Term 1 Midterm News – Hume Conservatorium of Music Ltd.

Midterm News and Upcoming Concert Series

It’s week 5 already! Time flies when you’re having fun and the music never stops at the Con!

We’ve seen an increase in enrolments this year, and we’re excited to hear the abundance of music making that is flooding the halls this term. We’ve had some staffing changes that nominate select teachers to become the head of their faculty, which also creates new opportunities for students to be recognised for their hard work and progress at the Con.

Teachers and faculty heads will be watching and at the end of term give out awards at Faculty concerts to students for participation and progress. We believe it is essential to recognise the hard work of students, both for confidence and encouragement! So stay vigilant and keep your practice up this year, it won’t go unnoticed.

Our next performance prac is Thursday, 27th of March. Start working on your pieces with your teacher now and get your form in to participate!

Faculty Heads

Emma Knott: Head of Woodwind and Brass Faculty, Coordinator of ISMP, AMEB, Pedagogy & Student reporting, Schools & Centre Based Education Manager.

Giselle Newbury: Head of Community/Projects/Grants.

Garth Prentice: Head of Guitar Faculty, Coordinator of HSC Support and bands.

Richard Lane: Head of Voice Faculty, Coordinator of Patrons and Sponsors.

Alison Beckett: Head of Composition and Theory, Classical Ensembles.

Debbie McConnell: Head of Piano Faculty, Music Theatre.

Lou Wurth: Head of Folk, Acoustic Bands.

Tony Marks: Head of Production, Contemporary Bands.

Helen Lutz: Head of Strings Faculty.

Student Survey 2024
We would greatly appreciate if you took the time to complete this survey so we can continue to improve our programs, curriculums and business. It shouldn’t take more than two minutes.

Early Childhood Music
We are taking expressions of interest for our Mini Maestros 0-2 program to continue. These early childhood classes are a great introduction to music that is proved to help with cognitive processing and development. Get your next little prodigy off to the right start with Early Childhood music at the Con!

Speech & Drama
Last term, our previous drama teacher, the charismatic Lee Thornton returned to the Con to expand our artistry beyond the constraints of music. Lee Thornton A.T.C.L, A.S.D.A, Diploma of Acting, Post Graduate Certificate in Human Services has over 38 years of experience teaching Speech and Drama both privately and in schools. She gained her Diploma of Acting in 1984, ATCL Trinity College of London Teaching Diploma (Speech and Drama) in 1985 and ASDA Australian Music Examination Board Teaching Drama (Speech and Drama) in 1990. Lee is a member of the Speech and Drama Association of NSW.

Lee teaches relaxation, breathing, mime, movement, phonemic awareness and transcription, articulation, pronunciation, vocal expression and voice production, improvisation, characterisation, acting techniques, prose, poetry, drama, public speaking, interpretation, expressive reading, storytelling, play building, story writing, speech writing, literature appreciation, audition preparation, eisteddfod and examination preparation, speech and performance theory, elements of theatre, correction of speech sounds and job interview techniques. Certainly overqualified!

Lee teaches of a Wednesday afternoon and has plenty of space to take on any new students who have an interest in the art of acting, or who want to hone their skills for the next Rocky Hill Production. Enrol now!

Musical Theatre
Similarly, we have musical theatre classes beginning this term, run by our amazing Deb McConnell as part of her new roll as head of Musical Theatre. These classes aim to provide students, under the age of 18, vocal technique, drama technique and basic dance/ movement technique, with performance opportunities and preparation for exams from the AMEB in Musical Theatre. Songs will be chosen through the graded level AMEB lists with the opportunity for an own choice song. Classes are on Thursdays at 3:50pm to 4:30pm – Preliminary Grade (Primary School age) and 4:30pm to 5:20pm – Grade 1 (approx. Year 7-8). Demand for an additional 9-12th grade class would make it a possibility. These are great for students apart of Rocky Hill Theatre Company or school productions who want to expand their skills!

Upcoming Concert Series

Sunday, March 30th, 2pm at Hume Conservatorium's Old Ceramics Hall

Perfectly Imperfect – Stories and songs of life, love and laughter.

Perfectly Imperfect

Songs and stories of Life, Love and Laughter

Featuring Julee-anne Bell and Melissa Buchholz

Julee-anne Bell starred on The Voice Australia in 2021 and wowed the judges and audiences Australia wide with her stunning vocals and warm personality. Julee-anne has been blind since birth and she continually inspires and motivates people from all walks of life with her willingness to set the bar high and achieve incredible goals.
Soprano, Julee-anne Bell received a Bachelor of Music (First Class Honours) in 1993 from the University of Queensland where she studied voice under Margaret Nickson. In 2004, Julee-anne received her Masters in Music Studies, majoring in choral conducting and advanced aural studies. Her list of credits as a professional musician is astonishing and she brings to this show a considerable level of stagecraft and personality that delivers a show that audiences will be talking about for a long time after.

