MLC School Old girls perform in Encore Concert at the Sydney Opera House

Every year NESA (NSW Education Standards Authority) holds a gala concert in the Sydney Opera House to highlight outstanding HSC performers and composers. Nominations for this concert are decided during the final exam period and are highly sought after; this concert is really the pinnacle of school music in NSW. The event is always sold out within hours as music teachers from around the state hurry to organise for their elective students to see, hear and experience the standard for highest rankings in HSC Music 1, Music 2 and Music Extension.

Our 2022 Year 12 HSC cohort was awarded five nominations:

Jade Di Girolamo (2022) – Performance, ‘Gothic Carousel’
Ruby Scott-Wishart (2022) – Composition, ‘Soliloquy for Winter Solstice’
Jacqueline Flett (2022) – Music Composition
Jacqueline Flett (2022) – Music Performance
Emma Mahant (2022) – Music Composition
Of these nominees, two were selected to perform in the Sydney Opera House Encore Concert.

Ruby Scott-Wishart‘s composition was a piece written for acapella choir based on a poem published by her grandmother from a collection of over 40 years of poetry. This was performed on the evening by the MLC School Chamber Choir.

Jade Di Girolamo was also selected for her performance of Gothic Carousel; a piece composed especially for the MLC School Piano Quartet by MLC School Head of Composition Tristan Coelho. The other members of the Piano Quartet performing with Jade were – Wisteria Hu (2022), Ruby Scott-Wishart (2022) and Coco Huang (2022).

It is a tremendous honour to be nominated for the Encore concert. Only the top performing students from around the state are awarded these nominations. For MLC School to have two students selected to showcase their work in the actual concert is somewhat of a coup for our School. A huge congratulations to Ruby, Jade, Jaqueline and Emma. as well as Wisteria, Coco and the girls of the MLC School Chamber Choir. You all represented the School in such a wonderful way!

– Trevor Mee
Director of Music

Click on image gallery for full size images. Photo Credit: Anna Warr.