Over the last couple of weeks, when people have asked me how the Instrumental Concert went, I have replied that the concert had a genuine warmth and generosity, and a spirit of good will. What a wonderful context for our students to perform in. The concert was, in every way, a celebration of what our students have achieved with their instrumental learning, and every student enrolled in the IM program was given the opportunity to perform.
The evening opened with an ensemble arrangement of Frère Jacques which featured all of our new IM students who began in this year. With some extra Neighbourhood rehearsals (thanks Yr 2 Team), I was impressed that these young students demonstrated their ability to work together and coordinate their skills with confidence. Everyone knows the tune to Frère Jacques, but each section of the ensemble had a variation of the tune, or a harmony line with different rhythm, and this is where music making gets interesting: our brains get to go to the gym for a workout, and our connection with what we do is all the more rewarding. Bravo to our new students, and thank you to the audience for your beautiful singing in French! The students said that they could hear the audience singing and they loved having their families and friends join in.
The concert featured the students performing in small ensembles with their teachers, and they presented pieces drawn from the usual variety of musical styles, with the addition of some traditional Christmas melodies. For those families who have been enjoying IM concerts for a few years, you would have appreciated seeing the growth in the students’ abilities as they progress through the program. Many of the popular traditional melodies would be familiar, and it is great to see students venture into more complex work. It is also really valuable for students to see each other perform and support one another.
We ended our concert with a massed performance from our year 3/4 and 5/6 students who performed our very own version of Pachelbel’s ‘Christmas’ Canon. Pachelbel wrote the original ‘ground bass’ line in the late 1600s, and luckily the festive tunes Jingle Bells and The First Noel have melodies which fit over the top, along with melodic lines from Pachelbel. Four different melodies were woven over the ground bass, a couple at a time, and then all played together to form, what the students enjoy calling, a mash! Our final singalong featured an ensemble of saxophones (thanks Mitchell for the Baritone Sax), playing a swing version of Jingle Bells which had a special second verse of lyrics written by the Preps and Yr 1s. We were delighted to welcome back to our stage Sam and Joe Ronfeld who graduated from PHPS in 2012. Sam and Joe augmented our Jingle Bells swing band. They are now both studying Bio Medicine at Melbourne Uni and teach Saxophone and Clarinet in the instrumental program at Westgarth Primary. They are former students of Mitchell.
There are many people who help to make a concert run smoothly. A special thank you to our MC’s Christian and Poppy who did a super job, and to Arlo for accompanying the strings on drums. That our evening was so successful and seemingly easy going, was due to the generous support of our Home Group teachers: Toni, Matilda, Simon and Jen, who were joined by Keith, Richard and Esmé. Thank you for supporting our concert: the students were calm, focussed and happy, and were wonderful audience members, and I know that you were delighted and proud to see the students achieve their best. Thanks again Richard for your help with the sound system. Thank you too, to the students from OSHC who helped to set up the audience seating, and to the audience for singing, supporting our students and for assisting with the ‘bump out’ as we cleared the gym at the end of the night.
For those of our Year 6 students who began in the IM program in Year 2, this final concert for them was their tenth IM concert. To you, and all the Year 6 students, what a wonderful contribution you have made to our school, thank you. Thank you also to your families and friends who have helped in so many ways to support your instrument learning. Every time you performed, wether it be in many of our school assemblies, concerts and Talent Quests, over the years, you have inspired younger students, and it is a joy for me and all our community to see your achievements. All the very best to you in your future musical adventures.
We are so fortunate to have a dedicated group of musicians who work hard and diligently to teach our students. Mark, Rose, Kylie, Sasha and Mitchell have a tremendous wealth of teaching experience between them, and they not only teach, but perform regularly locally and overseas, and also compose music. My sincere thanks to them for their expertise and commitment to making our IM program grow and grow.
Next year we look forward to sharing our IM program with the whole school community with performances in special IM assemblies in addition to our 2 concerts.
A happy, safe and restful holiday to everyone, and students, don’t forget to show your instruments a little bit of love over the holidays!
Deb: Music Artist in Residence, Instrumental Music Co-ordinator.
“Music gives a soul to the Universe, wings to the mind,
flight to the imagination and life to everything.”
Plato