Conservatorium High School

Conservatorium High School
Location
Sydney, NSW, Australia
Coordinates	33°51′48″S 151°12′51″E
Information
Type	Publicly run and funded, co-educational, performing arts, secondary, day school
Motto	Latin: Fiat Lux ("Let there be Light")
Established	1918
Principal	Robert Curry
Enrolment	~192 (7–12)
Colour(s)	Black and gold
Website	conservat-h.schools.nsw.edu.au

The Conservatorium High School (colloquially known as The Con High), is a selective, co-educational, creative and performing arts secondary day school specialising in the education of talented young musicians. The school is located within the Sydney Conservatorium of Music of the University of Sydney, close by to the Sydney Central Business District. The school is the secondary arm of the Sydney Conservatorium of Music and the State's only specialist music high school.

The Conservatorium High School accepts students from Years 7 through 12 in preparation for the Higher School Certificate. From the school's inception, Conservatorium High School students constituted an elite core of the State's premiere music institution. The school numbers amongst its alumni some of Australia's most acclaimed performers, teachers and composers, musicians who have made their mark in all facets of the music profession.

History

Established at the behest of Henri Verbrugghen, foundation director of the Conservatorium, the school enrolled its first students in 1918. The inaugural principal, Mr Alfred Steel, was seconded from Sydney Boys' High; he taught in both the secondary and tertiary programmes of the Conservatorium.

Campus

Front western view of the Conservatorium

Located in the Royal Botanic Gardens overlooking Farm Cove, the Conservatorium of Music is one of Sydney's best-known heritage sites. The heart of 'The Con' is the turreted sandstone structure that was designed by the convict architect, Francis Greenway, to serve as vice-regal stables for Government House, which is located across the gardens to the north. Extensive redevelopment in the late 1990s transformed The Con into a superb teaching, research and music performance complex with expanded accommodation for up to 180 Conservatorium High students.

Facilities

The facilities of the school include:

• Choral assembly hall with recording facilities
• Music computer laboratory
• Keyboard laboratory
• General computer laboratory
• Science laboratory
• Visual Arts and Design and Technology studio
• Student Independent Learning Centre (SILC)

Conservatorium of Music during Macquarie Night Lights, 2006

In addition, the School has access to venues such as:

• Recital halls
• Music Cafe
• Practice and ensemble rooms
• The Music Workshop
• Verbrugghen Hall

Library

The Conservatorium Library is one of Australia's finest public music libraries, run jointly by the University of Sydney and the Department of Education and Training. Conservatorium High School students have partial access to the library and the computer facilities.

School Life and Admissions

The Conservatorium High School is staffed and administered by the New South Wales Department of Education and Training (DET). Instrumental tuition, chamber music programs and individual composition lessons are provided to the students by Sydney University lecturers and tutors. In the course of their studies, high school students are provided with many of the same privileges as the tertiary students, including free admission to Conservatorium concerts and master classes.

Admission is through a highly competitive process of audition and interview that assesses the applicant's potential as well as current level of achievement. Prospective students must also pass the NSW Selective School tests. Auditions are held each year in July/August/September.

Curriculum

Subjects offered for students in Years 7 – 10 include: Music, Science, English, History, Mathematics, Geography, Chinese, French, Visual Arts, Design and Technology, Personal Development and Health, Performance Workshop Program, and Physical Education and Sport.

Subjects offered to students in Years 11 – 12 include: Music 2, Music Extension, Music Performance Board Endorsed Course (Performance Workshop Program, Ensembles, Chamber Music and Choir, House Concerts), Ancient History, Modern History, History Extension, Biology, Chemistry, Physics, English Advanced, English Extension 1, English Extension 2, French (Continuers), Latin Continuers, Geography, German (Beginners), Mathematics General, Mathematics, Mathematics Extension 1, Mathematics Extension 2, and Visual Arts.

Other curriculum options are available through individual or group negotiation.

Concerts

Every year, the school holds a regular program of concerts, often attracting world-renowned musicians to perform with the students.Students organise House Concerts where the houses (Bach, Beethoven and Brahms) compete to win the award of best performance for the evening. Each house is allocated approximately 45 minutes organised by house captains and the vice captains without assistance of teaching staff. The three other main concerts each year, apart from the House Concerts, are Open Day Concerts, the Annual Concerts and Orientation Day.

Parents and Citizen's Association

The School has an active Parents and Citizen's Association. The school encourages parental representation on curriculum, finance, welfare and school management committees, and in a variety of fund-raising activities.

Fees and scholarships

The cost of individual tuition with teachers of the Sydney Conservatorium of Music is subsidised for students enrolling at the Conservatorium High School. Scholarships are available for special programs and purposes.

Alumni

Notable ex-students of the Conservatorium High School include:

• The Presets
• Jade MacRae
• Iva Davies
• Barry Tuckwell – French horn player
• Roger Woodward – Pianist
• Lin Cho-liang – Violinist
• Jane Rutter – Flautist
• Richard Tognetti – Violinist, composer and conductor
• Nigel Westlake – composer

The School has also educated individuals who have become philosophers, research scientists and inventors.^{[citation needed]}. The school's alumni association, the Con High Association of Old Students (CHAOS), aims to keep alumni in touch with one another, and informed about current developments through its newsletter, "This week at Con High". The Association puts on an annual series of convival concerts that raises funds for providing scholarships for students.

See also

• List of Government schools in New South Wales
• List of creative and performing arts high schools in New South Wales

External links

• Conservatorium High School website
• Conservatorium High School Parents and Citizens Association
• Sydney Morning Herald – Sacking Escalates Tensions at Music School