music matters Issue #05 Mar 2013Issue #05 Mar 2013

ST. JOHN’S PREP SCHOOL’S MUSIC MAGAZINE

ARTISTEARTISTE OF THE MONTHOF THE MONTH

Miles Davis: the jazz legend with the trumpet

TEACHERTEACHER FEATUREFEATURE Mrs. Williams the

chorister

BARNARDO’SBARNARDO’S ANNUALANNUAL CHOIRCHOIR

COMPETITIONCOMPETITION The choir take on the finals at the Barbican

MUSICAL MUSICAL SAWSAW

Carpentry tools become musical instruments

MUSICMUSIC NOTATIONNOTATION

How the worldHow the worldHow the world writes its musicwrites its musicwrites its music

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Editor’s

MESSAGE

Dear reader,

It is my pleasure to bring you the next edition of Music

Matters. In this issue, we have a very interesting

featured article exploring the different methods of

writing music around the world. Did you know that

there are hundreds of other methods of writing music

down on paper, on top of the common stave that

everybody uses?

Also, you will get the chance to read all about the

peculiar instrument that is a musical saw. It is, however,

exactly what you might think it is: a commonplace saw

played with a violin or cello bow! It produces the most

fascinating noise, so make sure you do a search on

YouTube and have a listen.

You can also read more about how we fared at the

Barnardo’s annual choir competition at the Barbican.

Have a wonderful Easter holiday!

MR. JONATHAN ANG

Editor

Music Matters

CONTENTS

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4

5

6

7

8

10

12

Instrument of the Month

Featured Article:

Notation Around The World

What’s On

SJPS Choir News

Activity Page

Young Musician of the Month

Artiste of the Month

Teacher Feature

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TEACHER FEATURE In this month’s issue, we speak to Mrs. Gwyneth Williams. Apart from being the

Head of Year for Prep 2, Mrs. Williams also has a very keen interest in choral

singing, and has had quite an extensive amount of instrumental training. She

speaks to Music Matters and tells us more.

I was born and raised in Llandinam, Montgomeryshire, in the heart

of Mid-Wales. Music was an important part of my upbringing, as I

often competed in local annual Eisteddfods, in recitation, choral

speaking and pianoforte solos and duets. In addition, I represented

my school at Urdd Eisteddfodau competitions playing the piano,

but I did not pursue the activity beyond Grade 5.

My passion for choral music grew

whilst completing a Bachelor of Arts

Honours Degree in Humanities and

Literature, as it complemented an interest from an early age, in

writing poems, meditations, hymns and some popular song lyrics. I

have recently had my first hymn published in the on-line publication

“Worship Live”, which has now attained an independent status from

its former link to the music publishers - Stainer & Bell.

My recent performance.

listening to. Currently, I really enjoy Faurē’s Requiem and

Karl Jenkins’ setting of the 13th century poem

Stabat Mater, being rehearsed for our Spring

Concert. The 7th movement - “And the

mother did weep”, blends multiple languages

to form a universal depiction of grief through

the suffering of Mary, Jesus Christ’s mother,

during his crucifixion; we sing in English,

Welsh, Latin, Hebrew, Aramaic and Greek.

What I am currently

As a chorister in my local church, Advent and Lent are

particularly busy times in which we practise many Anthems,

some of which are sung in Latin. I occasionally join the Diocesan

Choir of St. Paul’s Cathedral, particularly for Ordination Services.

I am also a member of the London Welsh Chorale.

On St. David’s Day (March 1st), I sang at The Guildhall, London at the

Annual St. David’s Day Dinner. Our diverse repertoire included the Easter

Hymn from “Cavalleria Rusticana”, O Rejoice that the Lord has Arisen!

sung to the popular song “Delilah”, made famous by Sir Tom Jones. A

great occasion in such a historic setting!

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Featured Instrument

of the Month Every month we will feature an instrument, which might be a common instrument, or sometimes a

strange and mystic-looking one instead! If you would like to see it in action, simply visit YouTube

and type in the instrument name, and there you have it! If you would like to learn a new

instrument, simply speak to your music teacher and they will point you in the right direction.

