Issue 8 OFSTED May Contributors Mrs Petersen Mrs Routledge Mr Hughes Mr Wells Rebekah Weatherby Jake Bentley Helen Spacie.

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1 Issue 8 May 2015 Performing Arts Newsletter EIGHTH Newsletter Date Contributors Mrs Petersen Mrs Routledge Mr Hughes Mr Wells Rebekah Weatherby Jake Bentley Helen Spacie Layout Mr Wells Editor Mr Atkins ROBERT SMYTH ACADEMY Burnmill Road Market Harborough Leicestershire LE16 7JG T: F: E: office@rsacademy.co.uk W: It has been another busy term in the Performing Arts Faculty with lots of exciting events taking place. In February the second of the annual GCSE Concerts took place and we had a record number of acts performing to a sell-out audience in the Max. In March the dance department staged their annual Dance Show (co-inciding with our visit from Ofsted!) which showcased outstanding performances from our GCSE Dance students in years 10 and 11 as well as the RSA Dance Company. March also featured the AS Theatre Studies Practical Exam performances, GCSE Drama exams, and a range of extra-curricular music events: the Spring Concert, Rotary Young Musician Semi-final and Final, and Music for Youth Regional Festival. The academy was also recognised as a centre of excellence for arts award and we were visited by The Mighty Creatives. In April there was the National Concert Band Festival and as soon as we returned after Easter there was the A2 Drama Practical Exam performances and the GCSE Dance exam. Individual students have also been involved in various extracurricular performing arts activities outside of school and many were successful in exams, auditions and competitions. Further details of all these events can be found inside this newsletter. May will feature the annual Upper Sixth Leavers Concert where our talented A level musicians will be performing for the final time. In June the Jazz Band, Big Band and Soul Patrol will be going on a five-day tour to four countries: Belgium, Holland, Luxembourg and Germany, giving three concerts in the cities of Luxembourg and Maastrict amongst others. We are intending to stage a fund-raising concert for the tour towards the end of June; full details will soon be available on our website. Anyone able to help sponsor the tour in any way please contact hpetersen@rsacademy.co.uk. OFSTED 2015 Ofsted recognised all the excellent work in Performing Arts in their recent report when they visited the academy in March. Here are some of the quotes from the report: Many members of staff make valuable contributions to the academy s excellent extra-curricular programme, particularly in performing arts and sport. The curriculum and, in particular, the academy s excellent extra-curricular provision, make good contributions towards students social, moral, spiritual and cultural development and prepares them well for life in modern Britain. The academy s performing arts and sports programmes are well-regarded by students, parents, staff and the local community. The academy has several systems in place that encourage first-hand understanding of the principles of democracy, such as the house system and the councils established to oversee the sport and performing arts activities. Students value opportunities for charity fund-raising, participation in music, dance and sport. GCSE: When taken as a whole year group, students perform much better than their peers nationally in music. Achievement is very good overall in this area. Sixth Form: Very good progress was made in several subject areas, including music and music technology.

2 Flute Concert 2015 Page 2 On Thursday 12th March the annual RSA Flute Concert, organised by visiting peripatetic flute teacher Kathryn Cartwright, was held in the Main Hall. The concert featured the year 13 Flute Quartet as well as the years Flute Choir, both run by Kathryn Cartwright. In addition all the flute students performed a solo or duet item, accompanied by Kathryn Cartwright on the piano. Some of these items were pieces the students had performed in recent grade exams whilst others were GCSE and A level recital pieces. There was also a number of students performing who don t study music formally at GCSE and A level and it s great to see such a large number of these students also wanting to be involved in extra-curricular lessons, ensembles and performances. The performances were all of a very high standard and executed with real confidence. Well done to all the students who took part and to Kathryn Cartwright for organising the event. The students featured in the photo are: Back row: Sejal Assan (year 10), Rebecca Hix (year 12), Hannah Mance (year 12), Emily Moore (year 10), Hope Haynes- Coote (year 10), Andrew Martin (year 11), Megan Barnes (year 11), Niamh McGuire (year 11), Kiara Tooms (year 12) Front row: Sophie Gray, Anna Goodman, Louisa Smith, Rebecca Appleton (all year 13) National IDTA Theatre Awards 2015 We have received the following news from a parent: Robert Smyth students were recently nominated to attend the National IDTA theatre Awards in Manchester for achieving results ranging from between 90% and 94% in tap, ballet, theatre craft and modern exams at Woodcock Theatre Arts. The Robert Smyth students nominated are Bridie Green, Louisa Smith, Amber Plant, former RSA student Amy Glover, Amy Haddon, Adam Maclean and Phoebe Killworth. Only 300 candidates out of 6,000 are nominated so it was a massive achievement for these students to be