Melbourne School Bands Festival Monday August 9th - Sunday August 21st 2010 Robert Blackwood Concert Hall Monash University, Clayton, VIC Click here for more information Melbourne School Strings Festival Thursday August 5th - Sunday August 8th 2010 Robert Blackwood Concert Hall Monash University, Clayton, VIC Click here for more information

View the 2010 Festival Program online

View live streaming of performances

2010 Festival ticket information

Photo courtesy of John Travers Photography

General Information

BILLY HYDE MUSIC FOUNDATION
The Billy Hyde Music Foundation (formerly the Music Junction Blackburn Foundation) was established in 1998 with the following objectives:

• to support instrumental music education for Australian school students
• to help students have the opportunity to both learn and perform music
• to help create the opportunity for students to experience playing in a musical team (band, ensemble, choir or orchestra)

The Foundation produces two festivals that contribute to the achievement of the objectives.

The Melbourne School Bands Festival (MSBF)
The MSBF is one the nation’s biggest and most prestigious events for school musicians. Over 8,000 students participated each year, coming from metropolitan and country Victoria, as well as interstate. The Festival commenced in 1989 with just over 20 bands and has grown to a point today where more than 240 concert bands and jazz ensembles participate in the Festival each year. Each year the Foundation provides schools the opportunity to work with a leading international educator as Chief Adjudicator.

The Melbourne School Strings Festival (MSSF)
The MSSF provides performance opportunities for all levels of string orchestras as well as Symphony Orchestras.

Festival Format

The structure of each event consists of three basic activities:

• PERFORMANCE - Ensembles perform works from a prescribed music list or guidelines. All works on the music lists have an educational focus allowing students to experience music composed specifically for this idiom. There is a panel of three adjudicators and ensembles receive a tape of their performance with audio adjudication as well as a written adjudication as per a set of criteria developed in conjunction with music educators. Immediately after performing, each ensemble receives an “on-stage” tutorial with the Chief Adjudicator where the students work on aspects of their performance.
• LISTENING – Each ensemble listens to other groups perform within their section. This activity may directed by a clinician who guides the students in critical and analytical listening. The students are then encouraged to use these skills in their own ensembles.
• TUTORIALS – Ensembles participate in a tutorial activity best suited to their category and experience. This may be a directed listening session where the group evaluates the performance of another ensemble, discussing the broader aspects of performing/practicing, a practical tutorial or a review and self-analysis of their own performance on video.

Benefits of participation

The Festivals provide the following opportunities for students and teachers:

• A performance goal for ensembles. Educators regard this event as one of the most important performance opportunities on the school calendar
• The opportunity to perform in Melbourne's finest performance venues
• Specifically designed tutorials for each ensemble category
• The opportunity to hear a performance by a number of groups of similar standard
• Students with the chance to work with leading educationalists from Australia and overseas
• Professional development opportunities for ensemble directors
• Secondary college students work experience opportunities in event management
• An Award plaque for each ensemble of either Gold, Silver, Bronze, Merit or Participation
• A rating from a panel of experienced professional adjudicators
• Ensembles with a stereo CD recording of their performance including adjudication comments
• Important feedback for directors as to the overall performance and direction of their ensemble
• Personalised video conducting tutorials for ensemble directors

Melbourne School Bands & Strings Festival tickets are available at the door, Finale tickets are available for purchase through the Monash University Box Office. Click here for more information regarding the Festival Finale Concert.

Session tickets - Valid for entry to one session only. Adults $6, Concession $4

Season Tickets - Valid for all sessions except for Finale. Adults $10, Concession $6

Festival Finale - Saturday 21 August, 2010 - Adults $15, Concession $10, Family $40 [buy tix]

Chief Adjudicators

Robert Sheldon - Concert Bands Chief Adjudicator

Robert Sheldon has taught instrumental music in the Florida and Illinois public schools, and has served on the faculty at Florida State University where he taught conducting and instrumental music education classes, and directed the university bands. As Concert Band Editor for Alfred Music Publishing, he maintains an active composition and conducting schedule, and regularly accepts commissions for new works. Sheldon received the Bachelor of Music in Music Education from the University of Miami and the Master of Fine Arts in Instrumental Conducting from the University of Florida.

