Extra-Curricular at MAG
Springtime Concert
Our annual music concert featuring Secondary students, the Springtime Concert, was held last Monday 2 September and was a resounding success with students across Year 7 – Year 12 performing!
The performances were outstanding and featured solo and duet violin, drums, piano, vocal and guitar items, as well as performances by some of our ensembles including Drumline A, the Strings Ensemble and the Year 10 Music Elective class band.
Congratulations to all of our performers!
Year 4, 5 and 6 Class Piano Concerts
Through a collaborative effort by our piano tutors, a number of our extra-curricular music students from Years 4, 5 and 6 performed for their classes over the last fortnight.
These informal piano concerts were a wonderful opportunity to feature many of our young piano musicians and provided a supportive and encouraging environment. For some of the students, this was the first time they performed in front of an audience!
Next week, we look forward to more class concerts featuring extra-curricular piano students from Kinder and Year 3.
A special thanks to Margaret Monro (just one of our terrific piano tutors) who has facilitated the organisation of these class concerts.
Secondary Assembly Music Item
Congratulations to Maya Wise from Year 8, who performed a beautiful acoustic guitar arrangement of ‘Blackbird’ (McCartney/Lennon) at our Secondary Assembly this week.
Maya’s polished performance was an outstanding addition to our Secondary Assembly – well done, Maya!
Ballet Masterclasses available with Emma Mexa
We are delighted to offer three ‘masterclass’ style sessions with professional ballet dancer and teacher, Emma Mexa.
As part of our Extra-Curricular offerings, Emma will facilitate three ballet sessions on the following dates:
- Tuesday 8 October
- Wednesday 13 November
- Tuesday 26 November
The three sessions will be ‘masterclass’ style lessons, aimed at students who have some prior experience in ballet, from beginner to advanced level. Emma is flexible and can accomodate students preference, whether it is working on ballet exercises and technique, perfecting existing repertoire, enhancing strength and conditioning or teaching solo / group dances.
These ballet lessons will be during school hours and cost $38 per half hour lesson (invoiced by Emma).
Lessons are 1:1, though small group lessons may be an option where there are students of the same age / ability. Group lessons in this case, will cost $30 per student (group of two), or $20 per student (group of three or more).
To take advantage of this fantastic opportunity, please visit our website complete our online form.
Save the Date – Jr Singers ‘Pop-Up’ Public Performance
The Jr Singers are excited to be going on tour next week! Our talented singers will be visiting Echuca Community for the Aged and performing for the residents there, followed by a public ‘pop-up’ performance at Hopwood Gardens in Echuca.
We invite you to come along and see our Jr Singers perform at Hopwood Gardens. They will be performing four items, including their winning pieces from the Bendigo Eisteddfod earlier this year and two new pieces learnt more recently.
Details
Event: Jr Singers – public ‘pop-up’ performance
Location: Hopwood Gardens (Hopwood Place, Echuca)
Date & Time: Monday 16 September at 2.15pm
Good luck Piano Exam Students
We have 16 extra-curricular piano students who will be undergoing external examinations through St Cecelia School of Music this weekend.
These practical examinations require students to prepare work from specific grade levels in the St Cecelia School of Music syllabus, which includes three to four pieces, technical work, general knowledge and aural tests. An examiner will assess each student and provide meaningful feedback for their ongoing progression.
Good luck to all students participating!
New Piano and Flute tutor – Delena Gaffney
We are delighted to welcome another music tutor to our growing Extra-Curricular music program.
Delena will be available to teach piano or flute later this term and comes with a wealth of experience.
Music has been at the heart of Delena’s life since childhood, beginning with piano at age 5 and evolving into roles as an accompanist and educator across various instruments including piano, flute, recorder and ukulele.
With extensive training in Primary and Early Childhood music, Delena is deeply passionate about community music-making and believes in fostering musicality in everyone.
Since 1983, Delena has taught piano in schools and privately, guiding students through to Diploma, while integrating theory and creativity into each lesson.
Delena’s love for accompaniment shines through in her work with students, professionals, and amateur theatre, and she has performed with classical, folk and pop groups. Over 28 years, Delena has worked in primary schools and early childhood centres, and in 2017 and 2019, Delena founded and continues to lead a mixed adult choir and an all-male choir, both thriving and growing.
If your child is interested in learning with Delena, please refer to the details on our website and if required, click here to apply.
New to our Extra-Curricular Music Program - French Horn
An exciting opportunity is now available as part of our Extra-Curricular music program! For the very first time, we now offer French Horn lessons, which will be facilitated by Ms Chandra Hale.
Chandra Hale is our MAG Secondary Music Teacher and an avid orchestral player. She studied French Horn under the Principal Horn player of the WASO, Heidi Kepper and Principal Horn of the Australian Chamber Orchestra, Darryl Poulsen. Chandra has played horn and other instruments for a number of musicals in the Riverina region and will be playing in the Sound of Music later this year in Wagga Wagga. She is currently a member of both the Goulburn Valley Concert Orchestra and the Bendigo Symphony Orchestra in addition to smaller chamber music groups in Echuca and Shepparton. For Chandra, ensemble playing is the heart and soul of being a musician.
A bit about learning French Horn
French Horn is considered one of the hardest orchestral instruments to master and it takes several years for most learners to produce a decent tone on the horn. Learning French Horn takes persistence but there are many rewards. Because it is so challenging, once you've committed yourself to learning it, you will become part of a larger (but still relatively small) horn community in Australia that will support you on your musical journey. French horns dominate the music of films as its tone colour evokes a sense of grandeur and majesty and you will learn to recognise its distinctive sound within the melodies used in movies such as Star Wars, The Avengers and many more.
If your child would like to learn French Horn, please refer to details on our website and if required, click on this link to apply.
Please note, French Horn lessons with Ms Chandra Hale will be after school hours (onsite at MAG) and to comply with our Child Safe Policy, lessons will be either in groups (two or more students) or require parent/guardian supervision for individual lessons.
To access a French Horn, we recommend this organisation for external hire, if not wanting to purchase a French Horn outright.
Please note, we recommend that Primary and Year 7 students hire a single French horn and Year 8 and above students hire a double horn.
2024 Extra Curricular Tuition Applications (Optional)
We offer a variety of instruments available for students to learn through our Extra-Curricular Music Program.
For students interested in participating in our Extra-Curricular tuition program, a range of percussion, brass, woodwind and string instruments are available to learn, as well as the opportunity to join our Brass/Woodwind ‘Step Up’ program, or a Rock Band.
Please refer to the details on our website and if required, click here to apply.
Please don’t hesitate to contact Mrs Fiona Gibbs (Head of Student Experience – Extra Curricular Music Program (K-12) ) should you have any queries.