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NEWSLETTER May 2013

MUSIC NEWSLETTER P1

We certainly chose a beautiful day to visit the Southbank for a truly inspiring concert. Spring was definitely in the air, and the sun shone as we caught the train to London Waterloo. We were off to a lunchtime con-cert in the Royal Festival Hall to hear music composed by Steve Reich, widely renowned as ‘the most influential composer of the 20th century’. Sixth form students study his work ‘New York Counterpoint’ as part of their study of set works, so it was a very rare opportunity to hear this work played live. The concert was also extreme-ly informative about Reich’s compositional style and fea-tured some of his most acces-sible music, such as Electric Counterpoint and Clapping Music.

The highlight for us all was at the end of the concert when Steve Reich himself made a surprise appearance on the stage, and spoke very mov-ingly to the students – a timely reminder that not all great composers have to be dead for 100 years before they are ap-preciated!

Repeating Patterns Concert: London Southbank Centre

After many hours of rehearsal and a few sleepless nights for Mrs Gawley, the production of Grease went on for two nights at the end of the Easter term. Full article on page 2.

Grease!

Playing at Wentworth Golf Club is becoming somewhat of a regular occurrence for the Pipes and Drums. However, because each time we visit there are slightly different requirements we always arrive nice and early to walk through the performance. We are also pretty familiar with the changing rooms, with the Pipers find-ing the tiled acoustic of the shower area par-ticularly conducive to tuning their pipes!

This time we were playing for the start of the GSA May Ball, which was very apt, as we had travelled to the venue in one of the brand new minibuses complete with luggage area for all the Pipe and Drum boxes.

Matthew Wickes piped in the guests in their fin-ery, before a select group of Pipers and Drum-mers performed a set in the Ballroom, includ-ing a new ‘Latin American’ inspired section of Drummers’ Beating.

Pipes and Drums perform at the GSA May Ball

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P2 MUSIC NEWSLETTER music@gordons.surrey.sch.uk MAY 2013

It is always an exciting yet stressful time in the lead up to any school production, but a musical is more demanding than most. Everyone gets a little uptight on the day, as the Band meet for the first time. For the actors, this will be the first time during the six month rehearsal period that they get to hear what the music sounds like properly. The musicians have to take what it says on the page and learn to listen to how the actors actually sing it, which can be a different interpretation entirely! We were blessed, as al-ways, to have a top team of musicians including Mrs O’Brien our saxophone teacher, Mr Argyle our guitar teacher and Mr Wheeler our drum teacher leading the way with Mrs Walker on pi-ano. Also in the Band were year 11 pupils Tom Hawkins-Jones (guitar), Tom Miller (bass) and Jaz Moss (saxophone). They rose to the chal-lenge of a semi-professional gig and were real troopers throughout.Sammy Parmenter, win-

ner of the logo competi-tion run earlier in the year, has got used to seeing his logo around the music department on workbooks and let-ters etc. However he is now the proud owner of one of the T shirts specially produced for the Show Choir display-ing his logo on the front and back.

Grease! Logo goes LIVE!

Show ChoirThe Show Choir once again made it through to the finals of the Surrey Show Competition on 1st March at Dorking Halls. It was fun to be back at such a friendly competition and also interesting to see how schools had developed their entries from previous years. We were feeling quietly confident that our performance was better than the previ-ous year; not only did we have a better uniform but also a new coach in the form of Mrs Heath-cote, who gave us some more challenging rep-ertoire and choreography. Our two pieces were ‘We Go Together’ from Grease and ‘Shadowlands’ from the Lion King. We had a thirty minute slot for rehearsals on the stage, and then a nervous wait before the performances at 7.30pm.

Gordon’s gave a fabulous performance, full of en-ergy and some daring lifts undertaken very pro-fessionally by Dan Jackson, Michael Broom, Alex Coppola and Erin King. The judges commented on how well we had delivered a very challenging repertoire. For the second year we were closely

pipped to the title by All Hallows School and The Beacon School, who both gave amazing perfor-mances, and we all enjoyed the audience voting for the eventual winner. The Show Choir are now preparing for the Expressive Arts Evening on July 4th. If your child would like to be involved in the next performance please contact music@gor-dons.surrey.sch.uk.

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MAY 2013 music@gordons.surrey.sch.uk MUSIC NEWSLETTER P3

Following a very successful collaboration with Char-ters School in Sunningdale last term, it was our turn to host the year 12 and 13 students this term, when they came to share in a composition workshop. Pupils emailed their work to us and we used the op-portunity to share experi-ences and do some peer assessment of the stu-dents’ work. The pupils all gave very positive feed-back and felt it had been a very useful experience.

The Jazz Ensemble gave its first public performance in the Rec on Wednesday 8th May. The students played a series of six jazz numbers to a thoroughly entertained audience of teachers and fellow students. Led by their tutor and jazz professional Rhys Clark, the pupils played a fabu-lous set of numbers including ‘The Chicken’, ‘Cantaloupe Island’ and ‘Mr P.C.’ The Band has worked hard to develop different styles of playing from cool jazz to funk. Congratu-lations to the players: Tom Miller (bass), Tom Hawkins-Jones (guitar), Jaz Moss (sax), Cody Moss (piano), Sam Bucknall (drums), Harrison Prince (guitar) and Zoe Taylor (vo-cals). Any pupils who have been inspired by their performance are welcome to come along and have a listen to a rehearsal during period 6 every Wednesday in the Music Centre.