An internationally recognized clinician, Sheldon has conducted numerous Regional and All-State Honor Bands throughout the United States and abroad, is Conductor of the Prairie Wind Ensemble in residence at Illinois Central College, and teaches Composition at Bradley University. He has also been a twenty-three-time recipient of the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publisher's Standard Award for his compositions in the concert band repertoire. His compositions have been recorded and released on compact discs including, Images: The Music of Robert Sheldon, and Infinite Horizons: The Music of Robert Sheldon, as well as numerous other recordings. Mr. Sheldon has been the topic of articles published in The Instrumentalist, Teaching Music and School Band and Orchestra Magazine, and is one of eleven American wind band composers featured in Volume I of Composers on Composing Music for Band.

Therese McCoppin - Strings Chief Adjudicator

Therese has an honours degree in Music from the University of York UK, where she studied viola with Caroline Henbest. She has a Postgraduate Certificate in Education in Music and Mathematics from Reading University, UK. Therese came to Australia in 1991 to work at Geelong Grammar School, Corio and then spent three years teaching at the Timbertop campus. Since 1996 she has been Head of Strings at Trinity Grammar School in Kew. Therese oversees a busy string program comprising 130 boys from ELC to Yr 12. She conducts and arranges music for 5 of the 6 string orchestras at the school.

Therese has played in a variety of orchestras and chamber ensembles initially leading the viola section in the Irish Youth Orchestra and City of Belfast Youth Orchestra. She enjoys playing the viola in the Melbourne City Opera Orchestra, Pro Musica Orchestra and various other Melbourne groups.

Therese is the Victorian secretary of the Australian Strings Association and has recently trained in Suzuki Violin teaching. She attended the Suzuki Annual Summer School in Matsumoto, Japan, in August 2009 and is developing a Suzuki program at Trinity.

Andrew Robertson - Jazz Ensembles Chief Adjudicator

Since graduating from the NSW Conservatorium of Music (Sydney) in 1991 Andrew has followed a career as a professional jazz musician, composer/arranger and jazz educator. As a woodwind specialist he has performed with such diverse artists as Michael Buble, Bobby Shew (US), Jerry Lewis (US), Jim Pugh (Steely Dan), Wayne Bergeron (US), Rex Richardson (US), Lorna Luft (US), John Farnham, James Morrison, the Sydney All Star Big Band, Emma Pask, Tom Burlinson, Don Burrows and Broadway Musicals such as The Producers, Crazy For You, Chicago, West Side Story, Dusty, Hugh Jackman's The Boy From Oz etc.

He also recorded many jingles for television and his playing is heard nightly on Australian/NZ television through ads for Toyota, Telstra, Suncorp, Landcruiser, Mortein, Riva Coffee, and many others.

Andrew is also one of the busiest freelance commercial arrangers in Australia having arranged for events such as Australian Idol (03-09), "Battle of The Choirs" (08), Eurovision Song Contest, The Sydney Opera House 30th Birthday Gala Concert, Sydney and Adelaide Symphony Orchestras, television ads, the 2006 Channel 9 Theme Song, and many others.

His arrangements appear on many of Australia's top artists CDs, such as Natalie Gauci (Aus. Idol winner 07), Emma Pask, Dan Barnett, Carl Risely, Janet Seidel, Swingcity, Mark Rivett, Sydney All Star Big Band, MBF 'Accentuate The Positive', Wayne Cornell Jr., NSW Dept. of Education Secondary 'Schools Spectacular' and others.

Andrew is also heavily involved with music education. He was Director of the NSW Dept. of Education Performing Arts Unit Jazz Orchestra and Jazz Ensemble 1997-2006 and has also been Artist-in-Residence at the James Cook University, lecturing on jazz improvisation, arranging and big band conducting. Andrew is Director of the music education provider JozzBeat Music Publishing Pty. Ltd. and regularly lectures on Primary School music programs across Australia and internationally.

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