The Christ’s College Music School aims to provide all boys with an opportunity to excel and achieve excellence in music. Boys are nurtured to appreciate a wide range of musical styles and experiences as part of their wider aesthetic development.
Students are exposed to a variety of visiting artists, as well as being able to attend regular performances from the Christchurch Symphony Orchestra, New Zealand Symphony Orchestra and Chamber Music New Zealand.
The Music School is proud to have the services of some of the finest tutors in Christchurch. It aims to attract tutors who are not only highly skilled but also practising musicians — for example, members of the Christchurch Symphony Orchestra. This approach gives our music students excellent role models from whom they can learn and develop their skills.
Music lessons are scheduled between 8am–9pm, depending on the availability of the tutor and to accommodate each boy’s academic programme so they do not miss the same class each week. Lessons take place in the Music School premises in Rolleston Avenue.
College offers a rich and vibrant music programme, with many performance opportunities, including Big Band, Chapel Choir, Congregational Singing, Small Band (held weekly in the Chapel), Chamber Music, Brass Band, Saxophone Quartet and Orchestra (with students from St Margaret’s College), and Rock Bands.
Below are our musical highlights:
2022
- Regional Big Sing – Schola Cantorum Best Male Choir
- Regional Big Sing – Best Performance of a Classical Work
- Regional Big Sing – Schola Cantorum nominated for the Cadenza Festival
- Chamber Music – Berlin Trio winners of the Christchurch Regional Finals of Chamber Music NZ Competition
- Chamber Music – Berlin Trio runners up in the South Island Regional Finals of Chamber Music NZ Competition
- Chamber Music – Berlin Trio runners up in the National Chamber Music Competition National Finals in Auckland
- Chamber Music – Fiddlesticks Quartet winners of the SOUNZ Best Performance of an NZ Work at the regional finals
- Chamber Music – South Island finalists
- Ryan Gu awarded Best Performance by a competitor, based in Christchurch, at the National Concerto Competition
2021
- Regional Big Sing – Best Programme for a Mixed Voice Choir
- Regional Big Sing – Best Performance of a Classical Work
- Regional Big Sing – Schola Cantorum Best Male Choir at the regional festival
2020
- Winners of the Canterbury Regional Smokefree Rockquest
- Students selected for the 2021/2022 NZ Secondary Schools’ Students Choir
Christ’s College Sedley Wells Music Competition
Our annual Christ’s College Sedley Wells Music Competition provides a wonderful opportunity for our instrumentalists and singers to perform solo items in a formal setting.
The competition is divided into two categories – Junior (Years 9–10) and Senior (Years 11–13) – and features an impressive range of musical styles and instruments.
Music programmes
Music Department
Robert Aburn
Director of Music & Choirs
Robert Aburn
Director of Music & Choirs
Robert Aburn has an extensive career teaching in state and private schools throughout Canterbury.
After graduating with an honours degree in music from the University of Canterbury and diplomas in piano and singing performance from both the Royal College of Music and Trinity College London, Robert was a foundation member of the National Youth Choir of New Zealand.
Robert believes that singing is a medium of music-making that all students can access and enjoy. He has worked in schools that have developed a reputation for choral work and massed singing events. For five years, he was musical director of the Christchurch Schools’ Music Festival, which, annually, has in excess of 10,000 students performing over six nights.
Appointed to Christ’s College in 2003, Robert has rebuilt College’s choral programme, with 90–100 boys involved in Chapel Choir. The choir has been involved in performances of the Mozart and Lloyd Webber Requiems, and Orff’s Carmina Burana with the Christchurch Symphony Orchestra. The chamber choir, Schola Cantorum, is a fine a cappella ensemble, regularly singing at community and civic functions. Collegium, a combined 18-voice chorale from St Margaret’s College and Christ’s College, won a Gold award at the finals of the 2014 Big Sing Competition in Auckland and the Hutt Trophy for the best performance of a New Zealand composition.
In the regional competition, the Chapel Choir was awarded the Best Stage Presence and Schola Cantorum, the Best Male Choir in the Festival.
His other choirs have received multiple honours.