Skipper's Music School, Dragon School

Following the preparation of an estate wide masterplan a site was selected for the new music and the performing arts building that located it at the heart of the academic hub of the school. Previously music had been peripheral meaning many hours of lost time as students moved backwards and forwards for the 600+ weekly lessons that the school provide.

The new building provides state of the art acoustically tuned performance and practice spaces that deliver exceptional facilities for this 150-year-old prep school.

The two-storey building provides 24 practice rooms, 3 rehearsal rooms, a recording suite, 2 large double height performance classrooms and an oak lined performance/ recital hall. From the foyer a sliding glass wall opens via a cloistered walkway onto an amphitheatre performance garden surrounded by rich biodiverse planting that provides a unique outside venue.

As part of the masterplan the facility is designed to be expandable and to offer a connection into an enlarged School Hall providing ample opportunities for the school to continue to develop over the coming years.

The building utilises a range of low energy solutions including air source heating, photovoltaic arrays, and a range of cutting edge acoustic natural ventilation systems that minimise sound breakout to the neighbouring buildings.

‘With their old facilities the school produced amazing results in music and the performing arts so we are excited to see how this new dedicated and high-performance facility will take their results to the next level.’

James Roach - Senior Associate for MICA

“Our beautiful new building has been created with such thought and care that it inspires us as we work in that environment.

Every detail from the exceptional acoustics to the practical storage solutions have been considered to make our work as smooth and productive as possible. It is aesthetically beautiful and gives a perfect stage to our music making.”

– William Morris. Head of Music, Dragon School