chosen. Amber, Louisa, Adam and Phoebe all took part in the awards at the weekend and danced brilliantly. They were delighted to be able to take part and learnt a lot from the experience. Halllelujah! On the magical evening of the 30th April Robert Smyth Academy was barraged with the huge happening of hilarity called Halllelujah, the final act in the Hallraiser trilogy that initiated its first burst of comedy and music three years ago. Drums were banged, jokes distributed, laughs had, as were pizzas and ice cream. All to raise funds for Smyth s main hall; old and in great need of renovations beyond the grasp of normal people like us. Although we could help, and help we did, we helped by raising over 1000, which is to be doubled by Barclaycard thanks to the father of Comedy Clubbian India Ingram-Hawkes. Highlights include Andy Blackwell s stand-up debut with a powerful song about growing up, Alasdair Campbell s hilarious short videos on first world problems, the pizzas, and a 20 minute piece of Shakespearean surrealist theatre Spamlet. That is not forgetting Performing Arts Technician David Hadland s first ever raffle draw (he was a hoot!). It was a wonderful end to a three year trilogy, which will in total have raised nearly 4000 for the magical place that has allowed so many students to show off their awesome talents to the world.

3 Page 3 Platinum Award again for the RSA Big Band On Saturday 11th April the RSA Big Band competed in the National Concert Band Festival for Wind Bands and Big Bands at the Royal Northern College of Music. The festival is open to wind bands and big bands from junior schools, senior schools, county music services and universities as well as community bands. Each band has to play a minute programme and include at least one piece from a set list. Bands do not compete against each other but instead each band is judged on its own merit and awarded either Bronze, Silver, Gold or Platinum. There are five regional festivals held around the country in November each year from which all the Platinum winners and the best Gold winners go through to the National Festival. The RSA Big Band had achieved a Platinum Award at the Midlands regional round in November. This is the third time in the past four years that the RSA Big Band achieve a Platinum in the National Festival. In addition, two of the band members received an Outstanding Soloist Award: baritone saxophone player Toska Wonfor for her intelligent (to quote the adjudicator) improvised solos in Crunchy Frog and Six by Six and Flugelhorn player Bryony Wong for her memorised solo in My Funny Valentine. Many congratulations to all the band members for this outstanding result: Year 13: Sophie Gray (flute), Elliot Buchanan (alto sax I), Niamh West (alto sax II), Toska Wonfor (baritone sax), Bryony Wong (trumpet I/Flugelhorn), George Brabbs (trombone I), Rebekah Weatherby (piano), Greg Burns (drum kit) Year 12: Sophie Burleigh (trumpet III), Joe Horspool (trombone II), Tom Jenkins (trombone III), Jake Bentley (bass guitar), Jake Cartwright (guitar) Year 11: Esme Butler Davies (tenor sax I), Molly Sykes (trumpet II) Year 10: Emily Moore (tenor II) The 3 pieces the band performed were: Crunchy Frog by Gordon Goodwin, featuring solos from Toska Wonfor, Jake Bentley and Elliot Buchanan My Funny Valentine by Richard Rodgers, arr. Mike Smukal, featuring Bryony Wong Six By Six by Doug Beach, featuring a solo from Toska Wonfor Interview with David Cohen Each term the music department organises a trip to see Leicester Symphony Orchestra in concert at De Montfort Hall. The orchestra approached us last term to ask if any of our A level music students would be interested in leading the pre-concert talk for their most recent concert on Saturday 26 th April. AS Music student Jake Bentley volunteered : On a quiet Saturday afternoon I found myself sitting opposite one of the most talented young cellists in the world. This was no fluke; just weeks before I had volunteered to lead the pre-concert talk for the Leicester Symphony Orchestra s latest venture at De Montfort Hall. The cellist in question, David Cohen, has established a reputation for his charismatic and exciting approach so I was keen to treat the interview with care, devising questions beforehand that I felt would give a valuable insight into his successful career; a career that began when the Flemish musician was only a boy, making his solo debut with l Orchestre National de Belgique at the age of ten. Since then David Cohen has performed with a host of major Orchestras including the BBC Orchestra, and has received more than 25 international prizes and awards. It s fair to say that I was nervous, having never undertaken something like this, but David Cohen was charming and relaxed; my gentle probing uncovered a little more of his thoughts on his career so far and his approach to playing. I also asked about the piece he was to play that evening Shostakovich s First Cello Concerto and whether he found its difficulty intimidating or exhilarating. I was surprised to hear David Cohen reveal that the cello had not been his first choice. After trying a range of different instruments he had finally settled on the cello aged seven, receiving it as a Christmas gift (although he d really wanted a bike!). David Cohen also expressed his preference for collaborating with others, enjoying the feeling of interconnectedness it creates between the musicians on stage. The performance itself was intense and powerful with David Cohen demonstrating the full range of his virtuosic skills in what is one of the most demanding pieces for cello. It was a great evening and I thoroughly enjoyed the whole experience. - Jake Bentley, year 12

