Congratulations to Nic O’Brien, Ethan Ingram, Joe Boland and Seb Schoell whose HSC Visual Arts bodies of work have been selected for Manly Art Gallery’s “Express Yourself” exhibition in February 2021.
Nic O’Brien’s large scale double portrait drawing has also been nominated for the “Art Express” Exhibition and we are waiting to see if he will be selected.
Our Year 9 Photography & Digital Media students enjoyed a Friday evening workshop with acclaimed photographer, Peter Solness. Peter has developed a technique he calls “Light Painting” which involves long exposure photography while lighting night-time scenes with a variety of lights and torches. The boys had a wonderful time exploring and developing their creativity.
On Tuesday 3 November we held our Year 9 Soiree Performance in a slightly different format to other years. As the theme was Jazz, our Goold Rock stage was set up with dim ‘Jazz club’ lighting, heavy reverb and the professional services of Roshan Kumarage, a leading jazz pianist in Sydney. But the live audience was mostly students and a couple of staff, while we had over 20 audience members join us live on ZOOM!
As far as COVID-19 performance opportunities go, this was one to remember, with all students challenging themselves to play a jazz piece, with improvisation and jazz inflections expected. For some of our students with Rock or classical backgrounds, this was a tough challenge, but not impossible. It was wonderful to see the boys embrace a new style and refine it to a high-quality standard, especially the creativity with which they approached jazz improvisation.
The future is bright for Music at Saints, thanks to the leadership of Faculty Co-ordinator, Alan Caulfield and the support of our Principal, Jonathan Byrne.
Michael Paton
Music Teacher
During Week 4 this term, we had our Year 10 Task 4 Music Assessment which included a composition and a solo performance. I performed Yesterday by John Lennon and written by Paul McCartney as my solo piece and created a composition for trumpet and piano. We had been given 4 weeks for practice within school time and had all been practising outside school at home and with our tutors. I had been playing my piece for many weeks before the performance and included many different aspects within music that would help me achieve a good mark. After our performance, we had to write a self-evaluation that involved what we think we did well and what we could improve, this helped me for future performances and also so I knew what to include next time. This assessment overall pushed me to be the best musician I could as I had to involve many qualities of music and had a large variety of aspects within it with the solo and composition.
Daniel Links
Year 10 Music
Over 90 students took to the stage last week at Studio Concerts, a celebration of solo music performance and spotlight on the Private Music Tuition Program. Studio Concerts is one of those important learning experiences, as it affords the boys the opportunity to prepare and perform a substantial solo piece in the formal concert setting. Additionally, it is an opportunity for the College Music Tutors and their students to showcase the fruits of their many, many hours of tutelage in the Private Music Tuition Program.
The four Studio Concerts were video recorded and will be made available through Youtube. The Woodwind and Brass concert video recording, featuring special guest artist Paul Goodchild (Sydney Symphony Orchestra), has been edited and can be viewed here.
There are many benefits of playing a musical instrument in human development. Music is an integral part of human life and is a fundamental part of a culture and identity, a creative pursuit which is often performed in a collaborative or ensemble situation. There have been many studies conducted that link music and increased intelligence in students, but this is not the only benefit. In schools, learning an instrument is a discipline in which students simultaneously develop academic capacity, physical ability and social skills.
All students are encouraged to take up learning and instrument. Private tuition in most instruments and voice is available at the College. Further information and the enrolment form are available online at - https://atlas.saintaug.nsw.edu.au/Sport-Co-Curricular/Sport-and-Co-curricular-Forms/music-tuition. If you have any questions regarding the Private Music Tuition Program, please contact Alan Caulfield caulfield.a@saintaug.nsw.edu.au or Lynne Papahatzis lpapahatzis@saintaug.nsw.edu.au.
Alan Caulfield
Faculty Co-ordinator - Music
As we approach our performances for the end of the year, we emphasise the importance of being at rehearsals on time.
Term 4 Rehearsal Schedule:
Monday
7:15am - Concert Band 2 - Alan Caulfield
Tuesday
7:30am - Choir - Simon Hyland
Wednesday
7:15am - Concert Band 1 - Joseph Montz
Lunch - Jnr Jazz - Joseph Montz
Thursday
7:15am - Stage Bands - Joseph Montz/Alan Caulfield
Friday
7:30am - Jazz Ensemble - Joseph Montz
Lunch - Guitar Ensemble - Joseph Montz
Please note: Drum Line will not have rehearsals this term because we cannot find a time for all members to attend.
If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to contact Joseph Montz or the conductor of your son’s ensemble.
We are excited to announce that we have been given the Green Light to start preparations for our only public concert for the year. This festival of carols will involve all boys in co-curricular music and will feature all the family favourites.
Important: Due to our COVID-19 safety plan, bookings are ESSENTIAL. We cannot permit unregistered people to enter the College grounds.
Where: College Oval (yes, bring a picnic blanket!)
When: Monday, 30 November @ 5:30PM
Bookings: https://www.trybooking.com/BMUJL
Bookings Close: Sunday 29 November
