Arts

St ANDREWS TRAINING BAND DOES US PROUD

On Tuesday 12 November our Training Band participated in the Victorian School Music Festival in the Beginner Concert Band section. This was first time an ensemble from St Andrews had participated in this event so it was very exciting. Our Training Band has been running since May of this year, and is made up of students mainly in Years 3 - 6 but we even had two of our percussionists from Year 1 and 2.

We arrived quite early so we got to see some of the other bands perform. They were all much bigger than us, many of them in Year 7 programmes with bands of over 70 students, and they played really well. But we knew that we were just as good and our brilliance was just more concentrated in smaller people and fewer of us!

We were the last to play in our section so we had to wait for about 2 hours. We played our two pieces really well and the adjudicator was very impressed with how well we did. Everyone was very happy that we got to bring back a certificate for school to display. We can't wait to go again next year.

Instrumental Tuition:

Music - Instrumental Lessons for 2020. Please note that if your child has participated in instrumental lessons in 2019 and wishes to continue lessons in 2020, ALL CURRENT STUDENTS ARE REQUIRED TO RE-APPLY FOR 2020. No students will be automatically rolled over from 2019. Please also let us know if you do not wish to continue lessons in 2020. Completed forms can returned to Reception or emailed to hmetcalfe@standrews.vic.edu.au. If you have any questions please don't hesitate to contact me.

Helen Metcalfe - Instrumental Music Coordinator

"THIS IS A TEST"

On the 12th of November, just before our exams, our year 10 theatre class held a small performance at our school’s drama space and presented the final product of our hard work during the school year’s second semester to some of our teachers, friends and family. Our small production is a play called “This is a test” and is written for a large, flexible group. It was chosen by our drama teacher, Mrs Elbourne, and I thought that it was a great choice since it suits our class and challenges our abilities as well. The play is about a student who is nervous about an upcoming test and sinks into a state of complete frustration and insecurity while undertaking it. This performance enables us to perfectly demonstrate the skills that we’ve acquired and developed through theatre studies. One of the things we've been discussing in theatre studies is that all theatre is about communication and telling people's stories, and often theatre involves raising questions and ideas, and then letting the audience think about what is explored. With exams coming up, "This is a test" explores how much students can allow the outcome of a test to influence how they see themselves, and questions whether this is what should be.

In our theatre class, some of us have never performed in front of a large group of people before, or haven’t done it for a very long time (myself included), which makes us jumpy with the thought of performing for people, but also excited at the same time. During our final rehearsals, some of us were so nervous that we had major mess-ups, but thanks to Mrs Elbourne’s prayers and words of encouragement to each other, we managed to make it through the official performance confidently, delivering a flawless presentation to our audience.

What I loved the most during the process of our production is being able to perceive our development through the process of communication and cooperation between each other, especially when people had to fill the parts of others was just incredible. I enjoyed working with all of my talented classmates and I also learned a lot about the preparation of an official performance. The amount of effort and enthusiasm we put in a production is a huge factor in how a show would turn out, becoming a reflection on what we’ve achieved through our struggles and a myriad of experimentation.

Here, I want to take this opportunity to thank our lovely audience again on behalf of the entire theatre class, for supporting us and for giving our small production a chance!

Jenna Weng - Year 10

WALK A MILE IN MY 'CERAMIC' SHOES

The Year 7 students recently held a 'mini exhibition' in the Library to display their ceramic creations. The purpose of the exhibition was for their multi-coloured, multi-styled ceramic shoes to represent the many and varied paths the students walk in life. Viewers were challenged to see if they could match the students quote with a specific shoe. Well done year 7 students, amazing creativity.

Marina Heading - Head of Creative Arts

YEAR 7s 'PASSION PROJECTS'

A Project with Purpose

We are created in the image of our Creator God. He has gifted us for a purpose – to live for and serve Him. But the adventure of life can be hard and it’s important to build resilience along the way. God’s Word can equip us for every good work, so we look to Jesus to help us. How can we do good work? How can we shine for Him? We MUST walk with Him!

So, this Passion Project supports students to travel through a process, to find their SPARK – the something that they love and that God has placed in their life to bring joy and confidence - soccer, archery, birds, playing, a love of the Bible, music, interior design, fighting for a cause. This is their island of confidence, discovered through art. Students journal the process in their visual diary. They consider a mentor artist and a way of being creative to express their passion. Along the way they struggle, resist, fail and overcome. They trial, develop and hone creative skills, then work to a timeline. The result is a visual diary full of exploration, annotation and personal journeying.

The artwork and objects you see throughout the year are the students' expression of this theme.

Some Project Titles:

Never Look Back, Laugh, Be Brave, Play, Save the Turtles, Fight the Good Fight, Wonder.

Some Materials Used:

Timber, balsa, clay, ModRoc plaster, wire, plastic, paper clay, textile, pencil, acrylic paint, oil paint, glass, found objects, tennis balls, iPads, leather, live plants, felt, beading, cameras, spray paint & many more!

Some Processes/Techniques Used:

Sewing, drawing, digital art, ceramics, painting, woodwork, embroidery, jewelry-making, armature, sculpture, photography.

Marina Heading - Head of Creative Arts