Introducing our 2024 music scholars and fellows

Each year, through the generosity of the Scotch College Foundation, we are able to invest in the future of Scotch Music by offering music scholarships and fellowships to both prospective and current students.

Music scholarships and fellowships encourage and reward talented and skilled musicians for their hard work, dedication, and commitment to the pursuit of their musical craft. Our scholarships and fellowships aim to nurture excellence in music by providing recipients with access to high quality musical instruction, resources, and support systems as well as extra performances, masterclasses, workshops, and extension ensemble engagement.

Our music scholars and fellows have leadership and mentoring responsibilities among the wider music community. Not only do they need to consistently achieve high standards of musical performance, but they have an obligation to establish a culture of excellence in the way our community of musicians relates.

Our 2024 music scholars:

Seth Loveday: piano, percussion

Thomas Lovegrove: cello, voice

Tenney Yu: piano, clarinet

Maxime Tompkin: viola

Allan Tan: cello, drum set, piano

Lucas Huang: violin, piano

Our 2024 music fellows:

Year 12

Adrian Garbowski: baritone saxophone

Alec Prendiville: flute

Hugo Silbert: tenor saxophone

Year 11

Heath Arbuckle: flute, violin

Year 10

Benjamin Hofmann: trombone

Angus Oakeley: percussion

Year 9

Eugene Cha: percussion

Frederick Chaney: drum set (jazz)

Zachary Ng: violin

Oberon Smith: tuba, trombone

Year 8

Jayden Chan: violin

Remy Collison: French horn

Barsa Haydari-Manesh: trumpet

Charlie Mengler: viola

Year 7

Eric Deng: violin, piano

Rowan Sundaresan: voice

Oliver Byrne: drum set (jazz)

Jake Ognenis: baritone saxophone

Intersection

Intersection was once again a huge success for the Performing and Creative Arts students and staff.

An exciting evening of interdisciplinary artistry which showcased the artistic collaboration between Scotch College and Presbyterian Ladies’ College students across different Arts disciplines. Featuring multiple contemporary dance and drama performances, sonic installations, electronic music, light projections, Indie music performance, a live painting installation and a gaming station with computer games and soundtracks created by students. Intersection was a sensory feast brought to life by students from different disciplines who came together to create new and innovative works. This was an event not to be missed!

Ms Sarah Combes

Curriculum LeaderThe Arts

The global pandemic shined a light on the true value of the Arts to our lives.

We all turned to the entertainment and creative activities to distract ourselves, not only as consumers but as participants in order to find social connection, perspective, and hope, in times of great uncertainty. Reflecting on this time, and looking forward to the future, it is evident that the Arts and cultural learning are now more important than ever for the health of local and global communities. This is true for young people especially, whose cultural engagement and identity is increasingly shaped by algorithms, and their once fertile imagination risks of being stifled by a visually driven monoculture. As young people are the future producers of culture, we need empathetic, creative, and critical thinkers who use the Arts as a safe space to explore issues and ideas, question values and share diverse, unifying stories.

One of the most rewarding aspects of being an arts teacher is to witness students discover their passion, practice their skill, and then build their own story, something new to share with the world. This year saw Old Scotch Collegian Finn Harold OSC 2023 and Nicholas Verryn OSC 2020 continue their creative journey beyond school and achieve great success for their contribution to the arts.

As Drama Captain, Honors recipient, and cast in the leading role of Jim Hawkins in Treasure Island, it came as no surprise that Finn Harold would perform exceptionally in his ATAR Drama Practical Exam. Upon receiving one of the highest marks in the state for his Candidate’s Choice Monologue, Finn was then invited to audition for a coveted place in the 2023 Performing Arts Perspectives, an annual event which showcases the highest standard of student performance and provides benchmarks of excellence in the performing arts. After making it successfully through the audition stage, Finn was selected to be one of the eight students to perform on one of the grandest stages in the country, the Perth Concert Hall. It was a truly remarkable moment to behold, especially when looking back to six months ago when Finn’s original work began as a small spark of an idea which evolved through countless hours of development, practice, and more practice.

Shortly after the announcement of Finn’s success came the very exciting news that Nicholas Verryn’s short film ‘Verge Collection’ was awarded both the $10,000

West Australian Short Film Prize and the $5,000 People’s Choice Prize in a nationwide Short Film competition. This powerful documentary film paid tribute to the verge collection, taking a nostalgic look at uncovering the history and emotional stories attached to discarded items. The beautifully crafted work captured the hearts and imagination of thousands of viewers who cast their vote in support of the film. Nicholas’s passion and talent for filmmaking was fostered and developed through the Scotch College Media Programme. After completing the IB Diploma in Film, Nicholas went on to pursue further study of film at Notre Dame where he and a team of film makers created Verge Collection as part of the University’s Advanced Screen Production. He now runs his own film production business Envyus Media (@ envyusmedia).

While not all students who study an Arts subject will go on to be actors, filmmakers, musicians, visual artists or designers, they will be armed with a unique skill set of creativity, innovation and communication, that will prove vital for success no matter what their career pathway. And while it is our responsibility as educators to prepare students for the workforce, an education in the arts will achieve this and so much more.