Jazz Ensemble Charters Composition Afternoon

Coming up in July we have our Annual Showcase evening. This should be a special evening of collabo-ration between the art, music and drama depart-ments. From the Music side, we will showcase the Jazz Ensemble, Concert Band, Show Choir and a selection of soloists.

Expressive Arts Evening

Spotlight on... Jaz Moss!

Jaz got into music at a young age when he attended an open afternoon held by the Surrey Arts where pupils were able to try different instruments. It was during this afternoon that he was particularly drawn to the saxophone and he hasn’t looked back since.

During Jaz’s time at Gordon’s he has especially enjoyed playing a part in the Jazz Band where he can encourage younger pupils in the school to experience a variety of styles from Jazz to Funk music .

Over the last two years Jaz has launched himself as a solo artist, playing at parties, weddings and events. The exciting news this year is that Jaz has already ex-perienced through requests from pro-musicians to play on the full-time music circuit in London. He also plays lead tenor saxophone for the National Jazz Youth Or-chestra Academy big band which involves rehearsing every Saturday in London and performing at a variety of venues throughout the year.

In September, Jaz will be taking up his place at The Purcell Music School, Britain’s oldest specialist music school, based in Bushey near Watford where he has gained a full scholarship for the next 2 years. Jaz is very excited about his time at Purcell as this will give him the opportunity to devote the necessary time needed to propel him to a playing level that will hopefully lead him to The Royal Academy of Music and leading the life of a professional musician .

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music@gordons.surrey.sch.uk MAY 2013P4 MUSIC NEWSLETTER

Chamber Music Day

Continuing our link with the Menuhin School in Cobham, we took six string and piano players to take part in their Chamber Music Day on 10th March. This was an Exeat weekend, so we commend the efforts that our boarders took to give up a day and get themselves back to school under their own steam. Mrs Dalrymple writes... ’The string group students were very excited at the prospect of visiting the prestigious Yehudi Menhuin Music School. There was an or-chestral introduction followed by coaching on the Tango piece we had been rehearsing during which some very creative ideas were shared. After lunch we observed a workshop with some extremely talented students of the school followed by an amazing concert

which inspired us all! It was a very special day in stunning surroundings which the string group members really enjoyed and all of us returned home with new ideas and a sense of achievement. I was proud to repre-sent the Gordon’s School Music department with such a dedicated group of students.’

Primary Liaison We are delighted that again this year the Year 6 pupils from Holy Trinity Primary will be joining us for some Music tuition. We will be focussing on the use of Fanfares in Music, which we tie into the use of Fanfares at our Parade Sundays. We have also used the opportunity to fund a brass workshop at Holy Trinity School run by our brass teacher Tony Adie.

We are delighted to an-nounce that starting next term, any pupil, who participates in an extra-curricular activity for the Music Department will be able to earn accredi-tation for that participa-tion through the Arts Award. Run by Trinity College London, the Arts Award is a nationally rec-ognised award designed to encourage young peo-ple to take part in the Arts. Although this will initially be championed by the Music Depart-ment, pupils can use evi-dence from all art forms including music, dance, drama, sculpture, paint-ing and drawing etc. We will approach pupils who we think may qualify for this award early in the Autumn term. If your child is interested and they don’t receive an in-vitation please contact the Music department.

Arts AwardMr Wadey writes... On Tuesday 26th February, Mrs. Brazendale took a group of music students from Years 10, 11 and 12 to a concert at The Menuhin Centre, which is an International centre of excel-lence, for stringed instruments in particular.

The event turned out to be an evening of musical excellence. The Concert consisted of young stu-dents from the Centre, all of whom were accomplished and especially talented. The evening was full of virtuoso performances such as the first piece which was a violin solo. We were all surprised at the competence of the violinist as she was only eleven years old. Another outstanding piece was a full ensemble work com-posed and led by a fourteen year old student on guitar.

We sat on the balcony and were therefore able to look down at the artistes. Watching them play with such dedicated intensity and skill was an inspiration. It is probable that ten years hence, some of the musicians we saw, with their precocious talent, will become artistes of International renown.

This was a very successful Gordon’s visit enjoyed by all.

Menuhin Showcase Concert

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MAY 2013 music@gordons.surrey.sch.uk MUSIC NEWSLETTER P5

Enrichment WeekThis year we are looking forward to working with the Music Workshop Company to deliver three workshops to Year 9 pupils based on World Mu-sic. Over the course of a day, pupils will have an opportunity to sample playing in a Samba Band, African Djembe drumming and a Junk Percus-sion Workshop. The workshops will take place in the last week of term and will be a great opportunity for the pupils to work off any stress while the rest of us wander round with ear-plugs in!Year 9 boys taking part in the Djembe workshop in 2012

Gordon Singers ConcertThe Gordon’s Singers next concert will be on Friday 7th June (entry by ticket only). They will be singing Schubert’s Mass in G, Haydn’s ‘The Heavens are Telling’ and a medley from Les Miserables. The concerts are always extremely well attended and add a wonderful dimen-sion to our already very full calendar of events during the year. Good luck to all the perform-ers!

