Australian Music Schools :: Information and Activities

SING, MOVE
& GROOVE
In the April School Holidays!
SING MOVE & GROOVE is open to all K-6 kids (not just AMS kids)
So bring your friends along!

Session 3: Vocal Dynamics

When: 9am-4pm for a one day workshop in the 2nd week of the April School Holidays

Bring: Morning tea, lunch & drink bottle and a HAT. Wear comfy clothes & please label everything!

VOCAL EISTEDDFOD 2010
Forms are available now for
Sunday March 21 @ AMS Randwick
Junior ‘Bubbles’
Junior Plus ‘Flying in the Sky’
Extension 1 ‘Flying in the Sky’
Extension 2, Spectrum & Advanced
‘Dona Nobis Pacem’

Get singing and good luck....

Welcome to 2010 – the start of another decade of fantastic music at AMS. We hope you had a wonderful festive season and are ready for making music in term 1.

Congratulations.....
Congratulations to our wonderful student composers who entertained us on AMS COMPOSERS DAY at the end of last year. There were some very creative, beautifully written pieces and we thoroughly enjoyed listening to them. Keep the ideas going till our next session.... well done!

Congratulations to our students who performed so brilliantly in the AMEB Theory written exams last year in particular Patricia Lapinski and Cato Ayyar with a perfect score of 100%. Another year of excellent results in theory!

Congratulations also to the many students who completed an AMEB piano exam late last year. There were some wonderful results – many with honours!

Congratulations to Miss Samantha who has presented a highly successful Summer Piano Workshop for piano teachers at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music. Over 100 teachers from all over NSW attended the one day workshop and everyone loved it!

This term....
Classes commence from Wednesday January 27. The last day of term 1 is Thursday 1 April.
Our big event for term 1 is the AMS VOCAL EISTEDDFOD. Open to all students from Junior 2 onwards, this is a wonderful opportunity to focus on pitch, breathing, posture & presentation in solo singing. We will begin learning songs in class soon and forms will be available in the next few weeks. (All students will have the opportunity to hone their piano skills in the AMS Piano Eisteddfod during term 3.)

There are limited vacancies in AMS classes for most beginner age groups. We are also about to start a new round of adult classes – so if you want to brush up on your childhood skills or have always wanted to play, give us a call at the office and we will find a class that suits you!

Private lessons are filling up fast for students in Junior Plus & Extension Courses. If you have not yet organised your fortnightly private lesson, please contact the office for schedules & teacher availability.

We have limited copies of the amazing ‘Groovy Music’ software available from the office. ‘Groovy’ is educational and great fun – and it is terrific for revising music concepts at home.

Listening to the CD is an essential part of the AMS course – the CD is included in the cost of course material from Tiny Musos through to Junior Plus. (If you already have the CD and only need the book, please contact the office – but do not adjust your invoice). The CD is the most important tool for learning pieces at home – even more important than the book! AMS beginner courses work by listening, then singing and playing what we HEAR in conjunction with reading the music. Make learning new pieces easier by listening to the CD as often as possible. In the car, during breakfast, at bedtime – whenever. It really helps – we promise!

Housekeeping....
Please do not adjust your invoice for any reason. If you believe ANY change should be made please contact us in the office on 9314 7282. Term 1 fees are now due. Please contact the office if you have not received your invoice.

Credits for missed lessons apply where a student will be absent for 3 or more consecutive lessons. If you know in advance that you will be absent for 3 weeks or more, please contact us so that we can issue the invoice correctly. 1 or 2 missed lessons (for any reason) cannot be credited or refunded.

Music Books and CDs will be sent to class / ready to pick up from the office once term fees are paid. Please note that no course material will be available until the account is settled. Please ensure that your term fees are paid on time to avoid any delay in receiving the book & CD needed for the course!

Mobile phones – are banned from class! This applies to all students and all parents. Please switch your phone off before you come into class. Also – please no food or drink inside the classrooms – all AMS locations have outdoor areas for eating & drinking before coming in to class.

Parents in class:
·    Please remember that in all preschool classes & in the AMS Junior Course we require an adult to attend class each week – parental involvement is vital! The more enthusiastic you are in class, the more your child will enjoy each activity.
·    Please remember that only the child enrolled in the class lesson is to be inside the classroom – we cannot accommodate any extra children in class. Please speak to the office if this is a problem for you.
·    Please do not hold your own conversations in class. Our teachers need to hold the attention of the class & this is very difficult when parents chat.

AMS students from Narrabeen, Randwick and Dulwich Hill performed beautifully in their concerts at the end of term 2. The costumes were lovely, the singing was gorgeous and the playing was sensational. Congratulations everyone – we are so proud.

We had so much fun at Maisy’s party, held at our new Northern Beaches AMS. We sang some songs, danced and played musical instruments. AMS Music parties are wonderful and can be tailored to suit any age group. There’s a special present for the birthday child and a musical party bag for each guest!

GENERAL NEWS

Private lessons with our amazing AMS private teachers are available to Junior Plus and all Extension students. Lessons are enormously beneficial and places fill quickly. Please ask your teacher for a contact sheet and get a time organised now!

A reminder to all Junior and Super Starter students to listen, listen, listen to your AMS CD. The power of your ears is an incredible learning tool. The more you listen, the easier it is to remember your pieces and to sing and play them at home and in class. The CD is not designed for you to play along to, it is designed to help you remember how to sing and play your pieces. Some ideas for listening to your CD are: in the car, over breakfast, at bed-time or before your play your pieces at home. It doesn’t matter where you are - listen, listen, listen.

Music education can be a positive force on all aspects of a child's life, particularly on their academic success. The study of music by children has been linked to higher scoresin learning aptitude tests.

AMS staff love to send their own children to AMS! There are currently 15 children of staff ranging from 18 months to 14 years in attendance at AMS classes with another couple of the really little ones ready to begin soon. That’s 100% of the staff offspring coming to class! Director, Michelle Madder (pictured here) is the mother of four of her own AMS students. One recently graduated after many years with Miss Lindi and Miss Samantha and others are currently in Junior Course, Spectrum Course and Advanced Course.

GENERAL NEWS

Did you know.....

STAFF NEWS