On Thursday 15 May, Bishop Druitt College was fortunate enough to have Michael Dolce from The Voice visit and run a series of workshops and masterclasses with a range of music students. Michael is the house guitarist on the tv show The Voice and has worked with amazing artists such as Kylie Minogue, Seal, Keith Urban and more.
Michael ran a guitar masterclass during periods 1 and 2; workshopped rock songs with the Secondary Rock Band during periods 3 and 4 and provided feedback on some of our HSC student Major Works during periods 5 and 6. At lunchtime, various students performed in a concert for Michael.
Michael loves our College and says he feels like home when he visits. The students had a great day and found the experience both enjoyable and valuable. Thank you, Michael!
I am pleased to announce that our Friday lunchtime concerts are making a return after a large interest from our students. For this term, the concerts will be held every second Friday and then we will re-evaluate in Term 3 depending on when the new Performing Arts space is available.
Our first concert this term was presented by Highly Strung who performed their Eisteddfod piece, followed by Tim Hardman and Lilli Cruwys who performed 4 duets.
Thank you to those students who performed and also to those who attended.
Congratulations to all of the students who have performed across a range of disciplines in the Coffs Harbour Eisteddfod so far. We have had many BDC students achieve great success individually in the Vocal, Drama and Instrumental sections with dance still to come.
From the Schools sections so far, congratulations to the following ensembles on their achievements:
Year 3-6 Choir: Primary Performance Choir - 2nd Place
Years 5-6 Choir: Grace Notes - 1st Place
K-2 Choir: Joy Choir - 2nd Place
Secondary Schools: BDC Resonate - 1st place, and BDC Elevate - 3rd place
Primary schools Section: Superstrings - 2nd place, and Suzuki Strings - 3rd place
High Schools Section: Highly Strung - Highly Commended
Year 7/8 Music Class Group: Sofia Bravo, Zitong Lin and Sophia Walraven - 1st place
Year 9/10 Music Class Group: Matthew Healy and Patrick Bower - 1st place, and Rock Band - Highly Commended
On Tuesday 27 May, our HSC Music students performed one of their major works in a concert for family, staff and friends.
Courses including Music 1, Music 2 and Extension were represented and the audience was treated to a variety of instruments and performances from a range of styles of music.
Thank you to our accompanists for the evening, Mei Wei Lim and Cassandra Legetti.
Thank you to the students who performed at the BDC Open Day on Tuesday 27 May: The Secondary Jazz Band as well as Camble Scott (Year 12), Matthew Healy (Year 10), Patrick Bower (Year 10), Ila Greenaway (Year 10), and Bella Mellalieu (Year 10).
Also thank you to the Arts Captains, Ella-Grace Chowdhury and Camble Scott, for talking to parents and guests and attending the tours.
Barry Borchart from Woolgoolga generously donated a custom-made, left-handed 31-string harp to the BDC Music Faculty. A retired cabinet maker, Barry undertook this project inspired by instructions he sourced from the US. Over the course of 12 months, working occasionally, he meticulously crafted each piece using Australian timbers, employing various techniques to ensure optimal sound quality. These are Tasmanian King Billy Pine in the sound-board and the sturdy frame was built with Queensland’s Mackay Red Cedar.
Beyond his harp, Barry has also crafted a grandfather clock entirely from wood, intricately assembling gears, pendulum, and case. His latest endeavour involved completing a handmade ukulele.
Before presenting his donation to myself, alongside Arts Captains Camble Scott and Ella Chowdhury, Barry admired the diverse collection of musical instruments in the classroom. He expressed great satisfaction in knowing his harp would be among such esteemed company.
Congratulations to Sophia Walraven who was accepted into the NSW Regional Youth Orchestra earlier this term. This is a wonderful achievement for Sophia and a great opportunity for her. Well done Sophia.
Recently we nominated some of our students who are outstanding young musicians to audition for the Queensland Conservatorium Griffith University Australian Honours Ensemble Program 2025. This year they received 695 auditions and we are pleased to announce that Julius Taylor was accepted into the AHEP Program for cello. Congratulations Julius.
Thank you to Jude Jessup (Year 7) and Sarah Jupe (Year 12) who performed Fix You by Colplay at the Week 3 Secondary Assembly.
Friday 6th June Schools Dance Eisteddfod
Monday 23rd June EYE Week - all week
Friday 27th June Foundation Day
Rebecca Day
Head of Performing Arts
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