Living nearly 500 kilometres from Adelaide hasn’t stopped Kimba Area School music teacher Anna Davidson from encouraging her students to play on the big stage at the Festival of Music.

In September, students Charlotte and Christopher will perform in the orchestra pit at the Adelaide Entertainment Centre alongside 80 other young musicians. Given the vast road distance, making the weekly journey to Adelaide for rehearsals isn’t possible. Instead, Anna and the students have embraced the power of technology, hitting the right notes by practicing trumpet and saxophone over Zoom.

Anna says it has been great to stay connected virtually with conductors and orchestra members each week and learn the repertoire alongside others – an opportunity that is not often available for regional and remote musicians.

Taking part in the ensemble has seen ‘a marked improvement in both students’ skills and confidence at performing on their instruments”, says Anna.

Earlier this year the 2 students, supported by Anna, enjoyed a face-to-face opportunity to rehearse in Adelaide alongside some members of the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra as part of a pre-festival workshop.

A grand opportunity

The Primary Schools Festival of Music has a long and proud history, having grown from the Thousand Voice Choir way back in 1891. It now reaches thousands of primary and secondary students and provides young people with opportunities to perform at prestigious venues in Adelaide.

About 250 schools across South Australia have their own 'Festival of Music' choirs.

participating in the 4 Adelaide contents this year, there are:

• 5,500 students singing
• 80 students rehearsing in a ‘super-sized’ orchestra
• 60 students attending dance rehearsals for the performance troupe
• 8 young hosts busily preparing scripts for the 4 festival concerts
• 16 guest artist performers and ensembles from primary and secondary schools.

In addition, there are another several thousand students who are involved in one of the 8 regional Festival of Music concert series’ around the state.

The orchestra that the Kimba Area School students perform in comprises young musicians from years 5 to 11.

Festival of Music Director of Music Robyn Filmer says the festival program is engaging, challenging and – best of all – fun!

‘What makes this so special for our students is that they perform in one of Adelaide’s best venues,’ Robyn says.

‘They get to experience this spectacular performance on stage in a large arena with professional lighting and sound. They work with musicians, dancers and hosts – and they feel the excitement of performing in front of a full audience.

‘Witnessing the impact that this experience can have on a child is so rewarding – to see the joy and happiness on their faces is priceless!’