Gazette January 2020
49
S E N I O R S C H O O L M U SIC
Champion of Champions
The Prep School Band starts in Year 3 with a full range of instruments, from double reeds to low brass and is also incredibly impressive, setting the bar high. In particular, King’s Symphonic Band is multi-award winning, developing its own unique sound and reaching semi-professional standards. King’s is also fortunate to currently possess wonderful soloists in both the Chamber Strings and Symphonic Band, which form a critical mass of excellence, lifting the profile of the ensembles. In the last year, The King’s School’s Music Department has seen a significant amount of musical excellence. Several boys from the Senior School Symphonic Band entered the NSW Band State Championships in the Solo Section. King’s was the most prized school in this event, receiving 7 State Champions in their respective instruments, across different sections and age-based categories. Such instrumental categories included trombone, percussion, French horn, flutes, and clarinets. One student who achieved above and beyond was Justin Wang, winning the Under 19 clarinet section. He then went on to compete with all other winners from their respected band instruments in the ‘Champion of Champions’ competition, an
extremely high calibre event, featuring the top soloists in NSW. Justin brilliantly won the title of NSW Champion of Champions, especially impressive as he is only 15 years of age. Playing the clarinet since he was 10 years old, Justin shares about his achievement stating, “Winning this competition meant a lot and has positively affected my confidence. I practice really hard, both at home and at School and am happy to see my efforts have paid off.” He wants to pursue a potential career in performance of music at University after King’s, with orchestral or solo opportunities being his dream. We are very blessed to have a critical mass of very-high level music students at King’s, whether at Senior or Prep they are setting the bar high and creating a peer group of excellence in their field of endeavour.
Dr Jeremy Eskenazi Piano accompanist
