Learning & Access 2020 Round-Up
The end of 2020 was a busy period for the Learning and Access Team, wrapping up several online programs throughout November and December, and recording some beautiful music in Elisabeth Murdoch Hall.
Accelerando
9 Young Artists recorded in Elisabeth Murdoch Hall
This year's Accelerando Recital was larger than life, with the students performing and recording in Elisabeth Murdoch Hall. An eclectic and exciting concert, the pieces ranged from improvised tabla to progressive metal.
Supported by the Peggy & Leslie Cranbourne Foundation
Music Always
4 Music Always Relaxed Performances with aged care partners
Zoom concerts continued with Oksana and Markiyan Melnychenko, entertaining residents from MACS, Wintringham, Corpus Christi and BASSCare.
Supported by the Hansen-Little Foundation & Lady Marigold Southey AC
Sound Matters
Musical workshops for children who are blind or have low vision
November's Sound Matters workshop featured harmonica player Chris Maunders. The kids were so excited to receive their very own harmonica in the mail, featuring braille numbers to assist with learning the instrument.
The last Sound Matters workshop for the year featured clarinetist Aviva Endean, taking the participants through different ways of listening. Fun was had with parts of stethoscopes, mobile phones and glass jars.
We also launched the Sound Matters online Exhibition through Soundescapes, featuring some of the participants' work with composer Stephanie Arnold.
Supported by the Samuel Nissen Foundation, E.H. Flack Trust and William Buckland Foundations
Great Romantics Competition
Celebrating 11 years of supporting young artists
It was a close competition on Sunday 6 December when 5 finalists battled it out during the online Great Romantics Competition Concert. The award winners on the day were;
Anne Kantor Encouragement Award - Ji Woo Yoon
Milan Kantor Encouragement Award - Calvin Abdiel
Elisabeth Murdoch Prize - Brian Luo
Supported by Annamila Pty Ltd & Mrs Margaret S. Ross AM & Dr Ian C Ross
Relaxed Performances
2 Relaxed Performance with Special Developmental Schools
Arcadia Winds and SARAY Iluminado shared their instruments and favourite styles of music with students from Bayside and Broadmeadows Special Developmental Schools.
Supported by the Samuel Nissen Foundation, Calvert Jones Foundation and William Buckland Foundations
Making Waves
Showcasing Victoria’s young composers
This year we partnered with Virtual School Victoria (VSV - formerly Distance Education) on the Making Waves Project. Each year VSV has held a concert to showcase the major compositions written by VCE students, however in 2020, this event couldn’t go ahead. Instead, we offered to record some of these students’ pieces in Elisabeth Murdoch Hall, allowing them to workshop their compositions with professional musicians and hear them come to life. This was a very rewarding experience for both the students and musicians involved.
‘It was a great revelation for me to see and hear firsthand the compositional talent we have right here in Melbourne. There have always been plentiful opportunities to showcase young performers, but young composers have far less vehicles to demonstrate their abilities. For me to be involved directly in such a showcase was eye-opening.’ Making Waves musician
Supported by the Sentinel Foundation, Newsboys Foundation and donors to the Performer Support Fund
Looking forward to 2021
Learning and Access plans for the year ahead
The L&A Team are planning a bold year with flexible and exciting programs. Music Always and Relaxed Performances will be delivered both in person and online, and we are excited to welcome back the Regional Music Exchange program, that took a short hiatus in 2020. Sound Vibrations, for children who are deaf or hard of hearing, will finally kick off in Centre, and the sweet sound of little voices will return to MRC with Song Play back in the Ground Floor Foyer. We are extending our partnership with Vision Australia, creating a Music Production program for their teenage cohort, and creating a more tailored Accelerando program, including individual industry mentors.
There are more L&A programs than ever before and we can't wait for 2021!