Wishart Wins House Music!

One of the many big events on the College calendar each year is House Music, held at the Vodafone Events Centre last night. With the addition of two new Houses, Stark and Wilson, to the mix, along with a choir and band from Bruce House, the friendly rivalry between the Houses has become even greater, making it harder to secure a win!

Since the start of Term 2, the massed choirs and bands for each House have been practising their songs under the direction of their House Prefects. This year's theme was 'Grammy Song of the Year,' with each House selecting a song from a list compiled by Head of Music, Mr Ross Gerritsen. From Coldplay's 'Viva la Vida'(Cargill) to 'Single Ladies' by Beyonce (Chalmers), 'Beautiful Day' by U2 (Wishart), 'Don't worry, be happy' by Bobby McFerrin (Hamilton), 'We are Young' by Fun (Stark), 'We are the World' by Michael Jackson (Wilson) and 'Rolling in the Deep' by Adele (Bruce House); the variety of songs was entertaining – if not always quite in tune!

We were privileged to have two musical professionals to adjudicate the performances. 'Trumpet Guy', John McGough is an award-winning musician who has performed all around the world. We also welcomed Gray Bartlett MBE, who has been involved in the music industry for three decades with two million album sales, also helping young stars such as Hayley Westenra and Ben Morrison, among others.

Once all the House performances were completed, and the judges were deliberating the results, the final act for the night was the staff band who performed a rendition of a Katy Perry song and The Proclaimers' iconic song, 'I'm Gonna Be (500 miles)'. Before the judges announced the winners, they expressed how our students have 'outrageous talent' and that, throughout the night, the outstanding energy and enthusiasm shone through. The judges said there were no standout acts, as each group had been amazing, and the bands backing the singers were fantastic. Based on the judging criteria, including vocal quality, musical accuracy, presentation and originality, ensemble cohesion and overall effectiveness, the judges had a tough job deciding the winners of each cup.

Hamilton was the outright winner for the House Choir Cup with their upbeat rendition of 'Don't Worry, be Happy!' Chalmers pulled out the stops to win the Band category with a solid performance. The surprise winner was Wishart whose combined points from a 2nd and 3rd placing tallied to top points to win the Overall Music House Cup for 2017!

HOUSE MUSIC CHOIR WINNERS
1ST HAMILTON
2ND WISHART & BRUCE HOUSE
4TH WILSON
5TH CHALMERS
6TH CARGILL
7TH STARK

HOUSE MUSIC BAND WINNERS
1ST CHALMERS
2ND CARGILL
3RD WISHART
4TH BRUCE HOUSE
5TH HAMILTON & WILSON
7TH STARK

HOUSE MUSIC OVERALL WINNERS
1ST WISHART
2ND CHALMERS
3RD HAMILTON
4TH CARGILL
5TH WILSON
6TH STARK

Click here to see more photos.