Colourstrings
and
The Szilvay Foundation

It is one word, and it has changed
the concept of music education:

Colourstrings

Colourstrings has an excellent reputation worldwide for providing quality music education
for children, in an intuitive and enjoyable way,
from music kindergarten to conservatoire level.

There is a huge demand for
Colourstrings-trained teachers for instrumental teaching and music kindergarten in state schools, public schools and in private teaching.

So many teachers tell us that when applying
for a job, a frequently asked question is,
“Do you have any Colourstrings training?”

Become a part of the growing Colourstrings family.

"The contribution that Colourstrings makes to early years' education has been invaluable… The part that Colourstrings will play in the future is of vital importance to the cultural life of this country"

Nicolas Chisholm, former Headmaster, The Yehudi Menuhin School

"Colourstrings is an exceptional method in the training of young musicians and I have yet to experience a more successful approach to developing musicianship, aural awareness and solid musical principles in the very young"

Derek Aviss, Trinity College of Music

"Colourstrings is simply an outstanding education in itself. The founders and teachers have recognised that fundamentally all human beings are born musical, and that this natural ability can easily be harnessed for the benefit of the individual and of society.

Every child going through Colourstrings acquires an acute ear and makes rapid progress on their chosen instrument, as well as singing in tune and performing confidently in public. The Colourstrings method is making a significant contribution to the lives of hundreds of young musicians."

"Colourstrings is brilliant, fun and educational"

Erin Ailes, 10 years old, Pupil at Colourstrings Saturday Music School

Our Approach

Colourstrings was the first to offer music education from a very young age in the UK and is the only approach that can be used all the way up to conservatoire level.  In Finland it has been a core part of the state music education for more than thirty years and is now an internationally respected way of teaching music to children.  Many local education authorities in Britain are now introducing Colourstrings into their schools.

Colourstrings is child-centred.  The materials are colourful, stimulating and entice children to embark on musical adventures that will enable each of them to fulfil their musical potential through fun and creativity, without pressure.  It is an extension of the Kodály philosophy: everything starts with singing to develop inner hearing.  Central to the approach is the role of play and imagination – often the value of play can be overlooked in the rush to get on with the ‘real’ lesson. 

Classes start at 18 months and involve most of the senses, taking the children on a musical journey.   The children relish having fun, singing, clapping, marching, and socialising, without realising that the songs used in the kindergarten classes have been carefully composed to explore the different musical concepts - rhythm, pitch, melody, dynamics, tempo, character, form and style - in an enjoyable and stimulating but structured way.

All of this ultimately leads to an intrinsic understanding and love of music.  By the age of 5 or 6, children are learning to sight sing, along with the basics of reading and writing stick notation.  It is at this stage that they can choose an instrument to learn.

Instead of this being a daunting prospect, children are reassured to find the same melodies that they are familiar with reappearing in their instrumental lessons.  This gives them a vital confidence and feeling of success from the very first time they pick up an instrument.

From the first instrumental lesson, children are encouraged to perform, compose and improvise while also reading and writing musical notation.

The Szilvay Foundation is a charity set up to promote the Colourstrings approach and provide teacher training.  It has been training teachers in this country for nearly 20 years, and has educated thousands of children.  The charity also runs projects in private and state schools throughout the UK and Ireland and provides INSET training.

 copyright: The Szilvay Foundation, 2011

 The Szilvay Foundation - registered charity no. 1062822