Music Matters
In this edition of Music Matters, we're excited to discuss:
- Summer Music Concert Date
- Rehearsals
- Valedictory and awards night performances
- Rock Band lunchtime gigs
Summer Music Concert Date
'Fresh Out Of Lockdown'
WE HAVE A DATE! Please save the date:
7th December at 7pm
in the Performance Centre
We are hoping to be able to include a live audience but either way we will have a live performance on stage in the Performance Centre that will be streamed for anyone who can’t be there. We can’t wait to show off all the great things students have been doing since returning to onsite rehearsals.
Rehearsals
All ensembles are back into full rehearsals onsite and the sounds have been fantastic. Congratulations to all the students for the great attendances and playing so well after such a long time away. We can’t wait for you to show off all your hard work on the 7th December. Well done!
Valedictory and Awards Ceremonies
Rehearsals are also underway for all the different ensembles involved in the Valedictory Ceremony on Friday the 19th November. All our VCE Music students will be performing in their groups in a wide range of music styles from Jazz to Funk to Soul to 80’s Dance Music!
Groups from all year levels are also preparing to perform at the Middle School and Senior Awards afternoons. The Senior School Awards ceremony will be held on the Music Centre stage outdoors on the 2nd December from 3:45pm.
All performances will be live streamed through the school’s new high tech streaming system.
Rock Band Lunchtime Concerts
Our Rock Band Program students are back in full rehearsals also and are preparing to perform on the Music Centre outdoor stage at lunchtimes over the final weeks of term. We will also video these performances and make them available through the newsletter.
Year 7 Orientation and Music Try Outs
Our scheduled Music information night scheduled for the 23rd November will now be recorded as a video and released in the coming weeks. Parents and students will then have the chance to meet our instrumental team and hear the instruments being played at the Orientation Evening on the 1st December. We will have live performances by school ensembles and students will be able to ask any questions about the instruments we offer and the program we run. Students will also get to see our ensembles perform on Orientation Day on the 7th December.
Nick Dean
Music Coordinator
Player Profile
At Doncaster Secondary College, we have some amazingly talented musicians in our mix and the Music department would like to showcase our performers through a regular Player Profile newsletter segment. In this edition, I'd like to introduce our readers to Gabriella Milonas.
Joshua Verco
Instrumental Music Instructor
Gabriella Milonas, Year 12
Hey Gabriella. What instruments do you play?
Hi! I sing, and I am doing Vocal contemporary for VCE Music Unit 3/4.
Any cool nicknames at school?
Gabby is a nickname but some people like to call me Gabs
When did you start learning to play music?
I started singing when I was young, but started getting singing lessons in primary school, before joining the Australian Girls Choir and learning more about singing.
What school ensembles do you play in?
I sing in the schools Senior Rock band, which joined together for the ‘Grease is the word’ Musical, and has stayed together since.
Who is your instrumental music teacher/s at Doncaster SC?
I don’t have a music teacher at school, but I like to think that if I did, Mrs Howes would be an excellent singing teacher, and almost is already with all the amazing feedback she gives me.
What is your favourite song or genre to play?
I love singing contemporary songs, but I am open to a lot of genres, and enjoy singing the occasional gospel or Disney genre.
What bands or musicians do you like to listen to or have influence you a lot?
I love listening to OneOkRock, which is a Japanese band, but Adele was a big influence in my primary school years.
What is your most memorable performance to date?
My performance exam that I just recently did was, although it sounds strange as it was an exam, was my favourite and most memorable performance that I’ve ever done. I was super stoked with the performance, and couldn’t have done it without the advice of my singing teacher, Anna Gilkinson, and my guitar accompanist, Luke Barson.
What is your most memorable musical learning experience?
My most memorable music learning experience would have to be between my weekly singing lessons with my singing teacher, who also loves to give me impromptu musical knowledge that I love and find extremely helpful, and my class time with Mrs Howes and my friends, who have all helped and supported me through music this year as I didn’t do year 11 music. So it was a bit of a jump that was definitely made easier through their jokes, advice and kind words.
What non-musical hobbies or interests do you have?
I love reading and you can often find me reading, but I have picked up crocheting recently. I love making stuff for my family, whether it be a daffodil for my mum, a mini whale for my dad, or a bee or jellyfish for my sisters. I also love playing with all my animals, and especially my three cats who love to make my life more difficult, but make it worthwhile anyways
What do you hope to achieve with your music in the future?
I would love to continue playing music with the band that Oscar, Bernard, Elina and I have formed, called ‘The Pretzels,’ which was formed after an amazing visit to Top Acts 2020.
What is your favourite food to eat?
My favourite food to eat is anything my Yia Yia makes me, but I do especially love her pistachio and chips, which more often than not come from our garden, fresh to be cooked.
What is the silliest thing you’ve ever said, done or worn (Chicken Suit?)?
When I was younger, I was playing Golf in the backyard with my two sisters. My eldest sister, Bella, hit the golf ball so hard that it bounced off of the pool gate and straight into my face. Playing golf as a child in a backyard was probably a very silly idea!
Thank you for sharing your journey into music with us, Gabriella!