News from our IB Diploma Coordinator, Patrick Lyons
People in IB World Schools often use the phrase “living the learner profiles”. What they are referring to is getting past posters on a wall and words in official documents and actually creating a community where all of these attributes are part of what people do consistently in their everyday lives. Last night’s Collaborative Theatre Showcase was evidence that at GAA, we are living the learner profiles. Of the many examples of this I could give, here is a selection.
Knowledgeable – During talk-back sessions, Theatre students educated their audience on dramatic cycles, the Stanislavski method and much more besides.
Balanced – The whole Arts department took the opportunity of the Theatre event to showcase Visual Art and Music as well.
Communicators – Two of our Grade 11 Music students communicated sincere, personal emotion through the medium of song.
Risk-takers – The Grade 11 Art students displayed works in progress, allowing an insight into the creative process.
Reflective – We heard a composition reflecting the emotions of one of our Grade 12 Music students felt on seeing the tragic death of an infant Syrian refugee.
Caring – GAAPA’s generous assistance catering the event was greatly appreciated.
Thinkers – The Grade 11 play explored sophisticated concepts of desire, ambition and reflection.
Principled – The Grade 12 play led the audience to challenge their approach to the use of social media in their lives.
Inquirers – Playwrights, actors, the crew and their audience engaged in intellectual discussion and debate in talk-back sessions after both performances.
Open-minded – All our Theatre students in both grades talked of the value of accepting and incorporating the ideas of others even when it felt uncomfortable.
I would like to thank our Arts Department, parents and students for demonstrating exactly how we really ‘live’ the learner profiles. We live them through collaboration.
Paddy Lyons
IB Diploma Coordinator
Knowledgeable – During talk-back sessions, Theatre students educated their audience on dramatic cycles, the Stanislavski method and much more besides.
Balanced – The whole Arts department took the opportunity of the Theatre event to showcase Visual Art and Music as well.
Communicators – Two of our Grade 11 Music students communicated sincere, personal emotion through the medium of song.
Risk-takers – The Grade 11 Art students displayed works in progress, allowing an insight into the creative process.
Reflective – We heard a composition reflecting the emotions of one of our Grade 12 Music students felt on seeing the tragic death of an infant Syrian refugee.
Caring – GAAPA’s generous assistance catering the event was greatly appreciated.
Thinkers – The Grade 11 play explored sophisticated concepts of desire, ambition and reflection.
Principled – The Grade 12 play led the audience to challenge their approach to the use of social media in their lives.
Inquirers – Playwrights, actors, the crew and their audience engaged in intellectual discussion and debate in talk-back sessions after both performances.
Open-minded – All our Theatre students in both grades talked of the value of accepting and incorporating the ideas of others even when it felt uncomfortable.
I would like to thank our Arts Department, parents and students for demonstrating exactly how we really ‘live’ the learner profiles. We live them through collaboration.
Paddy Lyons
IB Diploma Coordinator
The GAA Secondary Arts Department has been hard at work and engaging students this semester in work that is both Creative and academically challenging. From Field trips to concerts, workshops and master classes students have been provided with multiple opportunities to be creatively engaged. As you read more about what has happened this semester it should provide you with a taste of what is to come as we look forward.
Department wide we started the presentation of our work with the Grade 6 Arts Showcase, which features the work of our youngest students in the secondary school. This Arts Showcase was created last year, as an extension of the Grade 6 Arts rotation course in which students are not with a particular teacher for the full year, but instead for only 9 weeks.
The Grade 6 Arts Showcase has quickly become a featured event at GAA as it has quickly proven to be an instrumental community building tool for our students, their parents and their teachers. With that, we extend a word of thanks to all of those who have shown enthusiastic support for what this program does.
Our second rotation of the Grade 6 Arts Showcase will be held after the break in January.
Theatre Studies
Mr. Kyle Carlin –
IBDP Theatre 2, HS Beginning Acting, Grade 8 Theatre, Grade 7 Theatre
In the Beginner Acting class, students have been exploring the methods used by the Trestle Mask Theatre Company and the function of their basic masks set. Students have inquired about the techniques and rules involved in using these special masks for performance. They underwent extensive workshops in physical theatre in order to develop skills in bodily expression and so they could learn how to effectively communicate a story without relying on voice. Students have learned the techniques of clocking, passing focus and balancing the stage, three essential components for creating effective masked performances. Students have begun to devise their own short plays that will showcase these skills and performance techniques to a guest audience next Monday.
This week IBDP Theatre 2 students presented a work based on a short vignette that they presented at last year’s Arts Festival. “REFRESH” is intended to expose the effects of social media on the lives of individuals who engage in it. One memorable highlight about this work is the fact that these students conducted a 24 hour experiment in which they refrained from the use of smart phones or social media in efforts to gather source material. These students presented a array of theatrical ideas in this play and in their Audience talk back expressed that they are still in the process of refining this work before it is presented to IB Theatre Examiners. Let’s all encourage these students as they push forward to refining their work to fit the IB Theatre exam criteria and the completion of their course. Kudos to Mr. Carlin for encouraging these students to experiment with a variety of theatrical ideas and conduct a vital practical research experiment for this work.
