CELEBRATING THE IMPORTANCE OF MUSIC
Esse Quam Videri
TO BE, RATHER THAN TO SEEM TO BE
Truro School Music Project Celebrating Musical Education, Community Partnership, and Excellence
“ Music is a moral law. It gives soul to the universe, wings to the mind, and life to everything. Without music, life would be an error.” PLATO Truro School is proud to announce the launch of the Truro School Music Project, a transformative initiative which will enrich the musical landscape within the school, the city of Truro, and the county of Cornwall. With a firm belief in the pivotal role of music in education and community and cultural life, the Truro School Music Project will see the creation of a new multi-million-pound music centre and a refurbished multi-use Hall, fostering musical participation, excellence, and inclusion within the school and the broader community. Scheduled for completion at the start of 2026, the Truro School Music Project will create a hub for musical education
and aspiration in Cornwall, offering state-of-the-art facilities for pupils, the Truro community, and beyond. This project also paves the way for improved facilities to support pupil wellbeing too. The project aligns with Truro School’s rich musical tradition, which delivers around 40 annual concerts and gigs, an annual Summer Festival, individual music lessons for over 250 pupils, and regular notable multi-show performances of major musicals.
“ I am proud to be heading a School that embraces the transformative power of music education, investing with prudence and ambition in the cultural enrichment of the School and Cornwall’s wider community.” ANDY JOHNSON, TRURO SCHOOL HEAD
Widening Community Access “ One of the greatest gifts that we can give our children is the opportunity to make music. It is a great joy to work with Truro School in making music. Every day I hear young people singing and am very grateful for this great gift. The partnership between Truro School and Truro Cathedral exemplifies this commitment to making music and to opening doors for young people.” SIMON ROBINSON, DEAN OF TRURO CATHEDRAL Underpinning this project is a deep commitment to musical education and opportunity, countering national trends of music cutbacks in schools. It will deliver: - An increased number of bespoke practice rooms. - The bringing together in one building of rehearsal and practice spaces for all genres of music, and music technology, to promote better musical collaboration and innovation. - Expanded and updated classrooms to enhance music education from Key Stage 3 through to A Level. - A dedicated orchestra rehearsal space. - A revamped Assembly Hall for dynamic,multi-functional use. - The project also provides opportunities to further enhance site safety by redirecting some points of traffic access and aligns with sustainability targets (the project is designed to BREEAM excellent level, including PV panels, air source heat pumps and an operational carbon neutral objective). Beyond Truro School, the Music Project aims to widen musical access and musical aspiration, providing a vibrant musical hub for Truro and Cornwall. - Development of our existing contribution and support for local musical partnerships, including with the Cathedral, the Hall for Cornwall, and the Cornwall Music Service Trust. The School hosts the offices of the Cornwall Music Service Trust in partnership with whom this project has been planned. - Increased opportunity and investment in music for local schools and groups. - Dedicated space for partner schools and organisations to benefit from Truro School’s musical resources.
