ENSEMBLES 2017

Camberwell Girls Grammar School Tour Choir

Camberwell Girls Grammar School has an outstanding tradition in music making and all students across both Senior and Junior School campuses, Years F-12, are encouraged to be involved in a range of instrumental and vocal ensembles. Students are introduced to music through a classroom music program, as well as a Year 2 String program, Year 5 & 6 Band program and a Year 7 introduction to orchestral instruments practical program. These activities allow students to develop and extend their musical skills, as well as experience the enjoyment of rehearsing and performing together. CGGS regular music ensembles include orchestras, bands, choirs and string orchestras, as well as numerous chamber ensembles, many of which are usually driven by students and vary from year to year, including piano trios, string quartets, wind quintets and more.

The School calendar features an array of musical concerts every year, including a House Music Festival, lunch time soirees, Cabaret Night, annual Music Camp, assembly performances and the annual Festival of Music, where students perform in an evening that showcases their tremendous dedication and talent. These concerts never fail to delight the appreciative audiences!

Camberwell Girls students are enormously active in service initiatives and supporting the local community, following the School motto Utilis In Ministerium – Useful in Service. CGGS musicians are regular performers at eisteddfods and many students participate in other local musical organisations, such as the Australian Girls’ Choir  and Melbourne Youth Music. Students also support many small and large scale community events, such as the Breast Cancer Network Australia Luncheons, held at Crown’s Palladium and Pink Lady Day at the MCG with hundreds of guests in attendance.

Camberwell Girls Grammar School musicians have had the privilege to travel and participate in many interstate and international Music Tours in the recent past, including the United States in 2004 and United Kingdom in 2009. This European Tour in 2017 sees our largest cohort of students participating in an International Tour – 65 students aged between 13 and 18 years old. The ensembles performing throughout this 2017 European tour have been formed from regular participants from across CGGS Choirs, Symphony Orchestra, Symphonic Band and String Orchestra available to travel during June/July 2017.

Jennifer Meachem

Conductor

Jennifer studied Music Performance (Clarinet) at the VCA and then proceeded to the University of Melbourne where she completed her Bachelor of Education, enjoying the opportunity to study Saxophone with Dr Peter Clinch. She has performed across a wide range of genres and ensembles with a particular interest in quality Wind Ensemble repertoire and performance. Jennifer began teaching while still a music student and has always been passionate about

ensemble performance and sharing music. In her role as Director of Music at Camberwell Girls Grammar School, a role she has enjoyed for over thirteen years, she has been recognised with a National Excellence in School Music Education Award in 2008, in acknowledgement of her outstanding contribution to the provision of music education in Australia. Together with 22 staff, Jennifer coordinates and oversees over 30 concerts every year, as well as curriculum and an extensive co-curricular program across two campuses.

Penny Byrne

Conductor

Piano and Theory Tutor; JS Music Classroom Teacher; Choir director; Accompanist for student performers
Penny Byrne is a graduate in Music and Education from The University of Adelaide.  She studied piano with Thelma Dent and was a winner of the Eva Lines AMEB Memorial Prize for Piano.
In addition to teaching piano and theory privately, Penny has over 30 years of experience leading children’s music education programs in independent schools and brings a passion for teaching music, promoting and being an effective part of a whole-school music culture. Penny has taught at several prestigious schools in Melbourne and Adelaide, including Scotch College, Camberwell Grammar and most recently Strathcona Baptist Girls Grammar School.
Penny has directed Eisteddfod-winning choirs and choral music in schools. She has a wide range of experience directing and vocal coaching within opera and musical productions, as well as in her local communities and teaching positions. Penny continues to enjoy singing in choirs herself and currently sings in the St John’s Church Choir in her local community of Camberwell in Melbourne.
An innovative teacher with a growth outlook, Penny is keen to seek out, adapt and champion new ideas to enhance the building of musical intelligence and promote overall learning of her students with the over-riding principle that music education should include rigour, creativity, flair and fun.

SCL Artistic Program

Celebration Program

Additional Concerts Program