THE ARTS

What’s happening in the Arts this term?

JAM Band

Last Friday afternoon, Hackham East was buzzing with excitement as we welcomed the JAM Band for an unforgettable musical performance. The event was filled with music, colour, energy, laughter and plenty of audience participation, creating a wonderful atmosphere for all students and staff.

Throughout the performance, students enthusiastically listened, sang, danced and joined in with a range of well-known and catchy songs. Selected students from Years 1–6 had the opportunity to take part on stage by dressing up as characters, moving with props and playing instruments, adding an extra layer of fun and interaction to the show. One of the highlights of the afternoon was the special appearance of Mrs Jolley and Jo, who delighted the audience by dressing up as Buzz Lightyear and Woody from Toy Story!

The JAM Band performance was the culmination of five weeks of learning and preparation in Arts lessons. During this time, students became familiar with many of the songs and activities featured in the show, including:

• Learning about the history of the Conga and practising the dance steps
• Performing drumming patterns to Gloria Estefan’s Conga using bucket drums
• Listening to and learning colour words in Kaurna through Kurdanyi – Colours of the Rainbow
• Participating in paper plate percussion activities to Who Let the Dogs Out?
• Developing beat and rhythm skills through activities based on You’ve Got a Friend in Me from Toy Story and Gotta Catch ’Em All from Pokémon

Students experienced music in a fun and memorable way from this presentation and we thank the JAM Band for bringing lots of joy and enthusiasm to our school community. Check out the photos from the performance as well as classes learning the Conga and the paper plate dance to Who Let the Dogs Out.

Exploring Timbre in Music

During the final four weeks of term, students will be discovering the musical element of timbre. Timbre is the special quality of a sound that makes one instrument or voice sound different from another, even when they are playing the same note.

Students in the Castle Unit will investigate how percussion instruments create sound. Through hands-on exploration, they will discover whether instruments are hit, scraped, tapped, or shaken to produce different sounds. They will also describe the sounds they hear and work creatively to compose sound effects to a picture book story.

The Holly Unit will be exploring the unique timbres of a variety of instruments. Students will experiment with sounds and work together to create a sound story inspired by a place or event.

Students in the Stillwell Unit will compare the timbres of different instrument families and experiment with creating contrasting sound qualities. They will also investigate how timbre can influence the mood and emotion of a piece of music.

Choir

HEPS Choir

The HEPS Choir has been working incredibly hard as they learn the songs and choreography for this year’s Southern Metropolitan Music Festival concert, which will be held in early November.

A special thank you goes to our wonderful Choir Leaders- Alex H, Jas L, Savannah T, Ava S and Shelby S. These students provide valuable support each week by helping to set up the Choir room alongside Jo, taking the roll, leading warm-ups and assisting with technology. Their leadership and dedication are greatly appreciated.

Solo Club has also been running every Wednesday during lunchtime, giving interested students the opportunity to practise solo parts for auditions, rehearsals and upcoming assemblies. Congratulations to Hanna C, Ava S, Alexandra C, Charlotte L and Hannah B, who have been selected for a concert solo audition later this month. We wish them the very best and look forward to seeing them shine.

Melissa Thiele

Arts Teacher