START THE SCHOOL YEAR OFF RIGHT!

The Performance Program is School of Rock's hallmark music program, where tens of thousands of students enroll each year. Utilizing the patented School of Rock Method, Performance Program consists of a weekly group rehearsal where kids and teens learn by playing rock music's most iconic songs with a band composed of their peers. Students are assigned songs and parts that are tailored to them based on their age, experience, and ability to learn new skills and concepts. Students then work through their parts in weekly private music lessons, and refine the skills and concepts that those songs introduce. The goal of this curriculum is to prepare kids and teens for live performances. Every few months, Performance Program students take the stage and play at local music venues in front of a live audience.

ROCK 101: CLASSIC ROCK REWIND

AGES 7-10 | TUESDAYS, 5:30PM-7:00PM

Take a trip to the good old days with Classic Rock Rewind! This show will showcase some of the best artists from 1960s, all the way up to the 1990s.  Get ready to hear some of your favorite familiar tunes from amazing artists such as Fleetwood Mac, ACDC, The Beatles, Bruce Springsteen, and more. This is a show with huge variety, which means it’s great for both beginners and experienced shredders!

ROCK 102: CBGB

AGES 10-13 | THURSDAYS, 4:30PM-6:30PM OR THURSDAYS, 6:30PM-8:30PM

The CBGB show is an overview of the early New Wave bands who got their break at the legendary NYC club. When CBGB opened in 1973, no one  had any idea that a Bowery dive bar would become known as the birthplace of Punk.  The official name was CBGB & OMFUG: Country, Bluegrass, Blues & and Other Music for Uplifting Gormandizers. While the Ramones generally get credit for starting the Punk scene, Television was actually the first band in this scene to play at CBGBs, on March 31, 1974. Soon artists like Blondie, Talking Heads, and Patti Smith set up residence at CBGBs, along with British bands like The Police and Elvis Costello who made CBGB their stateside hangout. As the Punk scene grew and took hold, other bands such as Cleveland transplants the Dead Boys and New Jersey’s Misfits became CBGB mainstays. The CBGB show offers a diverse and highly educational mix of ridiculously cool artists that can challenge students on any instrument at all experience levels.

ROCK 103: CLASSIC METAL

AGES 13-HS SENIOR | TUESDAYS, 7:15PM-9:15PM

Classic Metal is widely regarded as ranging from the late 1960s Proto-Metal sound of Deep Purple and Led Zeppelin up until the mid 1980s, when Thrash Metal reigned supreme with bands like the ‘big four’ (Metallica, Anthrax, Megadeth and Slayer) and Hair Metal was still a blip on the horizon. Full of guitar wizardry and riffs galore, Classic Metal’s explosion in the 1970s and early '80s would set the tone for a generation of Metal bands to come and leave an indelible impression on the music industry. This show will trace the roots of metal, from the late '70s hard rock, Ronnie James Dio fronted bands like Black Sabbath and Rainbow and to metal’s big break in the '80s with bands like Metallica and Megadeth. If you’re looking to sharpen your shredding skills on guitar and bass, speed up your chops on the drums, or hone your high range vocals - the Classic Metal show is for you!

ROCK 103: GREEN DAY

AGES 13-HS SENIOR | WEDNESDAYS, 5:15PM-7:15PM

PARENTAL ADVISORY: SOME LYRICAL CONTENT IN THIS SHOW MAY NOT BE APPROPRIATE FOR ALL STUDENTS

Green Day rose to prominence in the early '90s as one of the largest bands in Punk Rock. Mixing Pop-style songwriting with Punk Rock aesthetics, Green Day has continued to be one of, if not the most, successful act in the sub-genre of pop-punk. Ranging from their early hits from the album Dookie to their later releases like American Idiot, this show is sure to excite any student. The Green Day show will offer a wide variety of guitar parts which are perfect for beginner and intermediate players. Advanced players will be challenged with marrying musical accuracy with stage showmanship.  Drummers will be challenged to gain the endurance necessary to power through high tempo songs while more beginner players can build their chops with some of the slower more ballad centered material. Vocalists will focus on Billie Joe Armstrong’s fast staccato delivery, the use of chest voice and belting, as well as exploring the use of the major scales. In addition, proficient vocalists will be challenged by the various harmony concepts. When it comes to punk-style bass parts, Mike Dirnt lays down solid punk rock bass tracks, ranging from driving root notes to dynamic riffing.

GRAD SCHOOL: IRON MAIDEN VS. JUDAS PRIEST

AGES 18+ | MONDAYS, 7:30PM-9:30PM

Iron Maiden and Judas Priest - no two bands better represent the epitome of 1980s Heavy Metal. While each act has their own unique sound, what they share in common is power, precision, technical mastery, and unrelenting energy. In the late 1960s, the earliest version of Judas Priest had begun performing on a regular basis. After several years and many lineup changes, the core band of Ian Hill, Rob Halford, KK Downing, and Glenn Tipton would sign their first record deal, resulting in Rocka Rolla being released in 1974. Throughout the rest of the decade, Judas Priest would steadily grow their fanbase worldwide. Influential albums such as Sad Wings of Destiny, Sin After Sin, Stained Class, and the live masterpiece Unleashed in the East would win over new fans at every turn. As Judas Priest was tearing it up on the road, a young Steve Harris was in the early stages of forming what would become Iron Maiden by enlisting singer Paul Di’Anno (later replaced by Bruce Dickinson), guitarists Dave Murray and Dennis Stratton (later replaced by Adrian Smith), and drummer Clive Burr (later replaced by Nicko McBrain). With their self-titled debut album in 1980, Iron Maiden began a decade which would earn them worldwide acclaim. Following the release of Iron Maiden, albums like Piece Of Mind, Number Of The Beast and Powerslave have cemented the band’s place as a legendary Metal band. Iron Maiden and Judas Priest continue to record and tour to this day. While there may have been some obstacles along the way, both acts have successfully made the transition from hot, new acts to elder statesmen of Metal. Their catalogs leave behind a legacy of music that will inspire musicians around the globe for generations to come. The Iron Maiden vs Judas Priest show will challenge even the most seasoned School of Rock students with the technical demands of the music, while encouraging fledgling players to up their game learning fundamentals of the Metal genre.

GRAD SCHOOL: FUNK & REGGAE

AGES 18+ | WEDNESDAYS, 7:15PM-9:15PM

We're doing one of the grooviest shows we've got to offer, Funk & Reggae! Funk and Reggae were both genres that had their origins in the 1960's via African-American and Jamaican communities. James Brown first coined the "funk beat" in the 1950's and 60s, which emphasized the first downbeat of the measure - this would lead to the development of some of the world's favorite funk bands, including Sly and the Family Stone, Parliament, Chaka Khan and more. Funk music is characterized with funky, syncopated bass lines and steady, infectious drum grooves, leading to its popularity in the 70s and 80s. Reggae was developed in Jamaica in the late 60s, and is known for its propulsive percussion, hypnotic bass lines, and steady, up-stroke rhythm guitar, which helped devlop it as a dance music genre. Bob Marley helped to champion the genre, which would lead to future genres including ska.