Ms. Yvette McGregor –
IBDP Theatre 1, HS Theatre Performance I & II, Grade 6 Drama
Ms. McGregor’s students have been particularly busy this semester. In October these students had the opportunity to experience live professional Theatre. Shakespeare’s “TEMPEST” was presented to students at the Abu Dhabi Theatre on October 17th and included an artists “talk back” allowing students to ask questions of the actors and directors. This was an especially valuable experience as it was the first time for many of our students to see live professional theatre in action.
On Sunday and Monday of last week the IBDP 1 Theatre students made an incredible impact on students, teachers and parents with their Year 1 Collaborative Theatre Project entitled "PERSPECTIVE”. This fine piece of work was so moving, in fact, that students and teachers who were in attendance expressed having been ‘moved to tears” by what they had experienced. The is play was presented a second time along with the IBDP 2 Theatre student project. After the pressure of performing to an audience of their peers last week, this second performance was characterized by a greater sense of confidence, calm and preparation. The intent of this work is to bring awareness to the audience of the importance of having a balanced view of ones present, ones future and ones past. The idea is that to be too overly decided, anxious, regretful; and too lacking in flexibility, balance and gratitude is to risk missing out on the best parts of or lives. With refined line delivery, blocking, scene changes, and technical staging this second performance was not only solidly presented, but also incredibly effective. Ms. McGregor’s background of professional experience is really propelling these students in an execrated way.
Ms. McGregor also made available for her students a visit by a guest Teaching Artist, Mr. Shawn Kinley (www.shawnkinley.com). Kinley, a Professional Mime and Stage Combat artist has amongst his credits a successful career on stage with Cirque Du Solei. Ms. McGregor invited Mr. Kinley to GAA to conduct an exciting and engaging Master Class for Theatre Performance I and IBDP Theatre students.
Mr. Kinley taught and demonstrated basic level stage combat techniques including the mechanics of properly and safely executing a stage slap, stage hair pulling and a stage kick. This, of course, was presented with careful instruction on the how, when and way of appropriately incorporating this type of choreography in a drama or theatre performance. Students were also delighted to learn a few basic and foundational practices of mime performance. This was a seriously fun class!
Another noteworthy program is has been happening with the Theatre Performance I & II classes: After studying the Broadway musical, “West Side Story”, students spent significant time writing in depth character analysis and culminated their work with the performance of two contrasting scenes from the musical. Students have proven to do excellent work with this unit of study as they incorporated their understanding of substitution (an acting method) when performing.
The Annual Spring Theatre Production is well under way as well. Ms. McGregor held auditions and the casting process for the musical theater production of “LITTLE SHOP” which is to be presented in on the GAA Theatre Main Stage. Over 60 students presented themselves for audition to a panel of 6 adjudicators. The show was set with an incredible cast of 30, rich with talent. The performance dates are March 14, 15, 16 and 17th. Don’t miss seeing this show! It’s full of fun and show tunes you will be humming long after the show is over. See you in the audience; March 2017!
Ms. Kelley Taylor –
Grade 7 Theatre
“TWELVE ANGRY SHEEP!” The students from Ms. Taylor’s Grade 7 Theatre class are collaborating on an adaptation of the famous play “Twelve Angry Men”. This courtroom drama tells the story of a jury of 12 men, or in this case, sheep who are charged with the duty of deciding whether a fellow citizen is guilty or innocent of a crime. The adaptation that these students are presenting is a much lighter and fun version of the original so it should be entertaining for audiences of all ages. The date of the presentation will be announced to family members of Ms. Taylor’s grade 7 students.
Instrumental Music
Mr. Dave Holland –
IBDP Music 1 & 2, Jazz Band, HS Concert Band, MS Beginner Band
It’s been a phenomenally busy month with the Instrumental Music program and here are just a few of the events and achievements from the month of November:
Winter Concert
Musicians from Grades 7-12 took to the stage on Monday, 28th November to present the very best of their current repertoire at this exciting annual event.
This year’s concert featured performances from our Middle School Beginner Band, Middle School Advanced Band, High School Concert Band, High School Jazz Band, GAA Big Band and a number of smaller student-led ensembles. Many of the younger students joined the music program in September and this was a wonderful opportunity to celebrate their achievement as well as that of our more experienced instrumentalists.
There was an obvious theme of collaboration throughout the evening as students from middle and high school combined under the musical direction of Ms. Kelley Taylor and Mr. Dave Holland.
Thank you to the parents, relatives and staff that attended this event and we look forward to doing it all again in the 2017 at our Spring event.
