In the 15th season of the iconic animated sitcom The Simpsons, there’s an episode in which the headmaster of Springfield Elementary School – Principal Skinner – addresses his teaching staff informing them that, due to cutbacks, he needs to carefully restructure the school budget. Taking this complex and onerous task back to his office, he pulls out a list of school subjects and simply crosses music and art off the list before glibly declaring his job done.We’ve all seen the same unimaginative and easy solution applied at every level of bureaucracy for the last 30 years as the calls for a more ‘real’, vocationally relevant, curriculum become more assertive. Our children are falling behind, we hear, on some narrow system of job appropriate measurements. The obvious answer is, of course, increased emphasis on STEM subjects – science, technology, engineering and mathematics – inevitably at the cost of supposedly ‘soft’, ‘indulgent’ subjects like music and art.

Lest you think I’m exaggerating this mindset, just a few weeks ago, the Japanese Education Minister Hakuban Shimomura issued a formal directive to all Japanese tertiary institutions that they should (as quoted) ‘take active steps to abolish arts and humanities programs…to serve areas that better meet society’s needs’.

To a certain extent, we musicians have ourselves to blame for the precarious state of music within school curricula and the broader education debate. For too long we’ve relied on vague assertions of the intrinsic goodness of music education and worthy, somewhat pious, notions of music’s innate cultural value. Frankly, in the push for return on educational investment – that is, vocational relevance – those old arguments carry little weight.

Yet all this comes at a time when the broader cognitive and educational benefits of musical training have never been more clearly or convincingly asserted. I’ve lost count of

Advocating for the artsthe number of surveys and experiments I’ve read about that prove the enduring benefits of musical experience in terms of cognitive development and improved learning outcomes. Forget the so-called ‘Mozart Effect’, we are talking here of the solid, verifiable benefits in brain development and overall wellbeing – for young and old – that come from actively engaging with music. These are the facts that should form the basis from which we advocate for music’s funding and place in the curriculum.

Training students for a professional career in music shouldn’t be our primary consideration when teaching music; nor is it necessarily about creating a more educated and adventurous audience for music (although that’d be fine); in some ways music isn’t even about its actual sound. No, music – as Philip Ball asserts – is something humans do: the activity of making music is fundamental to our very being and enhances mental, physical and emotional development. This music-making doesn’t have to be good, it doesn’t have to be particularly musical, it’s simply that everyone – especially our children – should have the opportunity to regularly participate actively in music.

The AMEB has played – and continues to play – a fundamental role in encouraging young Australians along the path to thoughtful, disciplined and enjoyable music making and all the individual and community benefits that flow from that engagement.

Professor Graeme Koehne AO Director, Elder Conservatorium

(This is an edited version of a speech given at the official opening of the Twentieth Conference of the Australian Society for Music Education in Adelaide, October 2015.)

Australian Music Examinations Board South Australia and Northern Territory

On top note

Volume 15, Issue 2, October 2015Official Newsletter of the Australian Music Examinations Board SA & NT

Postal address: The University of Adelaide, SA 5005Location: 1st Floor Hartley Building, Kintore Ave, The University of AdelaideTelephone: 08 8313 8088Fax: 08 8313 8089Email: ameb@adelaide.edu.au

IndexAdvocating for the arts 1

Establishing strong foundations in piano lessons 2

General knowledge – Useful in so many ways 2

Music Theatre – A syllabus at last! 3

Rockscool comes to AMEB 3

2016 AMEB calendar 4

AMEB subjects Practical Music includes: Piano, Piano for Leisure, P Plate Piano, Accordion, Organ, Electronic Organ,Violin, Viola, Double Bass, Cello, Flute, Oboe, Clarinet, Recorder, Bassoon, Saxophone, Saxophone for Leisure, Trumpet, Tuba, Trombone, Band, Horn, Euphonium, Percussion, Harp, Classical Guitar, Singing, Singing for Leisure & Ensembles Speech and Drama includes: Drama & Communication, Voice & Communication and Drama & Performance Contemporary Popular Music includes: Keyboard, Guitar, Bass, Vocal, Drum kit Theory of music includes: Music Craft, Theory, Musicianship and Speech & Performance

2 Australian Music Examinations Board SA & NT

Most people seem to agree that the piano is a fine instrument ‘to start on’. But is it as friendly as all that? We don’t have half-sized pianos for small children and learning to read two different clefs at the same time can be taxing. So when is a good age to start ‘establishing strong foundations’ and what are they?

