Music

ManUp!

Big Band 1 will perform at the annual ManUp! fundraiser this Saturday, 24 August 2024, at the Emporium Hotel. Man Up has had a long association with Churchie and presents a valuable opportunity for our musicians to live out the tenet of Service by giving back to a worthy cause. For more information, please click on the following link:

Senior Farewell

After an extraordinary year for the 2024 Year 12 cohort, it is time to farewell them at this year’s Senior Farewell. This event is also an opportunity for the entire Music Community to celebrate the 2023/24 Music Season. The evening will begin at 6 pm in Magnus Quad with performances from Senior Voices, Viking Vocals 1, Big Band 1 and Chamber Strings 1. Following this, celebrations will continue inside Morris Hall with a year-in-review video and a combined performance by Morris Wind Symphony, Symphony Orchestra and Senior Voices. Please click on the following link to purchase tickets, which include refreshments. All attendees are required to purchase a ticket and drinks will also be available on the night:

Cost: $15 per person
Closing date: 3 September 2024

Gala

The 2024 Gala took the event to a new level with captivating visuals, costumes, dramatic battles and the most spectacular finale to date. Beginning with stalls and markets in Founders Court, the audience was greeted with a drink on arrival and enjoyed pre-show entertainment from Eagle Guitars, Sax Quartet, Percussion Ensemble and Twisted Metal.

The formal proceedings began with special effects transforming Magnus Quad into a scene from Dune, featuring our school marshals, with references to Interstellar that highlighted our music captains. A lightsaber battle between Guy Gorwood (Year 12) and Thomas Dwyer (Year 12) down the centre aisle set the perfect atmosphere for the MC script to begin. Concert Band challenged themselves with a Star Wars medley conducted by Mr Davison using a lightsaber as his baton. Jensen Winds featured a tribute to space and time with an exciting new work, entitled Cosmos. Churchie Guitars added special effects using spoons in their arrangement the Doctor Who theme by Mr Neville. Churchie Strings shocked the audience with screaming and growling in their zombie apocalypse space tribute Curse of the Rosin Eating Zombies. Chamber Strings 1 stole the show with their comment on the seasons of time, performing October by Eric Whitacre and Vivaldi’s‘Winter’, featuring an extraordinary solo by lead violinist Eric Kim (Year 11). Chamber Strings 2 impressed with a stunning rendition of Lotus by Yukiko Nishimura, expressing the time theme beautifully.

Senior Voices moved in sync and in costume to the dark and eerie theme of Halo, before breaking into David Bowie’s ‘Space Oddity’. It was wonderful to hear the full chorus, with many enthusiastic Year 7s joining the group in 2024—keep up the great work, Senior Voices. Morris Wind Symphony followed a cameo MC introduction from Back to The Future’s ‘Doc Brown’ with a rendition of the Back to the Future theme. The highlight of their set was Noad D Taylor’s Interstellar, featuring oscillating time signatures, Lydian tonalities and the use of the octatonic scale. Symphony Orchestra delivered perhaps their best performance of Holst’s ‘Jupiter’ from The Planets, with carefully negotiated transitions under the baton of Mr Hooper.

Finally, Senior Voices, Morris Winds and Symphony Orchestra combined to perform an arrangement of Hans Zimmer’s Interstellar theme. Every one of the 130 members played under sconce lights reminiscent of stars before a credit roll in the style of Star Wars closed out the night on the big screen. An enormous and heartfelt thank you to all the parents, students and staff who made the night such a success, particularly Ms Oxenford for her creative direction and tireless video editing and production. Please take some time to view the programme, video, photos and recordings below:

Opening films

Recordings

Headmaster’s Assembly combined Gala item

A massed ensemble performed at the Headmaster’s Assembly, providing a taste of what was to come at the Gala. The ensemble demonstrated great discipline in preparing the orchestration within a short rehearsal on the morning of the assembly and the result speaks for itself. Please follow this link to a recording of the combined ensemble at Headmaster’s Assembly:

It’s a public link, so feel free to share it with the ensemble members.

Auditions

Audition music for 2025 ensembles is now available on myChurchie. Please take the time to consult your tutor about the best excerpt to perform and the best selection for your own choice. You may wish to use your soiree piece and dedicate your time to perfecting the excerpt. Your tutor will also be able to assist you with any other questions about the process. Upload recordings are due by the end of Week 7 to allow for new ensembles to begin in Term 4, 2024. If you are successful in your audition for a premier ensemble, you will be expected to attend Music Camp from 18 to 20 October 2024, so please save the date. For more information on the cocurricular selections for 2025, please follow the link:

Musicfest

Congratulations to Viking Vocals 1, Concert Band and Jensen Winds on their recent success at Musicfest. Viking Vocals were awarded a Gold Award after an outstanding performance at Brisbane State High School. The group demonstrated versatility by performing a set piece in a more regal style than their usual jazz acapella, which reflects their commitment to learning and openness to all musical genres.

Concert Band also received a Gold Award, their first ever, in what was a very challenging session with Dr McWilliams from Yamaha, who held the standards of the criteria to account. He was particularly impressed with the group’s articulation, precisely delivering note durations and volumes with a balanced ensemble approach—well done, Concert Band!

Jensen Wind Symphony received a Silver Award after delivering an amazing performance of Lord of the Rings, followed by a challenging set piece. The adjudicator was particularly complimentary of the full ensemble sound and instrumentation, which created all the colourful sounds of the orchestration. It was an incredibly fine line between silver and gold, as is often the case at an adjudicated event.

All the ensembles gleaned much from the adjudication and the opportunity to improve in 2025 is certainly not lost on the ensembles and their conductors.

Bohdan Davison
Director of Music