Dear Parents and Students

As we reflect on this past year, we are truly grateful for the privilege of being part of your child's musical journey. There is much to celebrate this year in terms of musical growth going by the way the students had performed in class, Forte Lounge events and more recently at the series of Forte Festival concerts.

See our FORTE MUSIC lesson journey guide below to remind ourselves that musicianship skills are wide-ranging. There are multiple skills to develop. Traditional music learning has always focussed in getting the student to read first in order to play! (regardless of age of child). Essential learning skills like listening, ability to focus and collaborating with others are all equally important skills and helps a child with coordination. Hence these are the precious musical skills that students need to be well grounded in as well.

Our Forte programs and unique approach (sing, move, tap and clap to explore pitch and rhythm) are crafted to be fun, engaging and developmentally appropriate to capture the student's imagination as well as make learning fun and engaging beyond the page!

Consistent practice routine, mindful and not surface practice, a zest for learning and mastering repertoire as well as having a positive approach to learning and performing are important elements to grow musically. We continue to encourage our students to explore the creative part of learning music which is to improvise and compose. The Forte courses have built-in activities that guide students in these creative areas. Such skills coupled with an understanding of music theory would help one to unpack the learning of any type of music.

Many of our students have also shown much enthusiasm in playing ensemble items and shown commitment to attending rehearsals as shown by their bright performances at our recent Forte Festival series of concerts. Well done to our performers and teachers! I had earlier shared some highlights of the concerts on our school Facebook and Instagram pages here.

We had a good run with the AMEB music exams again this year. 22 students sat the Music (Practical) exams (Preliminary to Grade 6) this year and 15 passed with Honours and High Distinction. 12 students sat the Music (Theory) exams (Grades 1 to 3) and 11 candidates passed with Honours and High Distinction.

For all of the above and more, we would like to say a big thank you to all parents for your continued support in your child's music lesson journey and your strong belief that music education matters and has a profound impact on your child's overall development including building creativity, confidence, teamwork and adaptability.

We will be closed this festive period and will re-open from 6 January 2025 for rescheduled lessons and holiday programs. Details of the holiday programs are set out on the next page.

Wishing you and your family a very happy holiday season filled with merriment amongst friends, family and of course music. Here are a couple of videos to put us in a festive mood.

See also images below from the Christmas dress-up week in the final week of term!

Forte School of Music Mt Waverley

Music matters. We seek to inspire musicality and creativity through our unique way of teaching

Music Notes 10/2024 · 26 Dec 2024

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