WE’RE LOOKING FOR TRUSTEES
For further details please email: aspiringyoungmusicians@gmail.com
Sylvia Duff
Drama
Sylvia, with her rich and varied teaching experience across all age groups, has always incorporated aspects of Drama to engage students and deepen their personal and intellectual skills.
She continues to teach students using:
- NZ Speech and Drama syllabus
- NZ Public Speaking and Communication Syllabus
- Trinity College of London Syllabus
…with high achievement rates.
Sylvia has a B.A. Otago [Theatre Studies], and a Graduate Diploma in Second Language Teaching. Directing whole school musicals, plays [including Sheilah Winn Shakespeare], and devising themed work across primary, secondary and community theatrical societies, continues to be a particular passion.
For Sylvia, drama has been, and continues to be an integral part of her life.
Alastair Monteath
Trumpet
Alastair has over 30 years teaching experience and is a fully qualified secondary school teacher and also holds a Fellowship from the Trinity College of Music, London. He specialises in teaching children performance music and has conducted school groups around New Zealand and taken groups overseas. A number of his students have become NZ champions, worked and played in top orchestras in NZ and throughout the world. He travels from Roxburgh to teach in a number of secondary schools in the Central Otago and Queenstown Lakes districts.
Jacob Smith
Guitar, Bass, Ukulele
Jacob has been playing guitar since a teenager and self taught. Played with Tess & The Travelling Hearts. Interested in all genres. He’s also the person to go to for guitar and string repairs.
Kate O’Connell
Keyboard, Ukulele, Introduction to music
Kate is a qualified secondary music teacher who has a long career in Secondary Music education, where she’s taught 9-13 Music, has conducted choirs, large school bands and has been involved in musicals.
She loves organizing music events and loves dabbling in Jazz piano and trumpet in her spare time. After a recent two-year head of Music role in an International school in S E Asia, she has also moved into Primary and Middle school education, where she believes music is a great connector, an important creative outlet and a happiness magnet for kids, whether it be playing an instrument, singing or movement to music.
Pete Stevenson
Guitar, Bass
Pete teaches guitar at a number of local primary and secondary schools in the district. He plays in the local Wanaka band, Rockhopper, playing a range of music from smooth grooves, acoustic sets to hard out rock, old favorites and original music.
Senior Students
We have senior Mount Aspiring College students support our teachers in some of the group classes. They get to showcase their musical skills to our young students whilst learning new skills in how to teach and share their musical knowledge. Our students love their energy and enthusiasm in the classes.