4 Page 4 Dance Congratulations! * Well done to Abigail Taylor B8 for gaining a place at The Central School of Ballet. This is a fantastic achievement!! Wishing you all the best in your classical training! * Congratulations to Anna Hazelton B12 for gaining a place at Addict Dance! * Well done to Chelsea Morley M7 who has been offered a place on the Performing Arts course at Leicester College and Melton. Well done to Helen Spacie B8 who has been offered a place in performance at BOA * Well done to all of the Year 11 dancers who performed in their GCSE dance moderation on the 20th April. Dance students were required to perform up to three practical dance pieces marked by the moderator and you all demonstrated the commitment and focus required to do well. Your hard work will be worth it! Now onto the written paper! * Well Done to Charlie Tatman P6 for gaining a place in West End Kids! He travels to London every Sunday to take part in various lessons in music, drama and dance taught by some of the best West End performers. This is a fantastic achievement! He will be performing in Trafalgar Square with the West End Kids Troupe. * Well done to Megan Ferguson W2 and Charlie Tatman P6 for gaining a place in the Regional semi-final dance competition! Piano Workshop with Richard Meyrick Pianist and A level Music student Rebekah Weatherby, who passed Grade VIII with Distinction last summer and will be studying for a degree in music from September 2015, writes about a piano workshop given by professional pianist Richard Meyrick at RSA earlier this academic year. This was the fourth time since 2004 that Richard has visited RSA and given workshops to our GCSE and A level pianists: Richard Meyrick, an internationally acclaimed virtuoso pianist, visited the academy on Monday 17th November to give a piano workshop to a group of GCSE and A level students. There were six pianists from years in the workshop, with many more A level Music students watching. At the start Richard gave an impressive performance on the piano and then each of the six players performed a short piece, with difficulty ranging from Grade V to VIII. After each piece was played Richard gave feedback to the pianist, providing advice on a range of playing techniques such as pedalling, expression and rhythm. I played a nocturne by Grieg, and Richard told me how to feel the beat, which will give more structure to the piece, and how to use more pedalling in one of the sections. Richard also posed challenging questions to us about our interpretations of the music and how we should approach playing every piece. He helped us all to see that it is important to consider why the composer wrote the music in a certain way, why we should play it like that whilst still showing your own personal interpretation of the music. I know performing to a concert pianist could be a nerve-racking experience for most students, but Richard gave us invaluable advice and help which I know made it an unforgettable experience for everyone involved! Rebekah Weatherby, year 13 Music for Youth Regional Festival On Sunday, 15th March Soul Patrol and the RSA Big Band took part in the Music for Youth Regional Festival at Lady Manners School in Bakewell, Derbyshire. Music for Youth is the largest music festival in the UK. Over 60 regional festivals are held throughout the country during February and March each year featuring about 1600 groups and over 20,000 young people from primary school age up to the age of 21. Both instrumental and vocal ensembles of all sizes and musical styles can enter the festival. There are no winners but each group receives written and oral feedback on the day from two music mentors who are themselves professional musicians. Although it is not a competition as such, there is the chance to progress from the regional festival through to the next stage. From the 1600 groups that have performed in the regional festivals across the country about 330 will be chosen for the National Festival in July and from there about 30 groups will be chosen for the Schools Proms at the Royal Albert Hall in November. Two of the members of Soul Patrol had written original songs especially for this festival. Taylor Burton, who plays piano in the band, had written a song entitled He Doesn t Know and vocalist Elliot Buchanan had composed a piece called Talk. The band received some excellent feedback on their material. The Big Band performed Crunchy Frog, a funk piece by Gordon Goodwin, and the swing piece Six by Six by Doug Beach. They received superb feedback from the adjudicator who was very impressed with the quality of their performance. We also submitted a recorded entry for the RSA Percussion Ensemble who received some excellent feedback on their performance of a piece entitled Bristol written especially for the ensemble by its director, Darron McHarg, who is also our peripatetic percussion teacher: Nice change in dynamics. Very good technique on melodies. Nice balance and very good phrasing. Good use of well controlled dynamics. Rhythmic work is very strong. Nice changes in textures. Ensemble work well as a unit and have very good technique on all instruments. This is a very thoughtful and musical performance.

