Tips on Selecting the Perfect Elementary Music Concert Repertoire

Planning an elementary music concert can feel like navigating a stormy sea of decisions—everything from matching songs to student ability levels to balancing the emotional tone of the program. The stress builds as you juggle song choices, rehearsal time, and making sure everyone is ready for the big night.

But what if there’s a simpler, more effective way to plan? One that helps you build a concert program without the late nights or second-guessing. Let’s break it down.

1) Choose a Theme

Start with a guiding theme to unify the entire concert. Whether it’s teamwork, friendship, or musical stories, having a theme will help narrow down song choices and give your concert a clear direction. But keep the theme broad! This gives you the freedom to choose a variety of repertoire that still fits within the theme, making it easier to find age-appropriate songs that match your students' abilities and interests. Some of my favorites have been Friendship, Teamwork, and Musical Stories. Students, parents, and the audience love it when a narrative or emotional thread ties the performance together.

2) Consider the Emotional Arc

Think of your concert as a story with ups and downs. You may want to kick things off with something exciting and energetic, follow up with lighter pieces, and finish strong with a big, memorable finale. Some teachers even prefer to end with a tear-jerker or a heartfelt song that leaves the audience deeply moved. Whatever you decide, consider this emotional arc before investing a ton of time into selecting repertoire. 

3) Balance the Repertoire

To keep the concert engaging, choose a variety of pieces that challenge your students in different ways:

• Difficulty: Mix in easy songs with more challenging ones to give all students a chance to shine. there is ALWAYS that last minute push to get the repertoire memorized, so it sure helps to have at least one catchy song with a bit of repetition. 

• Lyrics: Some songs with fewer lyrics allow students to focus on vocal technique, instruments, or movement, while wordier songs work on memory and diction. I made the mistake of including too many songs with lots of wordy verses and my students really struggled with memorization. I learned to limit this type of song to make everyone, myself included, more comfortable with our performances.

• Tempo & Meter: Blend fast and slow pieces and different meters like duple and triple to keep it musically diverse.

• Classroom Instruments: Incorporate opportunities for students to play Orff instruments, hand percussion, or other classroom instruments. This adds variety and allows students who may not feel as confident singing to participate in the concert. It also adds an extra layer of excitement for the audience.

• Movement: Consider adding a movement-based song or two! This could be as simple as rhythmic clapping, body percussion, or a choreographed dance. Movement helps break up the program, adds visual interest, and gives a different group of students a chance to shine.

• Musical Styles: Similar to tempo & meter, blending different styles will keep your concert musically interesting. Diverse styles such as a bright, splashy, Broadway-style opener, a ballad, a fun novelty piece, rock, blues, or gospel styles all add to the concert atmosphere and give many opportunities to tie in with your curricular goals.

4) Align with Educational Goals

Make your concert planning serve your teaching goals for the months leading up to the performance. Will your students be focusing on specific rhythm patterns? Solfege sequences? Genres like jazz or folk music? Choose songs that align with what they’re learning in class, so the concert isn’t just a performance but a culmination of their learning.

Personal Experience

I have spent weeks trying to pull together the perfect repertoire for a concert—constantly swapping songs, rethinking choices, and feeling like I’d never get it right. Then, I decided to try focusing on a single theme (for example, friendship) and sticking to an emotional arc for the program. Not only did it cut down my planning time, but the students connected with the music more deeply. And the audience? They were moved. 

One of my best compliments came from my principal the year that I chose Teamwork as my theme because it was also the school theme for the year. She was new to our school that year and she was very excited saying, “I was not expecting that! I loved how you fit with the school theme and everything just flowed naturally.”

Need More Planning Help?

For more tips on how to keep rehearsals running smoothly as you prepare for the big night, check out my book, Program Preparation: Rehearsal Strategies to Avoid Rehearsal Boredom. It’s packed with strategies to keep things fresh and fun during those long rehearsal sessions AND a full rehearsal planning system to ensure your students are ready for their big night.

Program Preparation Book on TPT

Program Preparation Book on F-Flat Books

To make sure your students (and their families!) never forget the big day, grab these Concert Today Reminder Bracelets. They're quick to print, easy to send home, and a fun way to keep everyone on track. Just click the image link below to get yours!

In Summary:

• Choose a concert theme to unify the program.
• Consider the emotional arc to engage the audience.
• Balance repertoire while keeping your educational goals in mind.

Happy planning, and may your next concert be smooth sailing! 

Musically yours,