James Allen's Girls' School was founded in 1741 and is still at the forefront of education for girls, being one of the country's leading independent day schools. JAGS has always taken pride in its music heritage with both Holst and Vaughan Williams having been Directors of Music. The school has halls named after both composers following the recent completion of a brand-new Music School. Music-making at JAGS continues to go from strength to strength with the Choral and Orchestral Concert at St John's remaining the school's most prestigious annual musical event. It is a superb platform for the school's leading musicians to perform exciting and challenging choral and symphonic music to the highest standards. In an ambitious and varied programme, JAGS continues to acknowledge the 150th anniversaries of Vaughan Williams (in 2022) and Holst (in 2024) through performances of works by their composition teachers Hubert Parry and Charles Stanford.