IB Diploma Music - Lunchtime Concert Series
Students from the Grade 11 IB Diploma Music class presented the first of their Lunchtime Concert Series on Monday, 28th November. This is a student-led project that aims to get music out of the classroom and into the wider school community. They entertained students from Grade 1 through to Grade 12 with solo and group performances. As we enter the New Year, they hope to make this a regular event. In a touching conclusion to this fantastic event, students from the Elementary School wrote letters of thanks to the class.
Tunes on Tuesday
In the midst of the concert preparation, our after school music offering has continued in the foyer every Tuesday. This has included performances from the joint HS Jazz Band and GAA Big Band on the 22nd November and a trio featuring Mini Park, Hannah Sudarsan and Sieun Kim on the 15th November. This short performance is an excellent opportunity for students and parents to catch a glimpse of the music that is taking place on a daily basis at GAA. A huge thank you to the students that have taken their time to be involved in these events as it often means catching the late bus home in order to deliver 10 minutes of entertainment as our community finish a long day of learning.
IBDP 2 Music students also had musical compositions presented which filled the theatre space with an artful environmental ambiance that was appropriate for the evening. One particular composition effectively communicated the struggle, grief, pain and eventual joy inspired by the life of a young Syrian refugee.
Association of Music in International Schools (AMIS)
Hunter Keith (G11) has successfully auditioned to become the ‘Reserve Tenor Saxophone Player’ for the Association of Music in International Schools (AMIS) Honor Band. If called up, he will attend the residential performance in Luxembourg in 2017. He is only the third music student from a GEMS school to achieve this success following Yuki Kaneko and Hyunseo Park last year. The AMIS audition process is rigorous and the successful musicians represent the best musicians from International Schools globally.
National Day
Another vote of thanks goes to students from the High School Concert Band. Twenty-four students were on call throughout our National Day celebrations on the 29th November to perform the National Anthem at various times. They once again demonstrated their professionalism by sacrificing ‘shawarma time’ to perform to capacity audiences in the auditorium. Well done.
Martyr’s Day
Mr. Dave Holland led students from our Elementary School as they sang the National Anthem in honour of Martyr’s Day on Wednesday, 30th November.
The Secondary Arts Department offers a huge thank you to everyone that has supported the Instrumental Music program this term!
Ms. Kelley Taylor –
MS Advanced Band, MS Beginner Band,
The band program is hitting all the right notes! During Quarter 1 the band class learned to play flute or trombone. Students made progress fast starting from the beginning with how to assemble the instrument to an impressive performance on November using 6 notes and compound rhythms.
Kelley Taylor’s Middle School Beginner band opened the Instrumental Music Winter Concert with an entertaining demonstration of their progression from their first days in the music class to what they know now. The beginners then continued with several small demonstrations of their newly developed skills in a variety of ensemble configurations. Ms. Taylor also conducted the Middle School Advanced Band featuring symphonic, traditional, and experimental music as well as a fun audience participation number. This work was a fine demonstration of our responsibility as teachers to stretch students toward the potential that we know they possess; but done so in a musically impressive manner for students of their development.
Quarter 2 is underway and students in Ms. Taylor’s Grade 6 Band class are learning to play the alto saxophone. As usual these students spent time learning the basics of the instrument from assembly to instrument care, on to making clear and quality sound in with just a few notes. These students are now well on their way to being prepared to present the results of their work at the quarterly Grade 6 Arts showcase in January.
Visual Art
Throughout the semester the Visual Arts program has been working diligently at a variety of studio processes including printmaking, watercolor and a variety of traditional and non-traditional drawing and painting workshops.
Mr. Michael Eddens –
IBDP Visual Art 1 & 2, HS Visual Art – Advanced, Grade 7 Visual Art
Mr. Michael Eddens has been conducting several weeks of intensive Studio Skills workshops with the IBDP Visual Art 1 and HS Visual Art – Advanced classes. These workshops include things such as linocut printmaking, intensive observational studies in graphite pencil, experimental drawing techniques, collaborative art making, pastel painting, an intense multi-level artistic investigations on objects artists, and other subject matter. Mr. Eddens has invested a lot of studio time into helping students understand and develop academically based artistic study processes that will prepare then for advancement on to and within the IBDP Visual Art program. The objective for these students is that after careful study and preparation they can then sift into a more autonomous Independent study style of learning and put greater focus on developing their own individual artistic voice.
Most recently students have been converting a series of compressed charcoal drawings into finished exhibition ready art works that will have their final form in a variety of art making media.
The IBDP 1 Visual Art and Visual Art- Advanced students participated in the Collaborative Theatre Showcase along with the IBDP Theatre classes. These students exhibited a series of visual works based on the foundation of observational studies. The IBDP 1 Visual Art students had several “works in progress” that were on exhibit as attendees entered the Black Box Theatre space and several finished exhibition pieces the Visual Art- Advanced students really dressed the Theatre entrance with dynamic visuals.
