Annual Music Concert
The past two years of COVID-19 has affected us to a great extent. We have all learnt to cope with the challenging times, and have missed out on some major musical memories and events, especially the ones which are in-person and live. After two consecutive years of cancellation of our Annual Concert, this year Tintern Grammar has successfully presented the audience with a memorable event, which the audience, students, and teachers have been longing for.
The program of the Concert was varied in style and range of ensembles, allowing our concert to have something to suit everyone’s taste. The program ranged from classical to modern music, and featured our large ensembles, as well as smaller ensembles such as the Brass Ensemble and Jazz Bands. The concert also featured multiple choirs including Intermediate, Concert, and Senior Girls’ Chamber Choirs. A noteworthy aspect of this concert was that it featured student musicians of a wide range of abilities, allowing all students to have an opportunity to perform and showcase their talents.
The concert program concluded with the Tintern Grammar Wind Symphony playing two pieces, one being We Will Remember Them, a special piece of music which was written as a tribute to our doctors, frontline personnel, scientists, healthcare staff members and more, for their selfless dedication and devotion caring for us during the recent (and ongoing) pandemic.
We are very glad to have been able to perform live again and we thank all the teachers and staff members for bringing this event to fruition.
Helen Yang | School Pianist 2022
Vardos Incursion
On Thursday 11 August, all the Year 7 and 8 students were able to watch and listen to the vibrant, energetic and sometimes unusual sounds of the ensemble called Vardos at a performance held in the CM Wood Performance Centre. As part of our classroom music program, we have genuinely enjoyed listening to and exploring music of Eastern Europe including music from Romania, the Ukraine and Hungary. The main instruments that were played in the Vardos performance were violin, piano accordion, and double bass. They explained to us that most of the music is meant to tell a story. I found that fascinating. An instrument that stood out for me was the trumpet-violin, which looked exactly like half a trumpet and half a violin merged. That instrument stood out for me the most because of its appearance and the sound that came from it. We also got to experience the sound of the hurdy gurdy; a most unusual instrument, that provides a drone-like sound to accompany the melodies. We all participated in a couple of songs through movement, and I found that very entertaining also.
8A and 8D were then able to participate in a workshop, where we had the opportunity to play an Eastern European song all together with Vardos. This included people on the keyboards, piano, double bass, flute, violin, vocals, and the boys learnt a traditional thigh slapping dance at the end of their workshop, which they thoroughly enjoyed. Overall, we had a great time exploring and learning about Eastern European music and the stories this music tells us.
Amelie Yeoman | Year 8A
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There are no passengers on the Big Band Bus
“There are no passengers on the big band bus,” says singer/songwriter, trumpeter, arranger/composer (We could go on, but we won’t) Ross Irwin. Loosely translated, this means; take responsibility for yourself and your sound, because everyone has a part to play.
When you’re involved with the music department, it is not uncommon to be presented with amazing opportunities and being in the Jazz Band is no exception. Bright and early last Monday morning, our workshop with Ross Irwin was full of ideas we’ll be sure to carry with us into the future and was a great way to shake up rehearsals.
He led the session with impressive insight and introduced new ways to approach thinking about making music as a team. He encouraged us throughout the session to have confidence in ourselves and each other as musicians; to leave our ego at the door and constantly be improving; not just to be a good high school band, but a good band.
We played two pieces with him, St. Thomas and Lindy Hopper’s Delight, in preparation for the upcoming Jazz Night on 26 August. We were inspired to listen actively and think to contribute ideas that enhance our performance as a group and ensure that our pieces are the best they can be.
His advice was brilliantly thought provoking, and we’re all incredibly excited to apply it in all the rehearsals to come.
Katie Howell | Year 10 Saxophonist
Congratulations to Kevin Wang (Year 8)
Kevin Wang in Year 8 recently competed in the 18 Years and Under Wind Solo section of the Monash Youth Music Festival and achieved a highly commendable Second Place for his performance on oboe. This is all the more impressive when we acknowledge that Kevin is only 14 years of age and was competing with musicians much older than him. Well done, Kevin!
Thinking about a career in the Music Industry?
AMPED is a one-day music conference for all secondary school students who are looking towards a career in the music industry, or are simply passionate about music.
The conference is on Saturday, September 10.
Presenters will include Aria winning artists Sarah Blasko, Tania Doko (Bachelor Girl), and Andrea Keller. There will be workshops in guitar with Simon Hosford, drums with Dan Kerby (Bliss n Eso), film composing with Tim Davies, piano arranging with Jack Earle, musical theatre with Josh Robson, composing for gaming with Tim Shiel, home studio with Liam Gough, plus workshops with Nina Ferro, Ben Robertson, Steve Sedergreen, and many others.
If you know any young people who are passionate about music, send them to the following website, and encourage them to register.
