Harp Academy

Time to enroll for Spring Term 2026!

Richard

Calling all Harmonica Parents and Carers!

We very much hope you can join us for our 10 week music making programme this Spring Term. Please let us know your plans right away! Details on how to sign up can be found in our recent emails (check spam and junk folders if you can’t spot these in your inbox) and in the How to Pay menu here on our website. We also hope to organise more fun Harmonica Blow Outs at school and in public through the year.

Our Teaching Plan This Term
Our Spring theme is musical diversity. We will be celebrating different cultures and languages represented by our group members, and study pieces will be drawn from the popular World Songs section of our key stage music libraries. You’ll find these in the Learning menu at the top of our homepage. We’ll also be exploring composition, song writing and improvisation.

Structure and Texture
To complement our composition theme, we will be looking more closely at musical structure and texture and how songs are put together. New knowledge and vocabulary will include intro, outro, chorus, verse, bridge, middle 8, solo, ostinato, harmony, chords, round and mash ups.

We look forward to seeing you soon – and please tell all your friends!
We wish you all a Happy New Year 2026 and please help us pass the news about Harp Academy. It’s a fun and accessible way to learn music, which children can enjoy with their best friends. Why not recommend a free taster session to some of your harmonaut’s best friends. A free starter harmonica in their colour of choice is also included!

Merry Christmas & Happy New Year!

Richard

Thank you to everyone involved in making Harp Academy happen in 2025! Parents and carers at home, staff colleagues at School, and of course all our wonderful harmonauts who turn up each week to make amazing music.

In a fitting end to the year, this week saw forty of our harmonauts and their grown ups gather at the Royal Alex Children’s Hospital to share their music with children who will remain in critical care throughout the festive season; our love and best wishes go out to each and every one of them and their families.

A huge well done to all our players who represented eight different Primary Schools from Saltdean and Brighton to Hove, Portslade and Shoreham. And well done to all our grown ups who set the time aside to travel to the Royal Alex and show their support. Here’s a message of thanks from the Royal Alex team who helped us put everything together:

Hi Everyone, Thank you all so much for your visit this morning. The children were fantastic! Everyone was so happy and loved hearing the lovely music. Please pass on our thanks to the children and families for their time and the brilliant music. Wishing you all a very happy Christmas!! Best wishes, Katy and the Play Team.

We couldn’t be prouder of you all! We look forward to more music making next term and to our next Blow Out adventure. In the meantime we wish you all a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year 2026!

A world of musical adventure in your hands!

Richard

Come and try for FREE! Simply click the Gold Harmonica on our homepage (or scroll down on a smartphone) to register for your FREE taster session, which includes a FREE starter harmonica to keep. Complete your details without obligation, or call, and we will email everything you need to know.

If you are returning to harmonica sessions at school this term, to reserve your place we just need you to register for the new school year by clicking the Gold Harmonica here on our homepage (or scroll down on a smartphone). Once we receive your details, we will email your renewal invitation.

Fun online learning resources
All our subscribers are sent the login code for our online music resources, which are great for practising the harmonica at home and building wider music knowledge.

Subscriptions
Termly and half-termly subscriptions are by bank transfer, or through our Store using a credit/debit card (no need to log in). Unfortunately we are unable to accept childcare vouchers or cash. Further information is provided in our taster invitation or renewal email. There are also further detail on our How To Pay page.
Read more

Summer Postcard Competition 2025 Winners

Richard

 

 

 

 

 

 

Thank you to everyone who sent in postcards during the summer holidays – we had some amazing entries! Our random generator selected the following three winners and your prizes will be delivered to our first music session of the new term.

1st Place
Eleanor playing in front of Thomas the Tank Engine. Eleanor wins a Special 20 harmonica and Harp Academy mug.

2nd Place
Orson playing in front of some lovely Dutch windmills. Orson wins a Harp Academy mug and mini-harmonica key chain.

3rd Place
Millie and Josh fearlessly playing on a glass balcony in Germany. Both win a Harp Academy mug and mini-harmonica key chain.

Harmonica for 4-11 Year Olds

Richard

Would you like to include music-making on the harmonica in your setting?

Here’s Richard presenting Play Harmonica, the theme tune from Harp Academy’s early years harmonica courses for 4-7 year olds. He’s using a 4 hole easy-play Speedy harmonica (available in our Store). Set to the tune of Wind The Bobbin Up/There’s A Dinosaur, the song encourages young players to acquire the following key skills:

∙ Hole location by number – 1 2 3 4
∙ Breath control – Blow and Draw
∙ C Major Arpeggio – C E G C
∙ Musical Alphabet (with Makaton) – A B C D E F G
∙ Progression to C Major Scale – C D E F G A B C
∙ Enjoyment of Rhythm and Rhyme
∙ Follow hand signals for intonation
∙ Read and follow harmonica arrow tab notation

If you would like access to the backing track, harmonica tabs, or further details about music making on the harmonica and running weekly sessions in your Early Years setting, get in touch using the details on our Contact page. Please also visit our Early Years menu for more insight into our Pre-School harmonica activities, or our KS1 for young School Age children.