MUSICAL SAW A musical saw, also

known as a singing

saw, is actually a

very basic instru-

ment! It is simply a

hand saw played

with a regular violin

or cello bow. It is

generally played

sitting down, with

the handle of the

saw placed be-

tween the knees . They then bend the saw and

use a bow across the smooth (non-serrated)

edge of the saw, producing an interesting,

ghostly tone that can also vary in pitch, de-

pending on how wide the blade is when it is

be ing bowed.

Musicians who play

the saw are often

called sawists, and

they traditionally

use standard wood-

c u t t i n g s a w s ,

although special

musical saws are

also made. Some

musical saws are

made with thinner

metal, to make it easier to bend. They have

been produced for over a hundred years,

mostly in the U.S. They are also particularly

popular in Sweden and France, but in the UK

you can find them in a shop in Sheffield!

INSTRUMENT Riddles

#1 We come as a pair, you could say that we’re twins.

We’re shiny and crash when you play us, my friend.

If you like to make noise and to march in a band,

You’ll love us ’cause we make those marches sound grand!

I’m a ________________..

#2 Sometimes I’m acoustic and sometimes electric.

Those rock stars, they love me and act energetic.

They strum me or pick me and play lots of songs,

Then put me in a case and take me along.

I’m a ________________..

#3 I sit on the floor and you sit in a chair. You play with a bow that’s made of horse hair.

I’m played in a orchestra, a nice wooden fellow. My name is five letters, they call me a ________________.

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The British, the

highest per

capita spenders

on music, buy

7,2% of the world

music market.

A piano covers the full

spectrum of all orchestra

instruments, from below the

lowest note of the double

bassoon to above the top

note of the piccolo.

There are 12 fa's

and 96 la’s in the

Christmas carol

"Deck The Hall".

The CD was developed by Philips

and Sony 33 years ago, in 1980.

40 billion songs are downloaded illegally every year. That

amounts to nearly 90% of all music downloads from the internet.

In August 1983, Peter

Stewart of Birmingham, UK

set a world record by disco

dancing for 408 hours.

Justin Beiber says the word 'never' for a total of 69

times in his song "Never Say Never". Now that is a lot!

{ ACTIVITY PAGE }

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FEATURED ARTISTE

OF THE MONTH

Every month this newsletter will feature a musician, artiste, composer or singer for you

to discover. Remember, if you want to know more about the featured artiste of the

month, you can always find more on the internet, especially on YouTube!

MILES DAVIS Miles Davis was an American jazz musician who was

active from the 1940s to the 1970s. His speciality

instrument was the trumpet, and he is considered one

of the most influential musicians of the 20th century. His

most famous album is Kind of Blue, which was recorded

in 1959. It is said to be the best-selling jazz record in

history, and is regarded by many critics as the greatest

jazz album of all time. In America alone, this album has

sold more than 4 million copies - that is equivalent to

one album for every two people in London!

DIFFERENT TYPES OF TRUMPETS Did you know that the trumpet comes in many different variants? The method

of playing them are, however, generally all the same.

POCKET TRUMPET

The pocket trumpet

fits perfectly in a

small suitcase, mak-

ing it great to carry

around for a quick

practice! Jazz musi-

cians sometimes use

it to make themselves look more stylish!

The pocket trumpet has the exact

same range of notes as a regular trum-

pet, and cost between £80 and £3,300.

Davis was born in 1926 and began his musi-

cal studies when he was 13. He has stated

that it was his father who suggested he learn

the trumpet in order to irk his mother, who

disliked the trumpet’s sound. Within three

years, he was playing professionally and, af-

ter finishing high school, he went to study at

the world famous Julliard School of Music in

New York City.

It was in this city where he began to seek out

other famous jazz musicians of the time, such

as Charlie Parker and Dizzy Gillespie, to join

in on jam sessions at the various jazz clubs

around New York. In the next thirty years, he would then go on to become the most widely recog-

nized jazz musician of his era, due to his unique tone on the trumpet and the “nocturnal” quality of

his playing, on top of his sombre reputation and characteristic raspy voice. Throughout his career

he earned the nickname “Prince of Darkness”. Davis toured to Paris and Tokyo on many occasions,

where he developed a large following, especially in Japan. His legacy continues to this day and his

music has been cited as an influence by many musicians today, such as Santana and Radiohead.