“ Cornwall Music Service Trust (CMST) is a charity providing music teaching, support, and therapy for close to 10,000 children across over 240 schools or settings in Cornwall and we see this facility as incredibly important for music education in Cornwall. We are now in our 10th year of operation and are very excited about the tangible opportunities the Music Project will present, providing an efficient and effective environment to facilitate our work as a charity.” GARETH CHURCHER, HEAD OF SERVICE, CMST
“ We stand together in championing a vibrant city of Truro and enhanced access to culture for all of Cornwall. Our region has a rich seam of music heritage. For this to continue we must constantly engage our community and act as the spark of inspiration for young minds.” JULIEN BOAST, CEO & CREATIVE DIRECTOR AT HALL FOR CORNWALL
“ Being a musician is unlike any other profession in the world. A job that is also my love, my hobby and my drive. The opportunities it presents to express yourself, to create with others, to travel the world, to entertain, to move, to teach, to heal, are unlike anything else. Through music, I’ve had the most amazing experiences. Truro School played a crucial role—they didn’t just teach; they supported every creative idea you had. It’s a place where trying things out isn’t just allowed; it’s celebrated. It fosters a belief that your creative instincts should be followed, can be trusted, and from that comes a career and a life lead without hesitation.” MARK SMITH CO03 MUSICAL DIRECTOR, WEST END
A Comprehensive Transformation “ The impact of music and creativity generally on the wellbeing and development of young people is huge. The planned community Music Centre is going to be such a fantastic addition to our education and wellbeing landscape.” KIM CONCHIE DL FRSA, CEO OF THE CORNWALL CHAMBER OF COMMERCE
The music project design entails the creation of approximately 1100m² of state-of-the-art teaching, rehearsal, and performance spaces, complemented by a 675m² refurbished multi-functional Assembly Hall. There are five key areas within the project, summarised below:
THE MUSIC CENTRE The Music Centre, a new building, will re-house the music department away from its current former residential building, emphasising the school’s commitment to musical education. Built to the highest specifications, this modern musical hub will give all genres and styles of music equal profile by bringing rehearsal, teaching, practice, performance, broadcasting and recording spaces together. It will enable children to explore a wide variety of music to find what they love. The building will include practice spaces suited for ensembles and orchestras, increasing the number of bespoke practice rooms for individual and chamber ensembles, and a soundproofed room for rock, jazz, and percussion groups. There will be facilities for exploring electronic music making, broadcast and recording.
The ground floor performance space will be easily accessible from a purpose built reception and foyer, to accommodate rehearsals and smaller-scale performances. Teaching spaces will consist of classrooms for permanent and peripatetic staff, large and medium rehearsal rooms, a production room and administrative offices, including for CMST.
THE ASSEMBLY HALL Refurbishments to the existing Assembly Hall will create an improved space for events, examinations and assemblies, accommodating pupils, parents and community users in a multi-purpose space. These upgrades will improve the production quality of performances in terms of comfort, acoustics and capacity. They will also permit better, more comfortable and dynamic use of the space for examinations, celebrations, and community events. Key modifications include a new roof, updating highlevel clerestory glazing, introducing a new mechanical ventilation and heating system, applying acoustic treatment to walls and ceilings, installing retractable raked seating for improved audience sight-lines, and incorporating photovoltaic panels on the southern roof pitch.
ATRIUM The double height entrance atrium forms the main entrance and reception area to the new Music Centre, the current Art & DT departments, and the refurbished Assembly Hall. It will also function as an informal gathering space for pupils, parents and community users, with a design that connects to the outdoor plaza and links to spaces within the building.
DT/ART BLOCK While the existing Art & DT department will remain largely untouched, the DT computer room will be re-clad to match the Music Centre and a door will be added at the rear of the Assembly Hall to connect with the Art department.
ANCILLARY SPACES These spaces include reception, staff rooms, servery, toilets, stores, lift core, disabled access and stair core. These are backed against the existing Assembly Hall to create a sound buffer between the proposed music teaching block and Assembly Hall. Plant space will be located on the ground floor of the music teaching block.
“ I am delighted to learn about the launch of a new music centre for community use in Cornwall. Music is a very powerful force for good in the education of young people. New Music Centres are needed more than ever as government funding for music shrinks more and more. Cornwall has a world-class reputation for music, as exemplified by the inclusion of seven girl choristers from Truro Cathedral and Truro School in the select choir for the King’s Coronation last year. I am pleased to support this excellent initiative which will provide opportunities for music-making for thousands of people across Kernow.” ANDREW NETHSINGHA, ORGANIST AND MASTER OF THE CHORISTERS, WESTMINSTER ABBEY
RIBA STAGE 3 REPORT Truro School - Music & Performance Centre
21st November 2023
Truro School is proud to be working alongside a range of key partners to deliver the project including Tate + Co, one of the UK’s leading sustainable architect firms, and Truro-based property and construction consultants, Ward Williams Associates.
