This year marks an incredible achievement for Harrow – it’s been 450 years since Queen Elizabeth I granted John Lyon a charter to build a school for ‘local’ boys in Harrow, North London. Since then, the prestigious educational institution has produced a string of world-famous leaders and influential figures including poet Lord Byron, former British Prime Minister Sir Winston Churchill, the first Indian Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru, King Hussein of Jordan and more.
This year also marks 25 years since the first Harrow school opened in Asia (Bangkok), and 10 years since Harrow Hong Kong welcomed its first pupils, making it a truly momentous occasion. To commemorate this significant milestone, a slew of events and activities were held across the Harrow International School community, notably the Harrow 450th Anniversary Festival Concert, which took place earlier this month.
Hosted at Harrow International School Hong Kong, the event featured a mix of live and recorded performances, staged by over 600 pupils from Harrow Schools in Appi, Bangkok, Beijing, Chongqing, Haikou, Hong Kong, London, Nanning, Shanghai, Shenzhen, and Zhuhai, as well as renowned guest artists like Zense.
Audiences were blown away by the impressive performances ranging from chamber music, choir to string orchestra and more, showcasing the pupils’ immense talent and musicality. Guest artists, Zense, an a cappella group comprising Yen Yen Ng, Edison Hung, Joseph Ho and Kathy Tang, also captivated the crowd with their impeccable vocals.
While Harrow has a long-standing reputation of academic excellence – former pupils have secured places at some of the world’s top universities including Harvard, Imperial College, Oxford, Tsinghua, and other leading universities in the UK, US and Canada. We have also sent pupils to study music at University of Cambridge – music also plays an integral role in a pupil’s core educational development.
“Music has a significant impact on all aspects of learning – it cultivates leadership, teamwork, creativity and aspects of character such as resilience,” shares Tom Wiggall, Director of Music at Harrow Hong Kong. “We believe that learning music helps pupils improve and develop language skills and cognitive abilities, which can help them succeed in other academic disciplines. The standard of the music programme at Harrow is without a doubt very high, with most pupils learning at least one instrument, which makes the music scene on campus particularly vibrant.”
With music being such a key part of the Harrow community, it is no surprise that the school decided to celebrate with a music festival that brings everyone together to do something they love.
The first and only British international boarding and day school in Hong Kong, Harrow International School Hong Kong integrates elements of educational philosophy, practice and traditions from Harrow School in England into the diverse international community of Hong Kong to provide a highly distinctive education. If you’d like your children to be a part of the worldwide Harrow Family, Harrow International School Hong Kong welcomes pupils from as young as three years old (Early Years) right up to Upper School 18 years (Sixth Form).
Visit www.harrowschool.hk or contact the Admissions Department at admissions@harrowschool.hk for more information.