5 Page 5 DanceMotion The RSA Dance show was once again a success with a range of dance performances and styles being showcased on the evening of Tuesday March 10th. There was a variation of solo dance performances and group work with the year 11 students performing their exam pieces. The RSA dance Company performed their latest piece Question Mark and the year 10 students demonstrated their choreography skills in a number of solos. Well done to all dancers, you were amazing! Arts Award News The academy has been recognised as a centre of excellence for arts award and we were visited by The Mighty Creatives on Wednesday 22nd March. They met some of the arts award students and viewed their portfolios. The team took photographs and filmed the Arts Award students in action and then interviewed Mrs Routledge, who told them about the success of the Arts Award within the academy. The film will be available to view on the Arts Award website at Practical & Theory Grade Exam Passes Congratulations to the following students who passed their grade exams last term. This information has been provided by peripatetic teachers, parents and students. For inclusion in future newsletters details of exam passes can be ed to hpetersen@rsacademy.co.uk. Trombone French Horn Joe Horspool Grade 8 Distinction Ana Pilcher May Grade 6 Pass Drum Kit Theory Jonny Nicholson Grade 8 Distinction Hannah Appleton Grade 5 Merit Ross Barnett Grade 5 Merit Violin Cello Elli Randon Grade 8 Merit Lachlan Lindsay Grade 7 Distinction Clarinet Piano Rebekah Weatherby Grade 8 Distinction Liam Hughes Grade 8 Merit Liam Hughes Grade 6 Distinction Andrew Martin Grade 7 Merit Hannah Appleton Grade 5 Merit Sophie Gray Grade 6 Pass Voice Molly Sykes Grade 5 Merit Stephanie Burns Grade 6 Merit Flute Ashley Cook Grade 6 Pass Andrew Martin Grade 6 Merit Eleanor Boxall Grade 5 Merit Izzy Jackson Grade 6 Merit Ella Soysa Grade 5 Pass Megan Barnes Rebecca Hix Grade 6 Merit Grade 6 Merit

6 Page 6 GCSE Dance Helen Spacie, who has recently been offered a place at BOA Birmingham Ormiston Academy, writes about her experience of studying GCSE Dance: From studying GCSE dance I have gained a wide breadth of knowledge ranging from how to choreograph a dance to how to make it exciting and engaging for an audience, as well as learning about professional dance works that have widened my vision on what is classed as contemporary dance. Over the two years I have enhanced and improved my technical ability. I have also learnt how to use expressive skills to show my personal style and feelings in dance. This is important to me as it ultimately makes a performance memorable and meaningful for the audience. -Helen Spacie, year 11 Success in Rotary Young Musician Final 2015 On Sunday 22nd March over 40 students competed in the Rotary Young Musician Final for District 1070 which covers the East Midlands. The final was held at Leicester Grammar School. Robert Smyth had been very successful in the semi-final three weeks previously and had therefore finalists in five of the six classes and was successful in winning two of these. In the senior instrumental ensemble class the piano trio Martello e Archi, featuring Rebekah Weatherby (piano), Emily Newlyn (violin), and Lachlan Lindsay (cello), scored 97/100 and thus won convincingly with their rendition of two pieces by Frank Bridge: the Miniature movements Valse Russe and Minuet. The trio was also chosen as the best overall ensemble of the day and was awarded with a shield as well as prize money. Adjudicator Comments for the Piano Trio Valse Russe by Frank Bridge Strongly forward character a natural mix of waltz step and expressive feeling. Strong piano, confident cello. Passing lines in ensemble connected efficiently. Good octave tuning. Lovely finish. Minuet by Frank Bridge Elegantly played pizzicato. Good attention paid to phrases and phrase endings. A balanced trio, properly dolce. Overall a lot of natural fluency and secure technique. Proper music making! In the senior instrumental group class the Jazz Band scored 98/100 and came joint first with Manor School Jazz Band. The RSA Jazz Band has been in the final every year since they first entered