BY LILY BRYANT
Picture yourself at 6, or 8, or 10 years old. You’ve been crammed into the school hall with your fellow students, and handed a musical instrument.
Perhaps it’s the first time you’ve held one. Maybe it’s a violin, or a flute, or a euphonium; either way, it’s well loved (and probably sticky). Hurried hands click open cases. The air of anticipation builds as instruments are assembled, bows are placed on strings, and lips on mouthpieces. Books are placed on music stands, and ripped open to page 1.
The moment is approaching when you all shall make tremendous noise together. The band leader raises their hands, and brings them down — indicating the beginning of the first note. Sound fills the room. A glorious symphony of squawks and screeches and squeaks.
You don’t know it at the time, but you’ve just played your very first note of chamber music.
Many great musicians have come from such humble beginnings, including renowned violinist Wilma Smith, who has performed as concertmaster with numerous Australian and New Zealand orchestras, and is an internationally award-winning chamber musician.
Wilma’s early passion for playing with others — forged in the crucible of the school band rehearsal — has led to her role as Musica Viva’s Artistic Director of Competitions. There, she has spearheaded Strike A Chord, Australia’s national chamber music competition for secondary school students.
Strike A Chord is designed to encourage and celebrate Australia’s next generation of professional classical musicians. Despite spending its first two years contending with a pandemic, the competition has brought hundreds of secondary students together from across the country to create music. It has launched the careers of its first-prize-winning groups Cousin Quartet, and Amogus Trio (pictured above).
So how do you get involved, make music with friends, and perhaps even take home some serious prizes?
Wilma joins us to give some top tips on how to strike a chord with Strike A Chord.
1. Get creative
Gone are the days where the term “chamber music” is reserved only for the string quartets and piano trios of the world. As far as Wilma’s concerned, if you’re playing in an orchestra, in your classroom, or just jamming with your friends, that’s chamber music!
“Chamber music is not so narrowly defined,” Wilma says. “For me, it’s a broader term: it’s just playing with other people, and that’s what makes music fun.”
Competition rules permit any group with 3-8 performers playing music that is classical in style — so don’t limit your imagination when it comes to the kinds of groups you can create, or the music you can play.
“We want to encourage inclusivity as much as we possibly can,” Wilma says.
“It’s amazing what does come out of the woodwork when you do open things up!”
And if you haven’t been learning your instrument for very long, no fear — Strike A Chord’s Novice Section is designed especially for musicians at AMEB Grade 4 level and below.
2. Get competitive
It was Wilma’s own experiences with competitions as a young student in New Zealand that inspired her to lead such a prestigious competition in Australia.
“Kids enjoy competition,” Wilma says.
“We grow up playing sports — it’s competitive. Lots of things in life are competitive. There’s nothing bad about competition!”
You heard her — time to get your game face on! Not only is the competition an opportunity to make music and memories with friends, but there are also some pretty exciting prizes up for grabs: for finalists and place-getters, prizes of up to $5000 are available, as well as potentially life-changing professional development opportunities with some of Australia’s top artists and institutions, such as Flinders Quartet, Sutherland Trio, and the Australian National Academy of Music.
Even if you don’t make the final, there are still prizes to be awarded. Wilma makes it clear that Strike A Chord is all about encouraging participation and learning, but also investing in the next generation of professional chamber musicians.
“Amongst our prize winners will be some of those people who will presumably go on to make it their life’s work,” she says.
“Giving value to something in the form of financial reward says that we value it, and this is a really good thing.”
3. Get collaborative
Chamber music can be a tricky beast. Between choosing the music, scheduling rehearsals, and learning how to play together, it can be a challenge to take on such a collaborative task. Wilma has one ultimate piece of advice for how to wow the judges.
“For me, it’s always the engagement with the music — figuring out what the character of the music is, and communicating that, so they bring it to life. Those are the things that will energise me in a performance.”
Working well together could be what gets your group named as a 2022 prize winner. But beyond the prizes, participating in Strike A Chord gives you the chance to really experience what chamber music is all about — playing music with other people.
“For me, chamber music was the reason for playing,” Wilma tells us.
“I doubt that I would’ve kept going if I’d just had to learn an instrument and get good at it, and just play by myself. The musical and social experience — playing with other people — made it so enjoyable.”
So when you show up for your next rehearsal, don’t be afraid of making mistakes, or silly noises. Embrace your passion of making music with others, and you could be a Wilma Smith in the making.
Now that you know how to rock Strike A Chord, it’s time for the most important part – playing the music.
Entries close 2 June, and you can find out more about the competition and how to enter on the Musica Viva website.
Images supplied.