Our February Informal Con-cert was carefully timed to coincide with the last few weeks of exam preparation for the ABRSM and LCM exam sessions, so it was no great surprise that many performers were putting finishing touches to their pieces. In addition, Year 10 GCSE Music students have been working on their solo performances, so Charlie Barrett, Freddie Tilbrook, Lawrence Semper-White, Annie Rose and Rebecca Luke all took to the stage.

As always it was lovely to welcome to the stage those for whom this was their first solo performance at Gor-don’s, including Amy Kaye (Vocals - Make Me Feel Your Love) and Erin King (Vocals - Naughty from Matilda the Musical).

A lovely touch in this con-cert was to have two original compositions by students. Rhaea Lee premiered her song for voice and piano ‘Defiance’ whilst Connor Bodkin played his piano piece ‘Untitled’ inspired by the music of Debussy.

Informal Concert

It was with great delight that we heard that one of our pupils, Sophie Armitt would be singing for the Countess of Wessex. Sophie Armitt writes...’On Thursday 9th May, I met Sophie, Countess of Wessex, as my Church Parish Choir at Bisley Church were performing for her in celebration of the opening of the Cooper Room. We sang ‘Gloria’ to her and after we had performed we all got to meet her. She came up to the whole choir and we were all introduced. She shook our hands. Once she had been introduced she went and has look at the Cooper Room. Overall the day was an amazing experi-ence and something I will always remember.’

Gordon’s Student Sings for the Countess of Wessex

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music@gordons.surrey.sch.uk MAY 2013P6 MUSIC NEWSLETTER

The Spring term has been an exceptionally busy term of exams and we have had some phenomenal exam re-sults from the pupils: These results are testament to the pupils’ hard work, commit-ment and dedication.

Fri 10th MayPipes & Drums perform at

the GSA May Ball

Sat 18th MayPipes & Drums perform at Holy Trinity Primary May

Fayre

Fri 7th JuneGordon Singers’ Summer

Concert

Fri 7th JunePipes & Drums perform at the Caledonian Club,

London

Fri 21st JunePipes & Drums Beating

Retreat

Sat 22nd JunePipes & Drums perform for the Flag Raising Ceremony to mark the start of Armed

Forced Week, Kingston Upon Thames

Sat 29th JuneAnnual Parade and Prize

Giving

Thu 4th JulyExpressive Arts Evening

Tue 9th JulyMusic Enrichment Day

Dates for this Term

CHARLOTTE BARRETT PIANO Grade 2 PassYEE CHING CHEUNG PIANO Grade 5 PassZARA CRACROFT CLARINET Grade 4 MeritHANNAH FRANCIS PIANO Grade 3 PassHANNAH HAILU VIOLIN Grade 4 DistinctionPRISCILLA HO PIANO Grade 8 PassKRISTIN ROONEY PIANO Grade 5 PassABIGAIL SHUM VIOLIN Grade 7 PassBETHANY SHUM PIANO Grade 6 PassELOISE YOUNG VIOLIN Grade 5 DistinctionWILL HOPKINS PIANO Grade 5 DistinctionJOSEPHINE HEATH SINGING Grade 6 PassELIZABETH NOWELL PIANO Prep Test Pass

Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music

Alex Duke Merit Grade 2Nour Mansour Merit Grade 4Shona Henderson Distinction Grade 4Bella Klukow-Sellars Merit Grade 3Cherrie Lee Distinction Grade 8Annie Rose Merit Grade 3Milly Putley Merit Grade 6Victoria Howard Distinction Grade 6Katie Beet Distinction Grade 3Poppy Colloff Distinction Grade 3Bethany Anning Pass Grade 3Erin King Distinction Grade 3Mary Crew Distinction Grade 8Caroline Gower Distinction Grade 8Helen Thomas Distinction Grade 8Zoe Taylor Distinction Grade 8Pippa Boorman Distinction Grade 8Katy Russell Distinction Grade 8Oli Joseph Distinction Grade 8

London College of Music

Exam Results

Harrison Francis Grade 1 Drums MeritNick Peirson-Smith Grade 1 Drums DistinctionChristopher Thurgood Grade 2 Drums Distinction

Trinity Guildhall

Rockschool

Olivia Sharma Grade 2

After ten years dedicated service to the department, Mrs Walker has de-cided it is time to take a break from the classroom. She will be retiring from teaching, although she will still be seen around as she will take over the role of our Administrative Assistant.

Stepping in to take over from Mrs Walk-er will be Mrs Blain. Mrs Blain is mov-ing from Derbyshire to take up the post in September. She will primarily be in charge of all aspects of extra-curricular Music in the school so do come and speak to her as she is very keen to hear pupils’ views on activities already run at the school.

Changes in the Department

Vocals Merit