Music Matters

Change of Date – SCEGGS HSC ENCORE Concert                                                                                                                           

The date of the SCEGGS HSC ENCORE Concert has been changed to Thursday 25 August – Great Hall, 6pm.  We look forward to sharing the Year 12 Class of 2022’s music performances with the school community in this free concert. 

All Elective Music students are also encouraged to attend this performance with their parents to experience and support the work of the senior Music students.

MLC Australian Music Day Workshop – Thursday 28 July

Last Thursday 28 July, students from Year 11 Music 1, Music 2 and 10 Elective students attended the MLC School’s Australian Music Day Workshop.  It has been 3 years since these workshops have taken place and they have always been a valuable experience for students who are learning to compose in either the Music 1 (Program 1) or Music 2 (Program 2) course. Please read below the learning experience students had of the day.

Program 1

The MLC Australian Music Day Program 1 workshop was an extremely educational experience which provided the Year 11 Music 1 class (and some Year 9 and 10 elective music students) with tips on writing compositions for the HSC, and on writing songs in general. We had the opportunity to view musician Simone East and band Sleepmakeswaves live to observe their song making process and to get tips on ours. The day started with a showcase of a couple of Simone East’s songs, then a guide to making song titles and song lyrics. We then made songs in small groups and received feedback from Simone. In the next part of the workshop, we attended a talk on how to write compositions for the HSC and were able to view example scores, something which I as a Year 11 student doing Music for the HSC, found very useful. Next, we watched Sleepmakeswaves’ first live performance since lockdown, followed by experimentation with different chord progressions and improvisation. Overall, the day was an incredible experience, one which everyone enjoyed and learnt from. Personally, this program helped me to decide to do a composition for my HSC, and encouraged me to continue producing songs in my own time.

Lara Greenfield
Year 11 Music 1 student

Program 2

It was so exciting to experience this year’s MLC Australian Music Day. I was lucky to experience Program 2 where we got to explore, learn and create with Australian musicians and composers. We started with listening to A Dream within a Dream, by Holly Harrison.  The work is inspired by the characters the Mad Hatter, the Dormouse and Alice from Lewis Carrol’s Alice in Wonderland. Holly Harrison’s concept was to express the story of the Hatter trying to keep the Mouse awake at the tea party using only a clarinet, performed by clarinettist Jason Noble using electronic effect pedals. This piece is extremely unique and inspiring as it uses electronic effects (e.g. digital delay, ‘wa’ pedal) to accompany the clarinettist.  The effects not only creates accompanying layers, but also stands alone as an ‘electronic clarinet’ part. Holly also explained her creative process, using images and patterns to create structure of her piece. Her explanation was extremely beneficial as it has taught me how process can be incorporated in my own compositions. Holly Harrison also explored various techniques and musical material to not only create clear contrasting characters (e.g. Hatter and Mouse) but a neurotic and engaging piece! All the students had the opportunity (and pressure) to compose our own clarinet solo pieces. I was lucky enough to have my quick composition played and it was amazing to see the music come alive! To have your composition come alive is an extraordinary experience that every student is grateful for.

Black Sea Dance was another piece performed and analysed by Gerard Brophy as a flute and cello duet. It was exciting to see this complex piece experiment with time. Even I mucked up my time signatures and beats but Brophy commented, on my quick composition, saying “Interesting change in the time signatures… it’s always good to make change – even a dramatic one.” Lastly, we ended our creative journey with a colourful and catchy riff based piece called Gothic Carousel by Tristan Coelho. This inventive and engaging piece used a unique quartet of double bass, cello, viola and piano. This whole experience of seeing current Australian music, having my own music played, sharing this experience with classmates is something memorable that I will always keep in mind when I’m composing music.

Sophie Gallagher Horne
Year 10 Elective Music Student

String Fun Day Primary String Workshop – Sunday 7 August 10am to 1pm

This coming Sunday (7 August), Stringalong and Sinfonietta will come to the Great Hall for a fun workshop to prepare their performance repertoire for the Australian School Band and Orchestra Festival (ASBOF) to be held at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music on Sunday 28 August. Girls should bring their instruments and music. We will share a pizza lunch in our break together!

Please note start and finish times for each ensemble for this Sunday, parents please drop your daughter off in St Peter’s Street:

Stringalong        Arrive: 10.00am             Finish: 12.30pm

Sinfonietta         Arrive: 10.30am              Finish: 1.00pm

Kindergarten Violinists

Violin tuition has begun for Kindergarten students this term, with five new beginners starting their journey as instrumental musicians! Violin tutor Ms Dominique Gallery has enjoyed meeting the girls and giving them their first few lessons. Once our newest violinists have had a term of lessons, they will be invited to join our beginner string ensemble “String Power”. Happy practising, girls!

 SYO Regional Tour – Congratulations!

Congratulations to the following students who have been selected to be a part of the SYO (Peter Seymour Orchestra) and SYO/WSYO Regional tours:

Rochelle Wang (Year 11) – Double Bass

Sophie Gallagher-Horne (Year 10) – Double Bass

Georgia Cate Baker Wood (Year 8) – Oboe

As part of the tour, students will also collaborate with the local Conservatorium musicians and the wider local community of musicians.  Well done and best wishes for these girls.

Band Discovery Fellowship – Bassoon Recipient

Congratulations to Yang Zhou (Year 7) who received her instrument and commenced her learning journey this week.  Yang was a successful recipient of the Year 7 Band Discovery Fellowship and had selected to learn Bassoon.  Yang is learning from our new Bassoon tutor, Miss Laura Brown.  Miss Brown received her Masters degree (Bassoon) from the Hochschule für Musik & Theatre Hamburg.  She is currently working with the Arts Unit and performing in several state orchestras in Australia.  We are so pleased to welcome Miss Laura Brown as part of our peripatetic teaching studio. 

 ASBOF Competition Tickets on Sale – Band and String Ensembles

Tickets for the ASBOF Competition are now on sale.  The tickets for this event (25% discount when purchasing online) can be accessed via the ASBOF website here.

The ASBOF Web App is also accessible via the website and gives parents access to the full Festival Draw.

Please see below for the information and ensembles that are involved in this year’s competition:

Sunday 28 August – Sydney Conservatorium of Music

• Sinfonietta – arrival time of 8.30am
• Stringalong – arrival time of 9.35am
• Bugles – arrival time of 11am

Sunday 11 September – Sydney Conservatorium of Music

• Amati – arrival time of 10am
• Holst Wind Band – arrival time of 1pm

Australian Youth Orchestra – Applications Open!

The Australian Youth Orchestra has opened applications for their 2023 programs. From gifted, school-aged students to those on a verge of a professional career, AYO provides specialised training opportunities for the next generation of musicians, composers and arts administrators. For more information and to apply click here.

Term 3 Calendar of Music Events

Pauline Chow
Head of Music