BUGLE

The bugle is one

of the of the sim-

plest brass instru-

ments, and con-

sists of no valves.

A standard bugle can only play five

different notes, also known as the bugle

scale. They are commonly used in the

military, where different bugle calls are

used to indicate the different routines

within the day, such as getting up.

FLUMPET

A flumpet is a relatively new

instrument, and was invented

in 1989. It is a mix between a

trumpet and a fuglehorn,

which is a instrument quite

similar to a trumpet but more

mellow-sounding, A jazz musi-

cian by the name of Art

Farmer found it tiresome to

carry both instruments in his

suitcase, so he invented the flumpet!

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“

ON the 4th of March, the school choir took part in the finals of the annual Barnardo’s school choir competition at

the Barbican Centre in London. Earlier in the year, the choir sent in a recording entry and, after careful delibera-

tion by a panel of experienced judges, were announced as one of the sixteen finalists in the junior schools (under

12s) category. For their competition performance, the choir sang May It Be by Enya and Mr. Blue Sky by ELO.

The choir is very encouraged that they have fared well

at a national level, given that this is their first competi-

tion entry at this level. Although the St. John’s choir was

not placed in the final results - only the top two choirs

in each category were placed - they cherished the

ANNUAL CHOIR COMPETITION

The choir seated on the Barbican stage.

F2 & F3 singers enjoying a light-hearted moment

before going onstage

experience and enjoyed the opportunity to witness

other stellar choirs perform onstage. They are al-

ready looking forward to next year’s competition! The

choir was led by Mr. Ang and Mrs. Bowie, with Mrs.

Richardson kindly helping out on the day.

The choir performing onstage, conducted by

Mrs. Bowie.

On the 4th of March, the school choir went to the Barbican to participate in the Barnardo’s

competition. We went to take some pictures first and then we went to sing to the judges. We sang

two songs, and the second one featured Emily and Shanaaze soloists. After that we went back to

school and had a lesson, until Mrs. Richardson came to pick us up and take us to the coach back to

the Barbican.

The big night had arrived. We had practised and were ready to go onstage. Right as we were

going onstage, Shanaaze suddenly felt unwell but she went on nevertheless and performed

beautifully. We thought we performed well, and it was such a fantastic experience. Next was the

interval. While the audience got a break, we were all getting sorted out in the seats onstage. There

were a few more songs that other choirs performed, and my favourite one was a school that sang a

mash up of two songs from the television show Glee.

At last, the judges announced the winners, and the winner of the junior category was Kent College

Primary School. It was amazing even though we did not win; it was the best night of our young lives!

GEORGIA MONCASTER, F1 ”

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DATA BANK

If you answered, starting from left to right, a

hemidemisemiquaver note, a crotchet note, a

semibreve rest, a coda sign, a breve note, a del

segno sign and a minim note,

then congratulations - you would

have attained a Grade 5

knowledge level of music symbols.

However, these notes and

symbols are all relatively

“modern”, and the practice of

writing symbols and notes on a

five-line stave was established as

recently as the 16th century, or

about 500 years ago.

Most music scholars agree that

Western musical notation has its

origins with the Roman writer

Boethuis, who assigned 15 letters

(about two octaves) of pitches

around 500 A.D., or about 2,500

years ago. By contrast to Ancient

Near East culture, this was already pretty late.

Archaeologists have found stone tablets in Iraq that

show evidence of notation, and these date all the

way back to 2,000 B.C.! Before Western notation was

invented, scholars agreed that unless man could re-

member sounds, music would be forgotten forever

unless they could be written down somehow. They

did not have to worry much

though, because by the middle

of the 9th century (about 1,200

years ago), monasteries in

Europe began recording music

down in the form of notes.

This was then developed all the

way till the 1300s where nota-

tion became more uniform an

organised, like this copy of early

English song you can see here

on your left.

Today, modern music notation

is based around a five-line

stave, starting with a clef with

pitches identified with specific

notes. However, many different

types of notations are still used by different coun-

tries throughout the world. To discover more, see

the next page for a diverse collection of different

notation systems, some of which survive till this day.

