Arts

A Fond Farewell

It is with a heavy heart that I announce that this will be my last article for Insight as I am retiring at the end of this year.

I have had a long and immensely satisfying career at Haileybury. The School is a very different place from when I started in 1982 but the constant during this time has been the wonderful students and dedicated colleagues with whom I have had the privilege to work over the years.

There have been many memorable productions, of course, but it is impossible to name favourites. The one thing they all have in common is a desire to improve on the last. I am very proud that my last show was Leader of the Pack which embodied everything I have aspired to over the years.

My replacement as Head of Drama and Theatre Studies will be Mr Nick Waxman who is a very experienced leader and teacher from Eltham College. He is joining us in a busy term with three senior productions—the School Play, the Year 10 Play and the City Senior Play—all being cast in the next three weeks. I will leave the announcement of these plays to him in the next newsletter.

I am looking forward to sitting in the audience in 2022.

Finally, a warm welcome to Mr Rod Marshall as the new Director of Performing Arts.

Stewart Bell

Director of Performing Arts

Music

Speech Night Preparations

As we head towards the end of the school year, all large ensembles have resumed rehearsals across all year levels. It was most pleasing to hear several ensemble conductors report that students were clearly enthused about returning to rehearsal with their peers and friends.

It was also interesting to hear ensemble leaders say that most students came back to ensemble post Lockdown 6.0 with improved technical ability. Students have clearly been practising at home during remote learning.

Last week and this week, Middle School large ensembles across all Melbourne sites have been rehearsing and recording music for our upcoming Speech Nights. Chamber Strings, Choir and Concert Band will be professionally video-recorded for the 2021 Speech Nights.

Senior School rehearsals are full steam ahead in preparation for a live audience in Aikman Hall. Groups set to perform at Senior School Speech Night include: the Senior String Orchestra, featuring VCE Music Performance student Lucas Lee (Year 12) the Stage Band, with Music Investigation student Zuva Goverwa (Year 12) and a VCE Investigation/Performance piece, featuring Olivia Van Der Heyden (Year 12) Harry Marshall (Year 11) Tommy Caspers (Year 10) and Marcus Beyer (Year 9).

An Aria Night item will be performed by vocalist Alex Hawkins (Year 12) and a VCE Music Performance item will showcase the talents of Addison Law (Year 12) Tim Peatman, (Year 12) India Buntman-Bryant (Year 11) Daragh Rodrigues (Year 10) and Nick Petersen (Year 10).

It will be a highlight of my school year to hear these amazing young musicians perform live in concert on Friday, 3 December.

Makeover of the Chapel Pipe Organ

Throughout Term 3 the Pipe Organ in the David Bradshaw Chapel, at Keysborough

has been undergoing a significant overhaul. As part of the work, the organ façade has been repaired to better reflect the quality of the fittings and artwork located in the Chapel.

Of course, the upgrade to the organ is not just cosmetic. A full rebuild and maintenance has taken place on the incredible 1,800-plus pipes housed inside this impressive instrument.