More than 2,600 NSW public school students are taking over Sydney Town Hall this week for the annual Department of Education Arts Unit Primary Proms event in a celebration of music that is also broadening what it means for young people to have a voice.
Across four concerts from 14 to 17 September, students from public schools across NSW are performing as part of combined choirs, featured ensembles and the NSW Public Schools Signing Choir.
This year, 1,850 students from 72 schools are performing in the combined choirs, with a further 582 students appearing in featured items. In each of the first two concerts, 61 students are also performing as part of the Signing Choir. Each of the four concerts has its own name, with Brindabella opening the festival on Monday 14 September, followed by Coorong on Tuesday 15 September, Daintree on Wednesday 16 September and Kakadu on Thursday 17 September.
While the scale of the event is impressive, Primary Proms is increasingly showcasing the many different ways students can communicate, connect and participate through music.
The Signing Choir is now an established part of the program, four years after its Primary Proms debut in 2022.
What was once a new addition to the event has become part of its fabric, giving students with Auslan experience an opportunity to perform alongside their peers on one of Sydney's major stages.
This year's repertoire also extends a sense of connection across language and culture with students this year performing Bermain Ditepi Pantai, an Indonesian-language song by Indonesian composer Professor Dr Tjut Nyak Deviana Daudsjah.
NSW teacher Suhandi Kosasih, from Beverly Hills Girls Intensive English Centre, studied with Professor Daudsjah in Indonesia and has worked with The Arts Unit to develop Indonesian-language resources to support teachers in learning and teaching the song.
This special cultural connection was recognised when two representatives from the Consul-General of the Republic of Indonesia, Mr Pendekar Muda Leonard Sondakh attended the Coorong concert on Tuesday, 15 September.
Primary Proms is designed to support new and developing school choirs, with teachers provided with repertoire, professional learning and teaching resources before students come together for the final performances at Sydney Town Hall.
For many young performers, it is their first opportunity to perform in a major venue and to experience what it means to be part of a choir numbering in the hundreds.
The result is more than a concert; it is an opportunity for students from different schools, communities and backgrounds to listen to one another, find their place in something larger and communicate together through song, sign or another language.
Primary Proms 2026 at a glance
- Four concerts at Sydney Town Hall from 14-17 September
- 2,626 students involved across the program
- 1,850 combined choir students
- 72 schools represented in the combined choirs
- 582 students appearing in featured items
- 61 Signing Choir students performing in each of the first two concerts
- Indonesian-language repertoire featured in this year's program.
Participating Schools
- Annandale North Public School
- Annandale Public School
- Arncliffe Public School
- Ashbury Public School
- Balgowlah North Public School
- Banksmeadow Public School
- Baulkham Hills North Public School
- Beecroft Public School
- Bidwill Public School
- Blackheath Public School
- Boolaroo Public School
- Boronia Park Public School
- Braddock Public School
- Bungendore Public School
- Burrawang Public School
- Cabramatta West Public School
- Caddies Creek Public School
- Cammeray Public School
- Chatswood Public School
- Cherrybrook Public School
- Chester Hill North Public School
- Clovelly Public School
- Cooerwull Public School
- Cootamundra Public School
- Curl Curl North Public School
- Doonside Public School
- Double Bay Public School
- Drummoyne Public School
- Eastwood Public School
- Epping West Public School
- Ermington West Public School
- Excelsior Public School
- Exeter Public School
- Five Dock Public School
- Forestville Public School
- Goulburn East Public School
- Haberfield Public School
- Harbord Public School
- Hazelbrook Public School
- Henry Kendall High School
- Hornsby South Public School
- Hunter School of Performing Arts
- Kariong Public School
- Kensington Public School
- Killarney Heights Public School
- King Park Public School
- Kirrawee Public School
- Lapstone Public School
- Leura Public School
- Lindfield Public School
- Lugarno Public School
- Marrickville Public School
- Matthew Pearce Public School
- Middleton Grange Public School
- Mona Vale Public School
- Mosman Public School
- Mount Pritchard Public School
- Mount Riverview Public School
- Murray Farm Public School
- Narara Public School
- Narrabeen Lakes Public School
- Narraweena Public School
- Neutral Bay Public School
- Northbourne Public School
- Normanhurst Public School
- Oxley Park Public School
- Parramatta North Public School
- Passfield Park School
- Petersham Public School
- Quaama Public School
- Rainbow Street Public School
- Randwick Public School
- Riverwood Public School
- Russell Lea Public School
- Rutherford Public School
- Seven Hills North Public School
- St Marys South Public School
- Tomaree High School
- Towradgi Public School
- Waitara Public School
- Wakehurst Public School
- Warnervale Public School
- West Wyalong High School
- William Stimson Public School