Look at the shapes below. I am sure you will be able to recognise most, if not

all of them. Can you name the different symbols you see below?

MUSIC NOTATION A CONCISE HISTORY OF

Ever wondered who invented notes like the crotchet or quaver? How was music first written down? Read more to find out.

Want to improve your music notation knowledge to an impressive Grade 8?

Learn these notes & symbols and impress your friends! More unusual notation will be featured in the next issue.

Neutral clef

This clef is used for pitchless instruments, such

as percussion instruments including drums,

cymbals, gongs, triangles and so on.

Alto clef

When this clef is used, it makes the centre line

of the stave middle C. This clef is very often

used in music written for the viola and cello.

Demisharp

This sharp raises the note by half a semitone, or

1/4 of a tone. Pianos cannot perform this as

the smallest interval on a piano is a semitone.

Semihemidemisemiquaver

This note has a value of 1/128 of a semibreve.

In other words, you can fit 128 of these notes

into the value of a semibreve.

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NOTATION AROUND THE WORLD

Indian bhat notation,

early 20th century Chinese guqin notation, 1425

Indonesian Surakata notation

for gamelan, modern day

Guitar chord fingering,

modern day

Klvarskribo notation for keyboards,

1930s

Banjo tablature fingering,

modern day

Graphic score,

modern day

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what’s ON IN LONDON Easter is now round the corner, and London is all abuzz with festivity. Here is a highlight of some of

the events taking part across the vibrant capital in April and May. Fun for the whole family!

My First Cinderella 27th Mar - 7th Apr. Peacock Theatre, Portugal St., London, WC2A 2HT

My First Cinderella tells everyone’s favourite rags-to-riches story in a beauti-

fully adapted version specially created for anyone aged three and over.

This show is part of a series that brings young audiences their first taste of

ballet through the magic of fairy tales, captivating music and beautiful

dance. In this performance, Prokofiev’s original ravishing score is accompa-

nied with narration to ensure that everyone enjoys this classic fairytale.

Hampstead Observatory: See The Stars Lower Terrace (near Whitestone Pond), Hampstead, London Until 14th Apr.

Hampstead Observatory has one major advantage over its more fa-

mous brother in Greenwich -- it allows the public to just turn up and see

the stars for free. You do not even have to book. As long as the skies are

clear, the observatory will open up for a few hours at the weekend and

allow people to take a peek at the stars. Budding astronomers will get

the chance to discover the beauty of the cosmos through their first-

class six-inch Cooke refracting telescope, and all viewing sessions are

manned by a demonstrator and an assistant who are both members of

the Hampstead Scientific Society.

CBeebies Live! Presents Justin & Friends 6th & 7th Apr. Wembley Arena, Arena Sq., Engineers Way, London HA9 0AA

Justin & Friends is the pre-school spectacular that simply does not

know when to stop having fun! With a show stuffed full of songs,

dance and comedy skits, Justin & Friends will be a fabulous family

treat for the Easter holidays. Joining Justin on the stage for singing,

dancing and hilarious comedy sketches will be some of the big-

gest stars from Britain’s most popular children’s channel CBeebies.

Justin & Friends promises to have children and parents dancing in

the aisles in this fantastic new arena show for children!

London Duck Tours: The James Bond Tour Duck Stop, Chicheley St., London SE1 7PY Every 3rd Sunday of the month

The James Bond Tour is a lively and fun-filled trip through the capital

by both land and sea. You will get to see some of the locations that

feature in the movies, including 'Q's workplace, where Bond bought

his boxer shorts, and even Ian Fleming's old home! The highlight of

the trip will be when the craft enters the water alongside the MI6

building, guided by your suave character guide as he leads you on

an adventure-packed journey of intrigue and espionage!

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All information regarding ticket prices, dates and venues in this listing are correct at the time of printing. They

might be, however, subject to change. Please check all relevant websites for any possible updates.

