Grammar Gazette- Issue 1, 2004

Leadership in the Music Department

One of the most important tasks of the Year 11 girls during Term IV is to select the music captains for the following year. This is completed after a period of discernment, which involves the organisation of the Farewell Concert and an official voting process. The music captains for 2004 (pictured) are Sally Biggins (choral), Denise Cheung (band) and Francesca Hiew (strings). The year has started with much enthusiasm and anticipation for the musical year to come. Throughout the Year levels the participation rate has continued to increase, which demonstrates the great support

for the music programme. Music has proved to be an excellent activity for interaction across the Year levels providing many opportunities for girls to meet friends beyond their House and Year. The role of the music captains is to ensure that the students always feel involved and enjoy the groups they participate in. It is important that all students, especially the Year 8s, feel comfortable and valued in their ensembles. To achieve this, a positive and fun atmosphere is created by the music captains and staff. Many of the former music captains have become professional musicians and are practising in various parts of the world. We are indeed fortunate to have such a wealth of talent in the music department at Brisbane Girls Grammar School and the extensive variety of opportunities that enable girls to fully explore their talents.

Visitors from Lycee Saint Paul Leadership is about creating a vision and values, and Brisbane Girls Grammar School has been a leader in language education since the School began. To make the theory of language learning into a living reality, to encourage communication and

human contact that are fundamental to language, this School has led the way in establishing links with schools in the countries of the four modern languages taught here.

This year we celebrate 15 years of contact and exchange with Lyc é e Saint Paul in Angoul ê me France, and in February we welcomed staff and students from this School for a two-week visit. Hosted by Girls Grammar families, their time here has included working with French classes in the School, studying some iconic Australian films, visiting tourist destinations in the area, and also establishing friendships with their Australian peers. Experiencing common ground as well as differences is an important part of understanding how we may be able to live amicably in a troubled world.

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