Tintern’s Annual Cathedral Service
This year, Tintern’s Annual Cathedral Service was conducted a little differently. Instead of being held on Sunday with an audience of the entire Tintern community, 2021’s Cathedral Service was held on Friday 30 April, with an audience made up of students and teachers. The preparations for the service were a little different for musicians, teachers and leaders too, who came into the Cathedral at the beginning of the day for a dress rehearsal.
However, many things remained the same for us, too – the musical items offered during the service were beautifully diverse and offered opportunities for quiet contemplation.
The Chamber Orchestra had the privilege of playing the beautiful melody of Nimrod from Edward Elgar’s Enigma Variations, as introductory music to the service. During prayers, the Clarinet Ensemble also provided moments for quiet contemplation through another beautiful piece, Skye Boat Song, arranged by Kate Agioritis.
An integral part of any church service is congregational singing. The combined Concert and Intermediate Choirs were also given a chance to shine, through their performances of two songs: the exciting and upbeat Jubilate Deo, rejoicing in the glory of God; and the grandiose Let All the World in Every Corner Sing by the English composer, Ralph Vaughan Williams. This song was wonderfully complex, and certainly provided a challenge for many of us; however, the great success and energy of the performance reminded us that, out of challenges, come the greatest rewards. In fact, for many singers, a highlight of the day was singing alongside the grand pipe organ at St Paul’s, of which the tallest pipe reached up to the very ceiling of the building. The service was concluded by the quiet Australian Blessing by Timothy Sexton, courtesy of the Senior Girls’ Chamber Choir.
Thus, the music of 2021’s Cathedral Service provided moments for community, joy and hope, as well as moments for contemplation and stillness for those who needed it most. Thanks to all the members of choirs and ensembles, who contributed to another successful Cathedral Service!
Joshua Choong
School Pianist 2021
May the 4th be with you!
Our wonderful Saxophone Ensemble celebrated May the 4th by performing a pop-up version of “Cantina Band” from Star Wars at various locations around the school at lunchtime, including the Canteen (!), the Senior College, the Middle School Undercroft, the Junior School Playground and the Cullen Resource Centre (Senior Library). The clever arrangement of this iconic piece was courtesy of our Instrumental Captain (and arranger extraordinaire), Josh Choong!
Twilight Concert
On Tuesday 27 April, 18 students came together to put on a beautiful evening of various styles of music ranging from contemporary, classical and musical theatre for the first Twilight Concert for 2021. Callum Battilana (Year 12) played Beethoven’s Sonata Op 28 movement 2 on piano which moved the audience with the fast-moving passages and complex but excellently executed melody. Daniel Sun (Year 8) played Orientale by Cesar Cui on the oboe. The performance was incredible and took the audience to a faraway place. Thank you to all the students who performed and a big thank you to Ms Bezaire and Ben Taylor for accompanying the students and also a thank you to the students’ family for the continued support for the music scene at Tintern.
Charlie Victoria
Instrumental Captain 2021
Small Ensembles Concert
It was so fantastic to hear all of our wonderful small ensembles performing in the Theatre on Thursday 6 May at our annual Small Ensembles Concert. The concert opened with the Intermediate Jazz Band, followed by the new Year 7 & 8 Cello Ensemble. There were several woodwind ensembles and an impressive Piano Trio, featuring our School Pianist, Josh Choong (playing viola!), Instrumental Captain, Lydia Tan on violin and talented pianist, Sarah Chen on … the piano! The program was brought to a rousing close by Tintern’s famous Band-ana! The varied program and enthusiastic energy in the theatre was really great to see, especially following on from the absence of our enjoyable concerts last year.
Lilli Holliday-Ryder
Choral Captain 2021
The Talent
On Tuesday 27 April, I had the opportunity to perform live-to-air on 3MBS’s 2021 ‘The Talent’. I am grateful to have had this chance to hear on-air feedback from industry mentors, to learn from fellow musicians, and to have a small taste of what it would be like to work in the performance industry.
The Talent is a live performance program hosted by 3MBS Fine Music Melbourne, which seeks to highlight the abilities of up and coming musicians. The competition is open to all instrumentalists, vocalists and chamber groups under the age of 35. Each season, 20 performers are selected to play live-to-air.
The process for auditioning requires contestants to submit a video recording of a varied repertoire that showcases their skills. I was lucky enough to be able to advance past the initial auditioning process and was given the opportunity to attend workshops in marketing and interview training.
Since all of these were new experiences to me, I participated with enthusiasm and an open mind. The activities not only familiarized me with the radio performance process, but also provided important musician career tips and strategies on how to handle interviews successfully. I was delighted to be part of a program where everyone (both the production team and performers) was not only talented, but also had a strong passion towards music.
This program not only gives up-and-coming musicians performance and radio interviewing experience, but also provides a platform for more exposure. For those who are interested in a career in the music industry, I strongly suggest auditioning.
Further details about the program can be found at https://thetalent3mbs.com/, and the episode of the Talent where I am featured can be found on https://www.spreaker.com/user/9279832/the-talent-ep-7-podcast, or on Apple Podcasts by searching ‘3MBS The Talent’ and picking the latest episode.
Last but not least, for each season, aside from awards for the top 3 performers of each season there is also an audience choice award. With regards to this, you can have a say in the audience vote too! Please go to https://thetalent3mbs.com/vote/ and vote for me. I would love to have the chance to go back and give a final performance. Thank you for your help and support!
Sarah Chen
Year 12 Pianist
Sarah’s delightful performance starts at the 28’ 30” mark of the podcast – and the feedback from the mentors is full of praise for her sparkling finger-work and her assured and solid performance at the keyboard. Congratulations, Sarah, on your broadcasting success. My vote is in! – Mrs Bezaire