Many will tell you that children of 5 or 6 are advancing in leaps and bounds aurally but their motor and conceptual skills have some way

to catch up. So perhaps this is not such a great age to take on playing two hands, reading two clefs and all that goes with it. Solutions for fives and sixes include omitting the music reading and learning by ear or moving the keyboard itself to a subsidiary role in ‘music classes’. Both approaches have strong track records.

However by 7 and above many children can multi-task better and so playing the piano as a musical instrument is more realistic. But what are the main foundations to lay? Listening and moving seem to be top of the list. Advancing motor skills allow for internalisation of rhythm through movement at and away from the keyboard. And strongly developing aural acuity enables the start of focused listening to what is coming out of the piano. Finally, visual and conceptual skills are forging ahead at this age so beginning along the road from symbol to sound and sound to symbol makes sense.

ValeRobertson Collins and David MerchantTwo superbly talented and generous members of our music community.Lost to us in 2015 and sadly missed.

Establishing strong foundations in piano lessons

Moving, listening and looking involve a complex set of educational manoeuvres that are best managed through a set of good tutor books. But these are only as effective as the teacher delivering them. Does the teacher thoroughly endorse the tutor being used? Too often that isn’t so and making do with second best won’t help anybody in the equation.

Examiners will probably tell you that a strong sense of rhythm and good reading skills are the weakest aspects of beginners they encounter. So ensure your pupil is developmentally ‘ready’ for piano lessons, ensure the tutor is a perfect match, make sure rhythm, reading and listening are all tended like precious plants in the garden, and of course as you’re a fabulous teacher your pupil should shine.

Rodney Smith, AMEB SA & NT Piano Advisor

General knowledge – Useful in so many ways

Italian especially, is the international language of music. Knowledge of the meanings of the terminology can not only enable musicians to communicate through their musical language in music making situations all over the world, but also come in handy in other ways. Many students learn the translation of the terminology in music but do not know the actual word in the language – that mf = mezzo forte.

Holidaying in rural Italy a few years ago, a friend fell spectacularly down some stone stairs, shattering her knee. My knowledge of Italian is minimal, however through the musical terms like presto presto, la donna e non mobile, doloroso molto – I was able to call an ambulance and describe the urgency of the situation and where we were situated.

My most recent amusing answer to a question about key signature sharp symbol # in a Grade 2 exam resulted in the answer that was prompt, produced with utter conviction and very 21st Century – ‘that is a hash tag’. Correct but not quite what I was looking for.

There is nothing that inspires an examiner more than seeing a student with flashing eyes telling us of their interest in their music, especially in later Grades. Knowledge of the historical context of the pieces and their association with other art forms of the time enriches our appreciation of music, hence encouraging students to visit the Art Gallery in order see art works from similar periods will give them something really tangible to enhance their own musical expression.

Wendy Heiligenberg, AMEB Strings Advisor

Music mate near completionHave your students practising 7 days a week and doing it willingly!Music mate is an interactive website that teachers will be able to access and trial run. The website is an incentive program to encourage practice, performances, theory, scales, in fact anything you want a student to keep doing. If you haven’t already signed up for the free beta trial, just send an email to: heather @heatherlucaspianolessons.com.auMusic mate is steadily moving closer to completion. Be ready for the free trial email coming your way in the near future.

On top note 3

Rockschool comes to the AMEBThe AMEB is now delivering Rockschool exams and syllabi across Australia.

Rockschool is a vibrant, contemporary music program of exams and qualifications for guitar, bass, drums, vocals, piano, band-based keyboards and bands. UK based, it specialises popular music genres in styles including rock, pop, metal and funk. Its qualifications are globally recognised with tens of thousands of exams conducted in the UK and 33 countries worldwide.

The comprehensive syllabi and range of support materials are regularly updated by musicians across the academic, music industry and live performance sectors to ensure they remain current and authentic.

The addition of Rockschool to the AMEB’s offerings is welcomed. We’re excited to be working with the globally successful Rockschool to deliver the most up-to-date contemporary music syllabuses and exams in Australia.

The program’s challenging and rewarding exams are designed to develop technique, musicianship and performance ability in musicians of all ages and abilities. It complements our extensive range of music syllabuses and will strengthen the AMEB’s position in the contemporary music sector.

Rockschool exams will be held across the country during October/November 2015. Further information is available from www.rockschool.com.au or the State Office on 8313 8088.

Bernard Depasquale, General Manager, Federal Office AMEB

Musical Theatre – A syllabus at last!‘Putting on a musical has got to be the most fulfilling thing a person could hope to do.’ Spoken by Lt. Frank Cioffi, in Act I of Curtains. Book by Rupert Holmes. Music by John Kander. Lyrics by Fred Ebb & Rupert Holmes.

