000 students engage with WASO education activities each year, including more than 1,000 Education Support students. WASO also offers professional learning opportunities for teachers with evidence-based documentation.

WASO’s tailored secondary schools concert has been expanded for 2024, and is set to give students studying any secondary music course a boost of confidence in the classroom. With curriculum links to Year 9 & 10 Music, Year 11 & 12 General Music and Year 11 & 12 ATAR Music courses, NextGen: Explore ATAR and more prepares students with live concert learning.

Also new in 2024, four Evening Concerts can be accessed with a discounted school group price, making WASO’s mainstage performances more accessible for students so they can experience the orchestra in full flight.

In a new excursion offering for primary schools, students from Kindergarten to Year 3 can enjoy the story of Izzy Gizmo The Young Inventor at Perth Town Hall. WASO’s Education Artist in Residence, Paul Rissmann, presents this musical reading of the best-selling children’s book by Pip Jones with illustrations by Sara Ogilvie.

On the Perth Concert Hall mainstage, students in Years 4-8 can explore A Guide to Film Music, with excerpts from well-known movie scores by Hans Zimmer presented by popular podcasters from Art of the Score, Dan Golding and Andrew Pogson.

Students in Years 5-12 can access an exclusive behind-the-scenes look at the day-to-day workings of an orchestra through free Open Rehearsals, or see a full orchestra performance at a Morning Symphony Concert. Both of these experiences include a pre-concert talk, giving students insight into the repertoire and a musician’s preparation in the lead up to a concert.

The Musical Tale of Echo the Gecko sees the return of the adventurous Echo and presenter Lee Stanley for an interactive program for students from Kindergarten to Year 6, presented as an incursion performance at schools across Perth and the outer-metropolitan area. Other incursion opportunities include small ensemble performances for schools with low socio-education advantage* as part of the WASO in Schools program, and for Education Support Centres and Education Support Schools through Harmony Music.

These programs are complemented by WASO’s commitment to educating the next generation of musicians, conductors and composers through the Orchestra’s artist development programs, including Composition Project, participation in the Australian Conducting Academy, and industry-leading partnerships with the Australian National Academy of Music (ANAM), Western Australian Youth Orchestra (WAYO) and the UWA Conservatorium of Music.

From concert halls to classrooms, WASO continues to bring joy, inspire learning and nurture participation in the community, because everybody deserves the opportunity to experience live music.

Educators are invited to click here to make a schools booking for 2024.

Composition Project is supported by Bendat Family Foundation. WASO gratefully acknowledge the philanthropic donors, corporate community and Trust and Foundations who generously support Crescendo, with special thanks to Lead Partner, The Balnaves Foundation.

* Schools that have a score below 1000 on the Index of Community Socio-educational advantage (ICSEA).