ROYAL OPERA HOUSE

SCHOOL TRIP

In the first half of the spring term, F2 and F3 students were treated to a cultural

experience at the Royal Opera House in Covent Garden to watch La bohème,

Puccini’s most famous operatic work. With tickets to the production usually

costing up to more than a hundred pounds each, St. John’s pupils were very

fortunate to be able to enjoy this world-class production for free of charge, as

part of the Royal Opera House’s education and outreach programme.

Throughout the performance, pupils were dazzled onstage with the variety of

regal costumes, fantastic sets, fake snow, and of course, impressive singing.

The show was staged in its original language of Italian, with subtitles displayed

above the proscenium arch to allow the audience to follow the plot. The

appreciative applause at the end of four acts struck an emotional resonance

with the entire cast, who clearly enjoyed performing to a young but

enthusiastic audience of schoolchildren.

Wallace and Gromit’s Musical Marvels 31st Mar - 1st Apr. HMV Hammersmith Apollo, 45 Queen Caroline St., London W6 9QH

Wallace & Gromit’s Musical Marvels is a live, interac-

tive show featuring classical favourites for all the

family plus specially filmed new Wallace and Gromit

animations. Audiences will experience the dynamic

duo’s backstage exploits as they prepare for the first

performance of Wallace’s brand new work, ‘My

Concerto in Eee, Lad’. A Matter of Loaf and Death is

also screened with live orchestral accompaniment.

The Three Little Pigs Greenwich Theatre, Croom’s Hill, London SE10 8ES 4th - 6th Apr.

Embark on an adventure with the three little pigs as they battle the big bad

wolf with their charming and witty ways! Filled with humour, this endearing

musical will leave you squealing with glee and howling with laughter. A real

coup for Greenwich, this is the European premiere of an exciting new family

musical, written by George Stiles and Anthony Drewe, the Olivier Award win-

ning writing team behind Honk!, Just So and the new songs written for the

2004 West End production of Mary Poppins.

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Andreas Koureas, F2

YOUNG MUSICIAN OF THE MONTH

Q: Hi Andreas, thank you for taking the time to speak to Music Matters.

Can you start by telling us what instruments you play?

A: I play the piano, harmonica, ocarina and I sing.

Q: The ocarina? That is an interesting instrument, tell us more.

A: It is similar to a flute, but it is not long in shape. It is hollow and

has 12 holes and is made out of ceramic. I discovered it when I went on the

internet and typed in “small instruments” and it came up. I then nagged my dad every-

day to get me one and he eventually bought one from me on Amazon.com!

Q: What an interesting tale! Do you take lessons on how to play the ocarina?

A: No, I just teach myself by following the book that came with the ocarina.

Q: Excellent! So, do you prefer the ocarina or the harmonica?

A: Probably the ocarina, because I have managed to learn more how to play more notes on the ocarina

and the harmonica. It is more complicated to play sharps and flats on the harmonica.

Q: Tell us more about your singing. Have you had lessons before? And where have you performed?

A: None as well! However, I have been involved with every school show each year since I was in Prep 1. I

have been fortunate to have been able to sing a solo part every year as well since Upper Transitus. My last

major performance with St. John’s was at the carol concert last year.

Q: Does singing run in your family? How do you think you compare?

A: Yes, it does. My mum did mention to me that my grandpa used to have a very nice voice. My sister Elizavet

in the senior school is also a great singer. I think my sister is probably better than me at singing though,

because she takes singing lessons and has more performing experience than me.

Q: So, do you have a plan to better yourself? And if so, how?

A: I would like to sing more when I am at home and improve my voice! And I am also considering taking

lessons at some point.

If you would like to train to be a singer or instrumentalist, speak to Dr. Rosswick and

she will point you to a suitable teacher for you to have lessons within St. John’s. The

school offers various teachers who will train you up for different types of exams that

suit your strength, including ABRSM, Trinity and LAMDA exams. Who knows, you just

might be the featured soloist at the next school concert!

bit.ly/7T5hXX

The ocarina is a wind instrument with between four to

twelve finger hours, and is traditionally made from clay or

ceramic. It produces a thin, whistling-like sound not

unlike the flute, but with slightly more clarity.

To watch an ocarina demonstration, you can either ask

Andreas nicely or head over to this link:

M U S I C M A T T E R S

Published by St. John’s Prep. School © 2013 Jonathan Ang