Melissa Buchholz has been a professional pianist for over 35 years and has worked nationally and internationally as accompanist for some of the top musicians in the world. Melissa also has a name as a soloist and is equally at home playing classical, pop or jazz genres. Her music speaks to her audiences and she is thrilled to be working alongside Julee-anne in this fabulous show.
Together the two artists present a show filled with great music, humour, charisma and just an all-round entertaining time! The music presented covers various genres and includes songs from Music Theatre, Pop, light classical and jazz. Stories are included that detail the history of the song or show as well as personal recollections from both performers about how the songs impacted their lives. Audiences will be touched by many emotions through the show – happiness, sadness, nostalgia and more!

Sunday, April 6th, 2pm at Hume Conservatorium's Old Ceramics Hall

Opera’s Bad Girl: Anna Bishop, The World’s First Daringly Defiant Diva by Sarah Louise Owens

Before Madonna, there was Anna Bishop. A daring contemporary of Queen Victoria, this original diva shattered expectations and redefined independence when she left her famous composer husband to forge her own artistic path. Bravely defying social norms of the time, and forced to leave her beloved children behind, she toured the globe with her genius harpist lover, surviving shipwrecks, tiger attacks, and pandemics, and inadvertently inspiring women everywhere to live boldly. Renowned Canberran opera singer Sarahlouise Owens brings Anna’s extraordinary journey to life through arias of the era, such as Home Sweet Home, Lucia Mad Scene and The Last Rose of Summer..

The show is designed for all audiences, where the young can learn of the musical tastes of their ancestors, and the older generations may enjoy the music of their childhood. The music is framed within the exciting true life story of a fearless woman who trailblazed a singing career, at a time women were denied a career and when international travel was only possible by ship and carriage.

This is a story begging to be told about empowerment of women in times where the patriarchy was dominant, despite being the time of a ruling Queen. The telling of this story is important due to its historical significance aligning with our colonial history, as well as the story of an early chapter of the Suffragist Movement and of a fearless woman who, among others, would not be restricted by social mores.

Educating and entertaining, this story is fascinating as well as inspirational. Anna is an ideal role model for our young women, or indeed anyone, demonstrating that risk can pay off.

Singer/Actor and pianist perform the music that made Anna’s fame, and the songs that she made a staple of household parlours. The music though old, is revealed, revived and invigorated in this interpretation.

Palm Sunday, April 13th, 4pm at St Saviours Cathedral Goulburn

St Saviour’s Cathedral Choir and Hume Conservatorium’s Voiceworks perform Handel’s Messiah

Come and join us for one of the most acclaimed choral masterpieces in the repertoire. Composed in 1741 and performed ever since around the world, Messiah has some of the most well known and moving music – justifying its almost universal appeal. The Hallelujah Chorus has even been used in advertisements for everything from hot dogs to cars.

For this performance Hume Conservatorium Voiceworks have joined forces with St. Saviour’s Cathedral Choir and members of the community to create the Messiah Choir. Joining the choir are soloists: Soprano- Rachel Mink, Counter Tenor – Tobias Cole, Tenor – George Brenan and Bass – Richard Orchard. Well known organist – Dr. Brett McKern will be accompanying using his new arrangement of the orchestral score. A small ensemble of wind and brass rounds out the instrumentalists for our performance.

Messiah is an oratorio composed in 1741 by George Frideric Handel. The text was compiled from the King James Bible and the Coverdale Psalter by Charles Jennens. It was first performed in Dublin on 13 April 1742 and received its London premiere a year later. After an initially modest public reception, the oratorio gained in popularity.

The text begins in Part I with prophecies by Isaiah and others, and moves to the annunciation to the shepherds, the only “scene” taken from the Gospels. In Part II, Handel concentrates on the Passion of Jesus and ends with the Hallelujahchorus. In Part III, he covers Paul’s teachings on the resurrection of the dead and Christ’s glorification in heaven.

St. Saviour’s Cathedral Choir and Hume Conservatorium Voiceworks have joined forces inviting members of the community to come sing with us on Palm Sunday April 13, 2025, exactly 283 years after its first performance.

Term 1 Week 9 Faculty Concerts and Presentation Nights!

Nominations for end of term faculty concerts will be called for soon. These concerts will- for each faculty- be the presentation night for each faculty’s students. Please keep these dates free if you intend to perform and start discussing with your teacher. We will let you know if you are receiving an award on the night, whether or not you are performing, but for this reason we encourage everyone to consider!

Monday 7th April 6pm – Vocals

Tuesday 8th April 6pm – Woodwind & Brass

Wednesday 9th April 6pm – Strings

Thursday 10th April 6pm – Piano

Friday 11th April 6pm – Guitar and Drums

THANK YOU!

Hume Con wishes to thank all our donors for their ongoing support! Your small donation makes a HUGE difference! Your 100% Tax Deductible Donation will help fund music education programs throughout the region.