IBDP Visual Art 2 students are hard at work on their Final Exhibition which is to be presented in the spring of 2017. These 5 students have some unique and ambitious work in process and are planning for these works to be available for view as the capstone of their 2 year IBDP Visual Art course.
Grade 7 Visual Art students are learning and studying much in the same way as their older counterparts in that they begin their work with a series of academic study activities, then move onto artistic explorations in a variety of media techniques. Finally students are allowed to work creatively within a structure to produce art works on Graphite and Watercolor that demonstrate the skills and concepts that best suit them as individuals.
Mr. Matthew Mazzola –
HS Visual Art – Accomplished, HA Visual Art – Beginner, Grade 8 Visual Art, Grade 6 Visual Art
Mr. Matt Mazolla has conducted sight based drawing workshops with student work focused on linear perspective drawing techniques. And is now currently introducing students to drawing techniques with vine charcoal. These are compulsory classical drawing techniques that have been a part of serious formal art study throughout the history of Western Art.
As an after-school Activity offering Matt has conducted a 6-week session on STREET ART which is an offshoot of the GRAFFITI subculture of art making. In this session students have been engaged in more intuitive, freeform art making that is not usually experienced in the traditional classroom setting.
Ms. Kelley Taylor –
Grade 8 Visual Art, Grade 6 Visual Art
Kelley Taylor’s Grade 6 artists have been hard at work learning about studio process such as observational studies, concept development and media exploration in route to a complex illustration of hybrid animals merged with images of birds we find in nature.
The Grade 8 Visual Art students are working on a similar project but with a greater deal of complexity. What makes this work unique is the incorporation of more advanced studio processes and the merging of chosen animals in the form of musical instruments. This should be a very interesting and creative project indeed!
Vocal Music
Ms. Whitney Meinninger –
HS Advanced Choir, HS Beginner Choir, MS Advanced Choir, MS Beginner Choir, Grade 6 Choir
It’s been an incredibly busy time in the Choral department – students have not only been preparing for their main concert on November 22nd, but for local, international, and university auditions.
Many of our students auditioned for The Best of the Best Competition. GAA Grade 9 student, Athina Bohner was one of nearly 1000 student contestants who were selected to continue to the final round
GAA has 6 Middle School students were chosen to participate in the AMIS Middle School World Honor Choir comprised of about 25 international schools from around the world. Congratulations to the following young singers for achieving such a prestigious honor:
Alvaro Guibert Madrigal, Andrea De Jesus Pilonieta, Chiara Altomare,
Chloe De Moura, Giulia Altomare, and Luke Van Balen
American School of Dubai is hosting the AMIS Honor Choir this year, which is a unique opportunity for this religion of the globe. This would be a wonderful opportunity for many from the GAA family to come support these young students students, and hear an amazing concert! This FREE concert is being held Saturday January 21st 2016 at 7pm in the American School of Dubai Theatre – and is open to everyone. The event will also be streamed live worldwide! Please inquire with Ms. Menninger for more information.
In March, one of our 11th grade students Jonah Delisi will be representing GEMS American Academy in the Association for Music in International Schools’ World Honor Choir. This is the third consecutive year that GAA has had students chosen for the World Honor Choir, and hopefully the tradition will continue for many years to come! Jonah is in Chamber Choir, The Advanced High School Choir at Gems American Academy.
In the fall, thousands of international high school students from all over the world sent in recorded auditions to be part of this prestigious group. Panelists listened to the auditions and blindly rated the students based on their recording. The top students were chosen.
Students learn the difficult choral music prior to going, including 2 brand new compositions that the choir will be premiering. Once at the festival, the students come together and intensively rehearse for 4 days, conducted by a prestigious director. This year the choir is being conducted by Dr. Nicole Lamartine. At the conclusion of their 4 days of rehearsing, the students will present a Gala Concert that will be streamed live worldwide.
All High School singers that are a member of a choir at GEMS have the opportunity to audition for this honor choir, the next possibility to audition will be in the fall of 2017. Interested students will be given materials to prepare over the summer. More information can be found at www.amis-online.org
4 of our students have auditioned and received parts in the NSO Opera Production of Hansel and Gretel! This is a great honor. These students will have the opportunity to sing with professional singers, and under the direction of Maestro Andrew Berryman. The Opera will take place at the National Theatre on March 10th and 11th 2017. These students are: Andrea De Jesus Pilonieta, Chiara Altomare, Giulia Altomare, and Athina Bohner.
Many of our students are getting the opportunity next week to do a master-class with Hayden Tee, who is currently playing Javert in the production Les Miserables at the Dubai Opera.
Several groups of Carolers are practicing at lunch and after school in order to sing throughout the community at 16 different Holiday venues!
