Music News
WhizPhunkestra- Trades Hall 2nd July at 7:00 pm
On the evening of Wednesday 2nd July, Whizbang will take to the stage at Ballarat Trades Hall, (the second oldest Trades Hall in the world) in a collaboration with Phoenix P-12 Community College’s Phoenix Phunk. The bands will play separate sets before combining as The WhizPhunkestra to close the show.
The two bands recently spent an afternoon together writing new music and will join together in performance of shared and new material at this event which is free to attend and commences at 7pm.
Entry is free - come along for a night of exceptional musical talent.
Ballarat Jazz Club
On Sunday 15th June at the Ballarat Jazz Club, the Ballarat High School’s Music Department took to the stage at the Ballarat Golf Club to present a 3 hour show of jazz, blues and improvised music to a full house of enthusiastic and supportive patrons.
This community engagement has now been going for a decade and is a lasting legacy of its founder, Geoff Herkes, a past president of the Club who initially approached BHS with the concept of introducing, supporting and encouraging young people to be involved with the jazz idiom.
The Jazz Club has proudly supported our student musicians over the journey and generously donated thousands of dollars to the Music Department over the years. This year we gratefully received a donation for $750.
The experience gained in performing in a professional environment to a large audience is invaluable for our students and gives real world opportunities that can shape lives. Two examples of this were two of our esteemed Alumni, Paula Maki (tenor saxophone) and Peggy Hills (vocals and trombone) who both performed at the recent jazz concert to a glowing response from the audience.
Bryn Hills
Instrumental Music Teacher
Lunchtime Performances
Last Friday 13th June, we hosted our second lunchtime performance in the courtyard—blessed with perfect weather, not a drop of rain in sight. Our featured acts were a talented Year 11 and Year 12 acoustic duo, performing all-original compositions. They serenaded us with warm vocals and intricate guitar work, lighting up the afternoon. A small, appreciative crowd of students gathered to enjoy the show, while a few staff members even came outside to eat their lunch in the sunshine as they listened.
This initiative is a wonderful opportunity for students to gain performance experience, as well as hands-on learning with live-sound equipment setup and management. There’s just one more performance scheduled for this term before we take a break and start fresh next term. Let’s hope the sunshine continues to support this memorable series!
Tyler Smith
Classroom Music Teacher
Woodwind and Piano Recital
Tuesday evening saw the Woodwind and Piano recital evening. A packed program saw everything from Year 12 solos all the way through to Year 7's nervous first performances. This showcased the hard work and practice of the students. Great job by Belinda Sileni and Sam Boon working with these students.
Previously weeks saw the postponed guitar concert from earlier in the term. This was another packed evening giving Guitar and Bass students an event to showcase their work to family and friends. BJ Humphrey has done a great job working with these young people, setting them up for success. He will be missed by staff & students.
Last night was the Term 2 Chess Tournament over 7 rounds. Sam Song prevailed with 7 points, Alberto Biju came in 2nd with San Diviro in 3rd place. Methuja Dissanayake was the best performing Year 7, only just edging out Christo Stephen & Vincent Perconte all on 4 points.
Next week sees two Drama Workshops from Drama VIC, a great opportunity for our keen Junior Drama Students.
On top of this there is a Showcase Drum concert on Wednesday Morning with Senior Drum students performing a selection of songs for some junior music classes.
Morgan Colgrove
VCE/VET/Classroom Music