Diana Springford – Head of Music

Private Tuition and Infant Strings Program

Links to online forms for Term 4 enrolments and discontinuations

New enrolment requests for private tuition
To discontinue private tuition
To enrol into the Infant Strings Program (ISP)
To discontinue Infant Strings Program (ISP)

Thank you to those who have already advised us of changes to private tuition and Infant Strings Program enrolments for next term. The deadline for new enrolments, notification of changes or intention to discontinue for Term 4 is today. All students currently receiving private music tuition and ISP will be automatically re-enrolled into tutor schedules for next term along with students commencing lessons for the first time. If your child intends to discontinue, please act swiftly to provide formal notification in advance to avoid being committed to the full term of lessons and liable for fees.

Please contact Matilda Grieve: music@emanuelschool.nsw.edu.au if you have any questions about private music tuition.

The schedules for Term 4, 2020 will be created at the end of term and emailed in October. 

Burger Centre and Montefiore Home concert 

Last week a number of our ensembles and choirs took advantage of that brief window in which they could rehearse together to present small performances for the camera. Ben Marshall visited them in rehearsal and took some lovely ‘in rehearsal’ footage of them to present as a streamed concert for our community members who are residents of or visitors at the Burger Centre and the Montefiore Home. The audience was very appreciative, and the concert is now available for parents to watch via the ‘Music Performances’ button on our Parent Portal. Congratulations and thank you to Ben Marshall, to Kira Friedman who edited the footage into a coherent presentation, to Adam Carpenter who initiated and coordinated the event, to Michelle Favero for support and to the following ensemble members and their leaders who took part:

• Junior Chamber Choir – Alice Girle 
• Chamber Trio –  Shaun Warden
• Senior Choir – Daniel Burley
• Junior Jazz Combo – Marty Farrugia
• Advanced Jazz Ensemble –  George Nikolopoulos
• Mendelssohn Chamber Strings –  Leo Novikov

Elizabeth Birrell is leaving us at the end of Term 3

We are sad to announce that Ms Birrell is leaving us at the end of Term 3. She has been offered a very rare opportunity in Primary School boarding at Tutor House in Moss Vale. This is sad for us, but we know this is an opportunity she has been hoping for and will relish and we congratulate her and wish her well. We will miss her beautiful voice, her care for her students, and her fabulous sense of style.

Sarit Michael will be joining us for Term 4

We are very happy that Primary Hebrew will share Morah Sarit with us for Term 4. Thank you! We know her to be a wonderful musician and lovely person who already knows our students very well. She will be teaching Music for P – 6 in Term 4, in addition to her usual Hebrew role. 

MUSIC and COVID

No doubt you have heard that we are no longer allowed to sing together, or play wind instruments together, and we can no longer rehearse in groups that have musicians from different stage groups. This, shall we say, has been very inhibiting for our program and has put spanners in the work of private instrumental lessons, IP, and our ensembles and choirs. We might go into semi-hibernation!

Fortunately, we have a very supportive School and we have some imaginative tutors and conductors, so our hibernation need not be total!

• The School has purchased some fabulous Perspex screens which will allow our singing and wind instrument lessons to proceed. Masks on the people who are not playing or singing add an extra element of protection.
• Our IP tutors are developing some wonderful lesson plans to upskill our young musicians on their rhythm and notation reading, to develop their listening skills, and to get to know how their instrument is used in all sorts of genres of music. We can quite honestly interpret the prohibition on playing together as an opportunity to take time to learn more about notation and listening. With Perspex screens in IP, we can also do masterclass style lessons to keep our attention on instrumental learning.
• Some of our choirs and ensembles are impossible to run ‘as normal’ and have been cancelled, although others are still running and have been modified, with vocalists playing instruments or percussion or rehearsing in different combinations of musicians. Here is an explanation of what each ensemble is doing and members can also expect communication from myself and/or the ensemble conductor. 

Please remember:

• Playing and singing at home is so important. Keep your body, mind and fingers in the game of music – don’t let these skills atrophy!
• Listening is an important part of music learning – take time to get to know your instrument and voice type “from the outside”. For many of us, the music we play on our instrument is totally different to the music we listen to. For example, I listen to Joni Mitchell, but I play the bass clarinet to de-stress (and get better at the bass clarinet). Make a playlist that includes your instrument or voice type used in many different genres – classical, jazz, pop, film, folk music….