In classes, students of all levels are working hard on the theory and compositional elements of music. Learning to read and write music can be a difficult process, and the students are doing a wonderful job! Students work through a variety of elements utilizing the Smart Music Program, online composition tools, worksheets, aural and written practice.
Department wide we started the presentation of our work with the Grade 6 Arts Showcase, which features the work of our youngest students in the secondary school. This Arts Showcase was created last year, as an extension of the Grade 6 Arts rotation course in which students are not with a particular teacher for the full year, but instead for only 9 weeks.
The Grade 6 Arts Showcase has quickly become a featured event at GAA as it has quickly proven to be an instrumental community building tool for our students, their parents and their teachers. With that, we extend a word of thanks to all of those who have shown enthusiastic support for what this program does.
Our second rotation of the Grade 6 Arts Showcase will be held after the break in January.
Theatre Studies
Mr. Kyle Carlin –
IBDP Theatre 2, HS Beginning Acting, Grade 8 Theatre, Grade 7 Theatre
In the Beginner Acting class, students have been exploring the methods used by the Trestle Mask Theatre Company and the function of their basic masks set. Students have inquired about the techniques and rules involved in using these special masks for performance. They underwent extensive workshops in physical theatre in order to develop skills in bodily expression and so they could learn how to effectively communicate a story without relying on voice. Students have learned the techniques of clocking, passing focus and balancing the stage, three essential components for creating effective masked performances. Students have begun to devise their own short plays that will showcase these skills and performance techniques to a guest audience next Monday.
This week IBDP Theatre 2 students presented a work based on a short vignette that they presented at last year’s Arts Festival. “REFRESH” is intended to expose the effects of social media on the lives of individuals who engage in it. One memorable highlight about this work is the fact that these students conducted a 24 hour experiment in which they refrained from the use of smart phones or social media in efforts to gather source material. These students presented a array of theatrical ideas in this play and in their Audience talk back expressed that they are still in the process of refining this work before it is presented to IB Theatre Examiners. Let’s all encourage these students as they push forward to refining their work to fit the IB Theatre exam criteria and the completion of their course. Kudos to Mr. Carlin for encouraging these students to experiment with a variety of theatrical ideas and conduct a vital practical research experiment for this work.
Ms. Yvette McGregor –
IBDP Theatre 1, HS Theatre Performance I & II, Grade 6 Drama
Ms. McGregor’s students have been particularly busy this semester. In October these students had the opportunity to experience live professional Theatre. Shakespeare’s “TEMPEST” was presented to students at the Abu Dhabi Theatre on October 17th and included an artists “talk back” allowing students to ask questions of the actors and directors. This was an especially valuable experience as it was the first time for many of our students to see live professional theatre in action.
On Sunday and Monday of last week the IBDP 1 Theatre students made an incredible impact on students, teachers and parents with their Year 1 Collaborative Theatre Project entitled "PERSPECTIVE”. This fine piece of work was so moving, in fact, that students and teachers who were in attendance expressed having been ‘moved to tears” by what they had experienced. The is play was presented a second time along with the IBDP 2 Theatre student project. After the pressure of performing to an audience of their peers last week, this second performance was characterized by a greater sense of confidence, calm and preparation. The intent of this work is to bring awareness to the audience of the importance of having a balanced view of ones present, ones future and ones past. The idea is that to be too overly decided, anxious, regretful; and too lacking in flexibility, balance and gratitude is to risk missing out on the best parts of or lives. With refined line delivery, blocking, scene changes, and technical staging this second performance was not only solidly presented, but also incredibly effective. Ms. McGregor’s background of professional experience is really propelling these students in an execrated way.
Ms. McGregor also made available for her students a visit by a guest Teaching Artist, Mr. Shawn Kinley (www.shawnkinley.com). Kinley, a Professional Mime and Stage Combat artist has amongst his credits a successful career on stage with Cirque Du Solei. Ms. McGregor invited Mr. Kinley to GAA to conduct an exciting and engaging Master Class for Theatre Performance I and IBDP Theatre students.
Mr. Kinley taught and demonstrated basic level stage combat techniques including the mechanics of properly and safely executing a stage slap, stage hair pulling and a stage kick. This, of course, was presented with careful instruction on the how, when and way of appropriately incorporating this type of choreography in a drama or theatre performance. Students were also delighted to learn a few basic and foundational practices of mime performance. This was a seriously fun class!
Another noteworthy program is has been happening with the Theatre Performance I & II classes: After studying the Broadway musical, “West Side Story”, students spent significant time writing in depth character analysis and culminated their work with the performance of two contrasting scenes from the musical. Students have proven to do excellent work with this unit of study as they incorporated their understanding of substitution (an acting method) when performing.
