MUSIC
TERESA LAVERS ( ON PIANO ) WITH OTHER MUSIC STAFF IN PERFORMANCE
PIANO COMPETITION RISES
Event attracts a record number of entries
This has been a year of cancellations and postponements for the Scotch Music Department , as it has been for many areas of the School . Even in the few weeks we were working on campus , in between lockdowns , the James Forbes Academy seemed like a ghost town .
Walking through the corridors , I missed seeing boys on their way to lessons , hurrying or dawdling according to character . I especially missed the Junior School boys , with their earnest expressions , some carrying cellos on their backs bigger than themselves , like carapaces . I missed the cheerful cacophony of different musical instruments emanating from the teaching rooms . I even missed hearing beginner oboists in Room 2.07 , next to the staff room , and I never thought that would happen .
It was comforting to know that lessons were still happening via Zoom , that young musicians were still developing their skills , but it was sad not to witness the fruits of their labours in quite the same way , as concert after concert had to be postponed and then cancelled .
This was meant to be a Piano Festival year , but most of the event had to be cancelled along with everything else . However ,
I was determined that young pianists would get at least some opportunities in this rather bleak year , and , with the support of John Ferguson , my piano staff and I decided to push on with the piano competition in an online format .
The Scotch College Piano Competition has been a regular part of the Piano Festival for several years , and is now known as one of the major contests for young pianists in the country . It is open to all Victorian secondary students , and attracts pianists of the highest calibre , as well as offering significant prize money .
This year , Kawai Australia as usual sponsored the first prize of $ 1500 , the Scotch College Music Auxiliary donated the third prize of $ 500 and the second prize of $ 1000 was generously sponsored by Angela Li , a Scotch parent and Head of the Music Auxillary , to whom I offer grateful thanks . Angela is a fitting sponsor for the competition , being herself an excellent pianist , while her daughter , Adoria , was the first prize winner at the inaugural Scotch College Piano Competition back in 2012 .
There was a record number of entries for the competition in 2020 , no doubt because most other music competitions were cancelled . Competitors uploaded their performances to YouTube ,
48 Great Scot Issue 161 – December 2020