The decline and revival of music education in New South Wales schools, 1920-1956

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by Jasmine

The paper overviews the decline and revival of music education in New South Wales schools from 1920 to 1956. It describes an early focus on vocal music up to 1932, then examines initiatives introduced in 1933 to address weaknesses in music teaching and subsequent curriculum shifts through the 1930s. Evidence of a variable revival appears in the school choral movement (1939-1956), alongside diversification into appreciation, percussion, flutes, and recorders. By the mid-1950s, school instrumental music involvement and quality improved steadily.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages16

Reading Time40 min

AccessFree to download

Introduction

Music and singing as early public schooling

The period of decline – 1920 to 1932

Vocal music in school, 1920 to 1956

The decline and revival of music education in New South Wales schools, 1920-1956 Marilyn Chaseling School of Education, Southern Cross University, [NSW. Email: marilyn.chaseling@scu.edu.au](NSW. Email: marilyn.chaseling@scu.edu.au) William E. Boyd School of Science, Environment & Engineering, Southern Cross University, [NSW. Email: william.boyd@scu.edu.au](NSW. Email: william.boyd@scu.edu.au) Abstract This paper overviews the decline and revival of music education in New South Wales schools from 1920 to 1956. Commencing with a focus on vocal music during the period up to 1932, a time of decline in music teaching, the paper examines initiatives introduced in 1933 to address shortcomings in music education, and the subsequent changes in curriculum and teaching during the 1930s. Evidence of a variable revival lies in the school choral music movement of 1939 to 1956, and in how music education diversified beyond its vocal heritage from the late 1930sand early 1940s, with new emphasis on music appreciation, percussion, flutes, and recorders. By the mid 1950s, involvement in, and quality of, school instrumental music was continuously improving. Key words: school choral music, school choirs, Theodore Tearne, Herbert Treharne, Barbara Mettan, Victor McMahon, flute bands, percussion bands, inspectors of schools Australian Journal of Music Education 2014:2,46-61 Introduction This paper explores music in New South Wales (NSW) state primary schooling from 1920 to 1956, through the lens of music teaching and practice, building on the research of Dugdale1 and of Stevens2 into music in NSW state primary schools prior to 1920. Music and singing were synonymous in the school curriculum from the beginning of public education in 1848 until 1920.3 While music was only a small component of what was taught in schools, it was valued for its extramusical benefits, as a moral, disciplinary and aesthetic force, and for its ability to help mould children’s character as future adults in society. Around the turn of the century, NSW state schools were musical places. Thousands of children could be assembled, at short notice, to form choirs to perform at celebratory or commemorative events:4 a choir of over 5,000 children performed in 1897 for the Jubilee Celebrations of Queen Victoria, and the handpicked choir of three thousand sang at the Public School’s Patriotic Display in 1900;5 a colossal choir often thousand public school children performed at the inauguration of the Commonwealth of Australia,6 and a choir of similar size performed during the visit of the Prince of Wales visit to Sydney in 1920.7 These choirs sang complex musical pieces. If those in, for example, 1919 who reported on NSW schooling had been asked to talk about music, they would have described a typical scenario where classroom teachers took responsibility for teaching music, and where overall a good quality of vocal music was produced. The developmental learning sequence would have described infants’ classrooms where children were taught singing ‘by ear’; as children grew older and progressed to higher classes, vocal music was taught using the Tonic Sol-fa method, and in upper primary classrooms, children were taught to read vocal music from staff notation. They might also have talked about choral singing being important in commemorative or celebratory events, noted that church choirs and amateur choral societies comprised men and women who had learnt vocal music at school. They would not have mentioned instrumental music in schools, as this was not in the syllabi of the time, and was only occasionally present.8 Despite this healthy situation, after 1920 music remained this way in only some NSW schools, other schools not meeting the minimal requirements for an adequate music course.9 This paper draws on the annual reports of District Inspectors, Superintendents, Supervisors of Music and their assistants10 to examine this apparent decline of music after 1920

FAQs

What time range does the paper cover about music education in New South Wales schools?

It covers the decline and revival of music education from 1920 to 1956, with specific attention to changes up to the mid-1950s.

What characterized the decline in music teaching after 1920?

After 1920, music remained adequate only in some schools, while others failed to meet minimal requirements for an effective music course.

What developments supported the revival and diversification of school music?

The school choral movement from 1939 to 1956 and later diversification beyond vocal heritage emphasized music appreciation and expanded instrumental and percussion-focused activities.

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by Jasmine