The Annual Spring Theatre Production is well under way as well. Ms. McGregor held auditions and the casting process for the musical theater production of “LITTLE SHOP” which is to be presented in on the GAA Theatre Main Stage. Over 60 students presented themselves for audition to a panel of 6 adjudicators. The show was set with an incredible cast of 30, rich with talent. The performance dates are March 14, 15, 16 and 17th. Don’t miss seeing this show! It’s full of fun and show tunes you will be humming long after the show is over. See you in the audience; March 2017!
Ms. Kelley Taylor –
Grade 7 Theatre
“TWELVE ANGRY SHEEP!” The students from Ms. Taylor’s Grade 7 Theatre class are collaborating on an adaptation of the famous play “Twelve Angry Men”. This courtroom drama tells the story of a jury of 12 men, or in this case, sheep who are charged with the duty of deciding whether a fellow citizen is guilty or innocent of a crime. The adaptation that these students are presenting is a much lighter and fun version of the original so it should be entertaining for audiences of all ages. The date of the presentation will be announced to family members of Ms. Taylor’s grade 7 students.
Instrumental Music
Mr. Dave Holland –
IBDP Music 1 & 2, Jazz Band, HS Concert Band, MS Beginner Band
It’s been a phenomenally busy month with the Instrumental Music program and here are just a few of the events and achievements from the month of November:
Winter Concert
Musicians from Grades 7-12 took to the stage on Monday, 28th November to present the very best of their current repertoire at this exciting annual event.
This year’s concert featured performances from our Middle School Beginner Band, Middle School Advanced Band, High School Concert Band, High School Jazz Band, GAA Big Band and a number of smaller student-led ensembles. Many of the younger students joined the music program in September and this was a wonderful opportunity to celebrate their achievement as well as that of our more experienced instrumentalists.
There was an obvious theme of collaboration throughout the evening as students from middle and high school combined under the musical direction of Ms. Kelley Taylor and Mr. Dave Holland.
Thank you to the parents, relatives and staff that attended this event and we look forward to doing it all again in the 2017 at our Spring event.
IB Diploma Music - Lunchtime Concert Series
Students from the Grade 11 IB Diploma Music class presented the first of their Lunchtime Concert Series on Monday, 28th November. This is a student-led project that aims to get music out of the classroom and into the wider school community. They entertained students from Grade 1 through to Grade 12 with solo and group performances. As we enter the New Year, they hope to make this a regular event. In a touching conclusion to this fantastic event, students from the Elementary School wrote letters of thanks to the class.
Tunes on Tuesday
In the midst of the concert preparation, our after school music offering has continued in the foyer every Tuesday. This has included performances from the joint HS Jazz Band and GAA Big Band on the 22nd November and a trio featuring Mini Park, Hannah Sudarsan and Sieun Kim on the 15th November. This short performance is an excellent opportunity for students and parents to catch a glimpse of the music that is taking place on a daily basis at GAA. A huge thank you to the students that have taken their time to be involved in these events as it often means catching the late bus home in order to deliver 10 minutes of entertainment as our community finish a long day of learning.
IBDP 2 Music students also had musical compositions presented which filled the theatre space with an artful environmental ambiance that was appropriate for the evening. One particular composition effectively communicated the struggle, grief, pain and eventual joy inspired by the life of a young Syrian refugee.
Association of Music in International Schools (AMIS)
Hunter Keith (G11) has successfully auditioned to become the ‘Reserve Tenor Saxophone Player’ for the Association of Music in International Schools (AMIS) Honor Band. If called up, he will attend the residential performance in Luxembourg in 2017. He is only the third music student from a GEMS school to achieve this success following Yuki Kaneko and Hyunseo Park last year. The AMIS audition process is rigorous and the successful musicians represent the best musicians from International Schools globally.
National Day
Another vote of thanks goes to students from the High School Concert Band. Twenty-four students were on call throughout our National Day celebrations on the 29th November to perform the National Anthem at various times. They once again demonstrated their professionalism by sacrificing ‘shawarma time’ to perform to capacity audiences in the auditorium. Well done.
Martyr’s Day
Mr. Dave Holland led students from our Elementary School as they sang the National Anthem in honour of Martyr’s Day on Wednesday, 30th November.
The Secondary Arts Department offers a huge thank you to everyone that has supported the Instrumental Music program this term!
Ms. Kelley Taylor –
MS Advanced Band, MS Beginner Band,
The band program is hitting all the right notes! During Quarter 1 the band class learned to play flute or trombone. Students made progress fast starting from the beginning with how to assemble the instrument to an impressive performance on November using 6 notes and compound rhythms.
Kelley Taylor’s Middle School Beginner band opened the Instrumental Music Winter Concert with an entertaining demonstration of their progression from their first days in the music class to what they know now. The beginners then continued with several small demonstrations of their newly developed skills in a variety of ensemble configurations. Ms. Taylor also conducted the Middle School Advanced Band featuring symphonic, traditional, and experimental music as well as a fun audience participation number. This work was a fine demonstration of our responsibility as teachers to stretch students toward the potential that we know they possess; but done so in a musically impressive manner for students of their development.
