McKinnonNEWS

PERFORMING ARTS

GENERAL ASSEMBLY

Congratulations to the Senior Singers who performed magnificently at the General Assembly on Tuesday 15 March. It was lovely to hear the vibrancy in their tone as they performed “Ain’t No Mountain High Enough” after singing the National Anthem. Thank you to Ms Blanka West for her work and direction with these students.

MTC AMBASSADOR

Congratulations to Seffra Tienstra (Year 11), who has been accepted into the highly competitive Ambassadors Program for 2022 at Melbourne Theatre Company. Seffra will be visiting MTC throughout the year with other Year 11 students from all over Victoria. They will see the 2022 season of shows, meet creatives and get to tour behind-the-scenes in performance, rehearsal and design spaces. We can't wait to hear more about her experience. 

HOUSE MUSIC FESTIVAL

The House Music Festival took place periods 5 & 6 on Tuesday 22 March in the School Hall in front of the Year 7 students, and was recorded and released to participants, friends and family in the evening. This has been the major focus of the students throughout this term, with rehearsals taking place before school, after school and during lunchtime every day since the beginning of February. The level of support for the students was amazing, as was the standard. Thank you to our judge Ms Lisa Maxwell-Cripps for her amazing and enthusiastic support of the students and their work.

A huge thank you to Ms Katarina Vrisk for her fantastic organisation of this event, who with the support of Mrs Theresa Ford, created an extraordinary show. Thank you to Mr Nick Xanthoudakis and his fantastic team who coordinated the Audio Visual and filming of the event. 

Congratulations to all the House Captains for their amazing work throughout the term and through the show. Whilst there could only be one winner, we are incredibly impressed with the standard that was brought to the show. 

 

Congratulations to MONASH for their incredible win for 2022.

YEAR 7 BAND

On Tuesday 8 March, the two band classes were joined by guest speaker Ellie Lambert, a professional musician and music educator, who led a discussion on the ‘why’ and ‘how’ of effective practice. Most Year 7 Band students have now started lessons on their instruments and are getting ready to play together for the first time on Tuesday 15 March. This session proved to be timely for the beginner musicians.

Why do musicians practise? Mainly to embed neural pathways – well-used tracks in the brain – to send messages to the body which will effectively translate notes on the page into musical sounds. As students have only one lesson and one band class per week, practice between lessons is essential so they remember the skills and information taught in each lesson and absorb them fully in preparation for the next class.

 

Students learned Ellie’s definition of practice – “repetition of the task with the goal of improvement” – and strategies for practising successfully. 

 

These included:

  • Chunk – break your music down into small, separate parts and get each part working before re-assembling the whole piece
  • Loop – repeat each passage multiple times
  • Practising often for short periods of time makes it easier to maintain both mental focus and correct technique
  • Practising music slowly at first and getting it right is more effective than playing it fast and getting it wrong
  • Decide on a practice zone at home where you can concentrate. Avoid having distractions such as phones with you.
  • Try setting a timer for the period of time you have decided to practise.

The students did a great job of putting these concepts to use with several rhythmic and vocal activities. We wish them well as they start their journey of playing together.

REMINDERS

All instrumental students are reminded to take their instruments home with them after their lessons so they can work on improving their musical skills!

ENSEMBLES

Students who are learning an instrument at the school are required to be part of the core ensemble program, and again being part of the instrumental program is dependent on commitment and attendance at ensembles.

 

These ensembles are an integral part of the music program, where students can apply the musical skills that they have covered in their individual or small group lessons. All ensembles have now started rehearsing. If students are unable to attend the rehearsal, this needs to be communicated with the ensemble director before the rehearsal takes place.

 

Core ensembles days and times

 

Main campus (Auditorium) 

  • Wind Symphony - Tuesday after school (3:30 - 5pm) 
  • Choir (vocal students 10-12) - Thursday lunchtime
  • Orchestra - Thursday after school (3:30 - 5pm)

East campus (VG.1) (to start week beginning Monday 14 February)

  • East Campus Choir (Vocal students Years 8 - 9) Monday lunchtime
  • Keenan Strings - Monday after school (3:30 - 4.30pm)
  • Ovenden Band - Wednesday after school (3:30 - 4.30pm)

All other ensembles are by invitation and/or audition only, and dependent on ongoing commitment to the core ensemble.

CLUBS

Guitar and Digital Club have now started at both campuses. We look forward to working with students to develop their skills either on guitar or in electronic music at lunchtime.

 

Drama club has started at the East Campus - Friday lunchtimes in VG.2.

 

Megan Papworth

Performing Arts Manager