Firstly, a huge welcome back to all of our students for term 1. Our school is still growing madly and our music community is bigger and stronger than ever.

We have rolled out a series of programs for those of you that are taking music lessons and would like to apply your learning in a band environment.

We also have launched quite a few clubs aimed at having heaps of fun while learning music at the same time.

There are many benefits to learning music. Learning an instrument or voice improves your ability to learn maths and comprehension as well as unlocking your creative part of the brain.

For those of you who do it for kicks - music is a great way to relax and unwind. It is a form of therapy and a great vehicle for bringing joy and motivation to succeed.

With this in mind, we have been busy little bee's, rolling out some fantastic clubs for our community to belong to. The weekly sessions are designed to be fun and very social. All of our Clubs are run by professional musicians.

Here's a peek at what we have been up to -

Now there's Choirs and there's CHOIRS! Our Choir of Fire is a non-auditioning choir aimed at introducing flare and fun into choral music.

Our Choir Master is Elena Josephides. Elena is a highly qualified Director who has been singing in choirs since the age of 7. Elena's first international gig was on the Qantas commercial singing "I still call Australia Home." Since then Elena has been a performing member of the VCA as well as the Australian Girls Choir.

What can you expect?

Weekly 1 1/2 hour rehearsals singing everything from R&B Soul to Classic Top 40 hits as well as the biggest Broadway tunes. Our Choir of Fire will be hip and groovy. There is plenty of opportunity for local performances to share the love of singing.

You don't need to sing like Mariah or Buble. You can be any age as long as you want to have a heap of fun.

Weekly sessions are only $12.50 for 1 hour and a half.

To register your interest, please email Joanne Kite (Director of Music Education) or call Joanne on0409 002 282.

Every Thursday night we kick into gear with our Blues Jam Session.

So how does it work?

Well it's a bit like this. People from all over arrive with their instruments and we basically play the 12 bar blues. It's a great way to rehearse with other like minded guys & girls and have a load of fun.

Main St Music staff lead the jams and ensure that everybody gets up and has a play. We have all types of instrumentalists from drums, guitar, bass, keys, harmonica and would you believe - last week we had a sax and clarinet on stage! It sounded amazing. There is no age limit - our oldest club member is in his late 60's and our youngest is about 12.

If you want to play on stage - HERE IS YOUR CHANCE! The best news is we only charge $15 for the session. Please email Paul Kite or call Paul on 0414 998 882 for more info. Otherwise - Just rock up! Non players are more than welcome to watch for free.

Check out some pics to see what you are missing out on!

We are fortunate to have one of Australia's top harmonica players on our teaching staff. Aaron Gillett will take you from the very basics right through to advanced level.

The Harmonica is a fun and very social instrument. Imagine yourself wailing the blues on the back porch or maybe some Bob Dylan style draw technique to play along with your guitar.

We have two Harmoncia sessions per week. Each session is for one hour. Intermediate players start at 7PM every Monday and our Beginners commence at 8PM on Monday.

Grab your friend and join the revolution in cool instruments to play. Each class is $15 per session.

For more information and bookings email Joanne or call Joanne on 0409 002 282.

We currently have 3 bands rehearsing 1 1/2 hours per week. Our 10 week program is coached by Main St professional musicians.

Our bands rehearse over 10 weeks and finish with a live gig at a local venue. It's a great way to take your music into a band environment and apply your skills.

The band session programs are split into adult and junior bands. It's an excellent way to meet other like minded players and to have a crackin good time playing as a band.

The local Leader group is featuring our junior band in the paper in the next couple of weeks. Keep your eye out for a great read and how to access music and bands at Main St Music. Go to the Band Sessions page Senior or Junior  for more info.

Expressions of interest can be made via email to Paul or otherwise feel free to call anytime on 0414 998 882.

Why join the uke club?

It's fun, it's easy, we play cool songs and it's lead by one of Australia's top ukulele players Thom Jackson.

Play & sing with a group. There's no ego, just great classic tunes with a little finesse thrown in by our ukeologist -Thom.

Uke club is held every Wednesday from 7:30 until 8:30 at the Main St performance room.

This is a weekly casual event and it's only $15 for a powerhouse of ukemania.

For more info email Joanne or call 0409 002 282 for more info.

Congratulations to three of our students for term 1.

Claire Pasquali is in year 8 at Loyola College. A student award was presented by Loyola & Main St Music for Claire's outstanding achievement and promise in the category of music. Main St Music School is proud to offer Claire a free term of lessons for her hard work and dedication to Music.

Deanna D'Agostino has also won a free term of lessons from our performance day raffle prize. All proceeds were donated to charity for foreign aid benefit in the Phillipines natural disaster. Congrats Deanna!

Congratulations to Ben Crundwell who is a student at Main St Music. Ben is an up and coming young actor in national television. Ben has been nominated for the prestigious Logie award of Best New Actor for his roll in House Husbands on channel 9. Ben is also a passionate performer in national theatre. Go Ben!!!

Also, congratulations to a number of our students who have auditioned for The Voice TV series on national television. Most of you ranked very highly in the audition process. We are very proud of you and support you 100% in your courage and hard work to succeed.

It's time to put on your rock n roll hat as we prepare for our quarterly performance day on March the 30th. It's a fun filled afternoon for all of our students and prospective newcomers to come and listen to our students perform. As always we will have special guest appearances by high profile musicians as well as a free BBQ. and face painting for the kids.

Feel free to bring your friends and family down and make an afternoon of music and fun at Main Street Music. We kick off at Midday and wind up at 4PM on Sunday the 30th.

Our performance schedule is heavily booked so students who wish to perform will need to speak to their teacher in the next fortnight.

We are always interested to know how you are enjoying your lessons at Main Street Music. Please feel free to email Joanne or call 0409 002 282 to have a chat at anytime.

Looking forward to seeing you all iat lessons soon.

Best wishes,

The Main Street Music School Team

"Music washes away from the soul the dust of everyday life."
Berthold Auerbach