Quarter 2 is underway and students in Ms. Taylor’s Grade 6 Band class are learning to play the alto saxophone. As usual these students spent time learning the basics of the instrument from assembly to instrument care, on to making clear and quality sound in with just a few notes. These students are now well on their way to being prepared to present the results of their work at the quarterly Grade 6 Arts showcase in January.
Visual Art
Throughout the semester the Visual Arts program has been working diligently at a variety of studio processes including printmaking, watercolor and a variety of traditional and non-traditional drawing and painting workshops.
Mr. Michael Eddens –
IBDP Visual Art 1 & 2, HS Visual Art – Advanced, Grade 7 Visual Art
Mr. Michael Eddens has been conducting several weeks of intensive Studio Skills workshops with the IBDP Visual Art 1 and HS Visual Art – Advanced classes. These workshops include things such as linocut printmaking, intensive observational studies in graphite pencil, experimental drawing techniques, collaborative art making, pastel painting, an intense multi-level artistic investigations on objects artists, and other subject matter. Mr. Eddens has invested a lot of studio time into helping students understand and develop academically based artistic study processes that will prepare then for advancement on to and within the IBDP Visual Art program. The objective for these students is that after careful study and preparation they can then sift into a more autonomous Independent study style of learning and put greater focus on developing their own individual artistic voice.
Most recently students have been converting a series of compressed charcoal drawings into finished exhibition ready art works that will have their final form in a variety of art making media.
The IBDP 1 Visual Art and Visual Art- Advanced students participated in the Collaborative Theatre Showcase along with the IBDP Theatre classes. These students exhibited a series of visual works based on the foundation of observational studies. The IBDP 1 Visual Art students had several “works in progress” that were on exhibit as attendees entered the Black Box Theatre space and several finished exhibition pieces the Visual Art- Advanced students really dressed the Theatre entrance with dynamic visuals.
IBDP Visual Art 2 students are hard at work on their Final Exhibition which is to be presented in the spring of 2017. These 5 students have some unique and ambitious work in process and are planning for these works to be available for view as the capstone of their 2 year IBDP Visual Art course.
Grade 7 Visual Art students are learning and studying much in the same way as their older counterparts in that they begin their work with a series of academic study activities, then move onto artistic explorations in a variety of media techniques. Finally students are allowed to work creatively within a structure to produce art works on Graphite and Watercolor that demonstrate the skills and concepts that best suit them as individuals.
Mr. Matthew Mazzola –
HS Visual Art – Accomplished, HA Visual Art – Beginner, Grade 8 Visual Art, Grade 6 Visual Art
Mr. Matt Mazolla has conducted sight based drawing workshops with student work focused on linear perspective drawing techniques. And is now currently introducing students to drawing techniques with vine charcoal. These are compulsory classical drawing techniques that have been a part of serious formal art study throughout the history of Western Art.
As an after-school Activity offering Matt has conducted a 6-week session on STREET ART which is an offshoot of the GRAFFITI subculture of art making. In this session students have been engaged in more intuitive, freeform art making that is not usually experienced in the traditional classroom setting.
Ms. Kelley Taylor –
Grade 8 Visual Art, Grade 6 Visual Art
Kelley Taylor’s Grade 6 artists have been hard at work learning about studio process such as observational studies, concept development and media exploration in route to a complex illustration of hybrid animals merged with images of birds we find in nature.
The Grade 8 Visual Art students are working on a similar project but with a greater deal of complexity. What makes this work unique is the incorporation of more advanced studio processes and the merging of chosen animals in the form of musical instruments. This should be a very interesting and creative project indeed!
Vocal Music
Ms. Whitney Meinninger –
HS Advanced Choir, HS Beginner Choir, MS Advanced Choir, MS Beginner Choir, Grade 6 Choir
It’s been an incredibly busy time in the Choral department – students have not only been preparing for their main concert on November 22nd, but for local, international, and university auditions.
Many of our students auditioned for The Best of the Best Competition. GAA Grade 9 student, Athina Bohner was one of nearly 1000 student contestants who were selected to continue to the final round
GAA has 6 Middle School students were chosen to participate in the AMIS Middle School World Honor Choir comprised of about 25 international schools from around the world. Congratulations to the following young singers for achieving such a prestigious honor:
Alvaro Guibert Madrigal, Andrea De Jesus Pilonieta, Chiara Altomare,
Chloe De Moura, Giulia Altomare, and Luke Van Balen
American School of Dubai is hosting the AMIS Honor Choir this year, which is a unique opportunity for this religion of the globe. This would be a wonderful opportunity for many from the GAA family to come support these young students students, and hear an amazing concert! This FREE concert is being held Saturday January 21st 2016 at 7pm in the American School of Dubai Theatre – and is open to everyone. The event will also be streamed live worldwide! Please inquire with Ms. Menninger for more information.
In March, one of our 11th grade students Jonah Delisi will be representing GEMS American Academy in the Association for Music in International Schools’ World Honor Choir. This is the third consecutive year that GAA has had students chosen for the World Honor Choir, and hopefully the tradition will continue for many years to come! Jonah is in Chamber Choir, The Advanced High School Choir at Gems American Academy.
In the fall, thousands of international high school students from all over the world sent in recorded auditions to be part of this prestigious group. Panelists listened to the auditions and blindly rated the students based on their recording. The top students were chosen.
Students learn the difficult choral music prior to going, including 2 brand new compositions that the choir will be premiering. Once at the festival, the students come together and intensively rehearse for 4 days, conducted by a prestigious director. This year the choir is being conducted by Dr. Nicole Lamartine. At the conclusion of their 4 days of rehearsing, the students will present a Gala Concert that will be streamed live worldwide.
All High School singers that are a member of a choir at GEMS have the opportunity to audition for this honor choir, the next possibility to audition will be in the fall of 2017. Interested students will be given materials to prepare over the summer. More information can be found at www.amis-online.org
4 of our students have auditioned and received parts in the NSO Opera Production of Hansel and Gretel! This is a great honor. These students will have the opportunity to sing with professional singers, and under the direction of Maestro Andrew Berryman. The Opera will take place at the National Theatre on March 10th and 11th 2017. These students are: Andrea De Jesus Pilonieta, Chiara Altomare, Giulia Altomare, and Athina Bohner.
Many of our students are getting the opportunity next week to do a master-class with Hayden Tee, who is currently playing Javert in the production Les Miserables at the Dubai Opera.
Several groups of Carolers are practicing at lunch and after school in order to sing throughout the community at 16 different Holiday venues!
In classes, students of all levels are working hard on the theory and compositional elements of music. Learning to read and write music can be a difficult process, and the students are doing a wonderful job! Students work through a variety of elements utilizing the Smart Music Program, online composition tools, worksheets, aural and written practice.
Science
This time of year is an exciting time for our Grade 9 and 10 scientists, as they sit their semester finals for biology, physics and chemistry. All of that hard work and inquiry will be rewarded when the students get their grades after the Winter Break. Good luck!
The Grade 12 students have been doing their Internal Assessments in recent weeks and this makes up a significant amount of their final IB grade. Planning these completely independently has really allowed our students to grow as students, people and scientists. So far, I have seen some of the following in action:
Mr. Christofi’s 7th grade science classes are building catapults! The catapult competition, in conjunction with the medieval times faire hosted by the 7th grade World History classes, will examine the different elements of a catapult, which was a medieval siege weapon used during warfare. For this project, students will follow a similar process that would have been undertaken during the middle ages. Students started with the design first, then compared and contrasted two different models. From there, students constructed and tested their catapults. Once completed and ready for “battle”, students launched them at an enemy castle to try to “conquer” their foes.
As you can see, there is so much happening in the science department and it is my honor to announce a couple of new awards:
Student of the Month (science): Myles Molnar
Science teacher of the Month: Mr. Christofi
Congratulations to both of you – your prizes are coming soon!
Happy holidays to everyone, and don’t forget to relax and enjoy family time.
Matthew Broderick
Head of Science
This time of year is an exciting time for our Grade 9 and 10 scientists, as they sit their semester finals for biology, physics and chemistry. All of that hard work and inquiry will be rewarded when the students get their grades after the Winter Break. Good luck!
The Grade 12 students have been doing their Internal Assessments in recent weeks and this makes up a significant amount of their final IB grade. Planning these completely independently has really allowed our students to grow as students, people and scientists. So far, I have seen some of the following in action:
- Magnetic break
- Effect of certain tablets on heart rate
- Effect of reducing agents on chlorine
- Vitamin C concentration in orange juice
- The displacement of a smashed egg!
- Effect of pH on bacteria
- How to reduce heart rate using mindfulness?
Mr. Christofi’s 7th grade science classes are building catapults! The catapult competition, in conjunction with the medieval times faire hosted by the 7th grade World History classes, will examine the different elements of a catapult, which was a medieval siege weapon used during warfare. For this project, students will follow a similar process that would have been undertaken during the middle ages. Students started with the design first, then compared and contrasted two different models. From there, students constructed and tested their catapults. Once completed and ready for “battle”, students launched them at an enemy castle to try to “conquer” their foes.
As you can see, there is so much happening in the science department and it is my honor to announce a couple of new awards:
Student of the Month (science): Myles Molnar
Science teacher of the Month: Mr. Christofi
Congratulations to both of you – your prizes are coming soon!
Happy holidays to everyone, and don’t forget to relax and enjoy family time.
Matthew Broderick
Head of Science