in 2006 and has won 7 times out of 10 possible in 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012, 2013, 2014 and now They were also chosen as the joint best overall group of the day and thus retained the shield which they have won for the past four consecutive years. Many congratulations to all the Jazz Band members for their superb performance and in particular well done to the students who featured as soloists (marked with *) in one of the pieces and who all got a special mention in the adjudicator s report. Flutes: Sejal Assan, Hope Haynes-Coote Clarinets: Liam Hughes, Louise Watson Alto saxes: Sophie Gray, Ellen Pollard, Esme Butler-Davies, Jane Earland Tenor saxes: Emily Moore, Scott Dean Baritone sax: Toska Wonfor* Trumpets: Molly Sykes*, Sophie Burleigh Trombone: Tom Jenkins, Joe Horspool Piano: Rebekah Weatherby*, Andrew Martin Guitar: Luke Cartwright, Colette Wale Bass Guitar: Jake Cartwright Percussion: Andrew Blackwell*, Jonny Randon, Marcus Gray Adjudicator Comments for the Jazz Band My Little Suede Shoes by Charlie Parker, arr. Mark Taylor A disciplined band, especially given the size. Strong sax section and solos, all very confident. A firm beat underlines your playing. Good internal balance, plenty of projection and enthusiasm. Lots of style and attitude. Moanin by Bobby Timmons, arr. Mark Taylor Again a lot of involvement and some internal spatial placing that works effectively. Strong keyboard and instrumental solos. Good dynamic shading. Ensemble and unison work largely convincing and tight. A lot of facility on show.

7 Performing Arts Clubs - Summer Term 2015 Monday ADVANCED FLUTES (Year13) Page Music Block Kate Cartwright STRING ENSEMBLE Music Block Mike Shaw RSA DANCE COMPANY The Max Mrs Routledge Tuesday SAX ENSEMBLE Music Block Francine Warner BRASS ENSEMBLE Music Block John Gornall FOLK GROUP Music Block 6 th form student led COMEDY CLUB Room 48 Chris Wells JAZZ BAND Music Block Mrs Petersen Wednesday ARTS COUNCIL Max Classroom Performing Arts Staff PERCUSSION ENSEMBLE Music Block Darron McHarg VERSATILE VOICES (choir) Music Block Debbie Smith Thursday FLUTE CHOIR (Years 10-12) Music Block Kate Cartwright GCSE MUSIC DROP-IN Music Block Mr Hughes ORCHESTRA Music Block Mrs Petersen LIGHT CLUB (fortnightly) Hammond Studio Dave Hadland Friday SOUL PATROL Music Block Mrs Petersen COMEDY CLUB Hammond Studio Chris Wells Audition/selection is only for Soul Patrol, Big Band, and The Dance Company. To join any of the other groups simply turn up at the next rehearsal.

8 Performing Arts Events Calendar 2015 SUMMER TERM Friday, 22nd May 7.00 pm Upper Sixth Leavers Concert Venue: The Max, RSA Monday 29th June Friday 3rd July Jazz Band, Big Band & Soul Patrol tour to four countries (Holland, Belgium, Luxembourg & Germany) ROBERT SMYTH ACADEMY Burnmill Road Market Harborough Leicestershire LE16 7JG T: F: E: W: GCSE Concert 2015 The second GCSE Music concert of the year occurred on Thursday 27th of February and once again displayed the amazing amount of talent we have in the Academy amongst those studying GCSE Music. We had a whopping 21 different acts all crammed into 105 minutes! It was really great to see so many flute performances this time, four in total! Sejal Assan performed her flute piece without any music, having memorised it. We had the usual array of singers with backing tracks or acoustic accompaniment, which provided us with high quality performances throughout the evening to a hushed audience. Amirah Bobat and Lola Pap sang a gospel duet that blew everyone away; Abi Wright played a Grieg Nocturne with real musical flair despite having only been playing the piano for two years; Eleanor Boxall wowed us with an Ella Fitzgerald song having decided only at the last minute to actually perform! The list goes on. The concert was sold out yet again and the audience was on fine form with silence and cheering at appropriate points throughout the evening. Photos and videos of the performances are available on the academy website under the news and events section. The next GCSE concert will be coming up in October during Arts Week, we hope to see you there. Our Proud Sponsors Visit us online: