Territorial Music School 2026: Forever faithful!

Students from the 2026 Territorial Music School share their experiences.

Luke Greenwood 
Worthing

I honestly do not know how to sum up Territorial Music School (TMS) in just a few words. Having attended since 2016, I now class myself as one of the ‘older’ ones. It is one of the highlights of my year for many reasons – the music, the friendships, the sense of community, the spiritual development.

Brass band was my main study option, with the course having three separate bands as well as an A band. It is a beautiful experience to see a group of fellow musicians come together from all over, with all levels of ability, to both develop their skill and join together in acts of collective worship.

One of the pieces of music the band I was in played included ‘He Will Hold Me Fast’. The words say: ‘When I fear my faith will fail, Christ will hold me fast.’ The theme for the week was The Faithful, and we were all reminded that God is forever faithful to us, and we should also be forever faithful to him.

What I saw at TMS was something that moved me and challenged me. Every student and staff member was there wanting to hear what God has got to say. The message that came through for me is that, no matter what, God will continue to hold us and be faithful to us, so let’s continue to challenge ourselves to be faithful back to him.

Many young people made life-changing decisions in this week; there were hundreds of young people wanting to learn more about God. God is at work in The Salvation Army!

Isaac Woodman 
Chatham 

Through my first and second years of university, I had the amazing opportunity to develop my keys playing, which became – and continues to be – a primary form of worship for me.

TMS and the contemporary worship main study gave me the chance to connect that love and passion with my life in The Salvation Army, while continuing to grow in my gifts and, most importantly, my relationship with God.

One thing that has stuck with me was the balance between developing musically and taking time to reflect on the purpose behind what we were doing. We had the chance to play a variety of material, which challenged our musical skills, but also encouraged us to reflect through different styles – a reminder that music is not the end goal, but a tool to help ourselves and others connect with God.

There was an emphasis on ‘connection over perfection’ and this was evident in our final main study session on Friday evening. Instead of rehearsing, we took time to reflect on the week, encourage each other and think about what we would take into our lives beyond TMS.

A huge thank you must go to all the staff, particularly those in the contemporary main study: Dan E, Dan B, Sam, Brian, Lauren and Jono. Thank you for the sacrifices made, the time given and the investment you made in us throughout the week.

Jasmin Nancekivell-Smith 
New Addington 

My third year at TMS has been my favourite so far, an opportunity to reconnect with friends I don’t often get to see and create music with God at the centre of it all.

Musical theatre this year was a little bit different, with Stephanie Lamplough and Andrew Wicker writing a script and songs for us to bring to life. The show was entitled You Are Enough, bringing to light themes of grief, anxiety and mental health. Beyond the title, the recurring theme was that, in times of trouble and even when things seem out of our control, we can always pray.

The musical theatre stream gave us a chance to discuss and pray over these topics, as well as, of course, being a great opportunity to sing, dance and act!

On top of the show, we were devising our own pieces, performing songs we loved from musicals such as Godspell’s ‘Beautiful City’ and Dear Evan Hansen’s ‘Only Us’. It was great to have an opportunity to bring our own ideas to the table and share our passion for theatre with one another.

Overall, TMS 2026 was a joy to be a part of, a reminder that our God is a faithful God and our performances are not done to earn that, but to honour and glorify him.