Inf luence
www.influenceplanning.org
Achieving PLANNING Solutions
FO R: T RURO SCHO O L
Be a part of this project At the heart of Truro School tradition lies a profound appreciation for the significance of music, something quintessentially Methodist and also very Cornish. Today, it continues to be a cornerstone of our educational and community ambitions. Yet, equally vital is the enduring and ever more relevant priority to pursue excellence without extravagance or excess. To that end, this music project is being closely managed to ensure the best value outcomes can be achieved with ambition and prudence. The core elements of the project, described in this brochure are fundamental to delivering the School and community outcomes we seek, and will be funded by a combination of carefully nurtured capital reserves and budgeted loans from the Methodist Independent Schools Trust (MIST), of which we are a valued part. Our journey to this project’s completion has begun.
The Truro School Foundation is a charitable organisation distinct from the School with an existing history of widening access to the School and a thirst to do more. If you would like to know more about how you may be able to support our ambitions for the education, musical or otherwise, of children in Cornwall, please contact the Foundation team at foundation@truroschool.com. If you would like to know more about how to access means-tested bursary awards either for your own children or others you know, please contact our team at admissions@truroschool.com. All enquiries will be welcomed and responded to with care and sensitivity. You are warmly invited to come on this journey with us by accessing the QR code below.
Via the QR link, you are welcome to come on this journey with us, to access updates over the project’s progress, stories of musical endeavour, and to give us feedback and ideas for the future. We welcome that interest, the time or expertise of those who support our ambitions, or the philanthropy of those who wish to enhance the potential of it. Philanthropy at Truro School, in line with our Methodist foundation, is rooted in a commitment to being part of our local community, including widening access and extending the transformative power of a Truro School education. Our main way of doing this is via a commitment to means-tested bursary awards for children who would flourish at Truro School from families who would otherwise be unable to access this opportunity.
“ Together, we can make a difference. Together, we can change lives. Esse Quam Videri” TRURO SCHOOL FOUNDATION
DO ALL THE
GOOD
BY ALL THE
MEANS
“The Methodist Independent Schools Trust (MIST) is responsible for ten independent schools nationwide and is affiliated with wider schools across the country and abroad. The Trustees of MIST are delighted to be supporting the Truro School Music Project. The relationships between Methodism and music, and between educational opportunity and community life, are at the heart of MIST’s purpose. For us to be able to support this project in a thriving School in a part of the country with such strong Methodist history is truly exciting.” ELAINE CLELAND, DEPUTY CHAIR, MIST ~
IN ALL THE
WAYS
IN ALL THE
PLACES
“Where schools commit to embedding creativity – including music – across their whole school, it enriches their curriculum, enhances the educational experience for pupils, and improves their confidence, well-being, and overall engagement in learning” DARREN HENLEY, CHIEF EXECUTIVE (EXECUTIVE BOARD MEMBER) ARTS COUNCIL ENGLAND ~
AT ALL THE
“My love of music was encouraged throughout my time at Truro School. I feel extremely lucky for the breadth and quantity of musical opportunities I received, ranging from choir competitions to performing concertos with orchestras. These opportunities and the extremely high level of instrumental tuition that I received undoubtedly set me up for success at conservatoire and in the profession. Truro School’s Music Department is certainly a special one and I am so delighted to hear about the new Music Centre.”
TO ALL THE
ELEANOR SULLIVAN CO16 FREELANCE OBOIST
TIMES
PEOPLE
AS LONG AS EVER
WE CAN John Wesley
~
“It’s impossible to overstate the value of music as part of a child’s education. Through learning and experiencing music, worlds of human experience and emotion are unlocked for children and young people. There is a sense of belonging that comes from being part of a musical ensemble and creating something together; the connection with cultures and communities beyond our own is life-changing: a musical education enables it all. It’s vital to our broader cultural life that music thrives as a subject in our classrooms, as well as in our concert halls, cathedrals and community spaces. Music students learn skills of language, creativity, critical thinking and communication that are brilliant preparation for whichever direction they choose in life.” DANIEL HYDE, DIRECTOR OF MUSIC, KING’S COLLEGE, UNIVERSITY OF CAMBRIDGE
Updates on the project’s progress will be shared here >