I’ve been working between music and theatre for all of my performance life. As a result, I have come to believe that, while not every actor sings, all singers must be able to act. This aphorism holds especially true for my favourite art-form, music theatre. Here, when the emotions run too high to merely speak, we sing.

Music theatre, disparaged by some as ‘the poor man’s opera’, is hard to define but easy to spot. Michael Dale, writing on the Stephen Sondheim website, observes waggishly, ‘Sweeney Todd is an opera when the orchestra is dressed in black tie. Sweeney Todd is a musical when the orchestra is dressed in black T-shirts.’ (7th March, 2004, www.sondheim.com)

With the increasing popularity of music theatre with singers of all ages, AMEB has recently completed a sharp new syllabus designed both to delight and challenge singers. I’ve been privileged to be part of the AMEB’s national Music Theatre Advisory Group. Spearheading all this collaborative planning and research is George Torbay, whose training and experience, both in Australia and overseas, have prepared him well to oversee this huge project as Syllabus Consultant.

I asked George if he could define what are the hallmarks of this new syllabus; what makes it unique? He replied, ‘We have composed a set of vocalises and exercises specific for musical theatre. Each vocalise is written in a specific musical theatre style. There are over 1,350 songs in the syllabus, representing over 450 different musicals.’

When I asked George to explore more thoroughly the range of available repertoire offered by this new syllabus he said, ‘The student has the opportunity to cover repertoire from the birth of the modern musical through to the glorious Golden Age, the turbulent 60’s, the diverging paths of the 70’s, the birth of the blockbuster musical, to shows and songs composed within the last year.’

Given George’s breadth of training and experience, I suggested to him that he would have found it easy to pull together all the elements needed for a pedagogically respectable music theatre syllabus. George disagreed with me: ‘Creating any syllabus is not an easy job. There is no way to please everyone. I kept reminding myself that it was the students that this was for. All voice teachers would have students who want to sing musical theatre from the very young to the mature. I wanted to find material that would suit that broad range of ages and technical work that was focused and essential.’

For George, it’s all about optimising the learning journey of the student performer. Together with his AMEB Advisory Group, George has worked to create a syllabus which is, he says, ‘…entirely focused on creating performers who sing with a free, open tone. We hope to create performers who understand the dramatic arc of a song with a superior connection to the text. We want truthful storytelling!’

Professional or amateur, old or young, male or female – I don’t think you can better this as a goal for music theatre excellence.

Pat H Wilson, AMEB Musical Theatre Advisory Group member

www.ameb.adelaide.edu.au

4 Australian Music Examinations Board SA & NT

2016 AMEB calendar

CLOSING DATES SESSION (Central venues unless otherwise indicated) EXAM DATES

Metropolitan Adelaide Practical Sessions (Grades Preliminary – Certificate of Performance)

February 12 Adelaide March March 19

March 4 Adelaide May*Mature age May

Private venuesMature age

May 7-21May 28

May 6 Adelaide July Monday, Wednesday, Friday & Saturday only July 2-23

July 1 Adelaide September September 3, 10, 17, 24

August 5 Adelaide Oct/Nov*Mature age Nov

Private venuesMature age

October 1 - November 5November 19

Supplementary Exams, December 3 & 4 (subject to conditions in the 2016 AMEB SA & NT Teachers’ Handbook)

Adelaide Hills Practical Session

June 10 SA Hills region Private venues August 26, 27, 28

Regional SA Practical Session

June 10 SA Country region Private venues August 21 - September 4

Northern Territory Practical Sessions

March 4 Darwin May Private & CDU May 21-28

August 1 Darwin October Private & CDU October 1-22

August 12 Alice Springs Private venues October 23-30

Speech Practical Sessions

March 25 Speech June Private venues June 4-18

July 22 Speech September Private venues September 10-30

Music Diplomas

CLOSING DATES PERFORMANCE EVALUATION DATES EXAM DATES

March 4 AMusA May 7 July 16

May 6 AMusA & LMusA July 16 October 8

July 1 AMusA September 3 November 19

Rockschool Practical Sessions

May 6 Rockschool July Private venues Specific dates published in January 2016 at www.rockschool.com.au

August 12 Rockschool Oct/ Nov Private venues Specific dates published in January 2016 at www.rockschool.com.au

Hard Copy Theory Exams for Music and Speech Syllabi

June 10 Theory Private & central venues August 23 & 24

* Please indicate on your entry form if you need assistance with a venue. Note: Please note: There are no central venues available in November of the Adelaide October/November session.