DOREWE FAMILY DAY - STUDENT AND TEACHER CONCERT IN COLLABORATION WITH "ANA BALLET SCHOOL" AND "GLAS SRCA SINGING SCHOOL"
March 2023
Dear DoReWe members,
Welcome to the fifth edition of our DoReWe Diary, dedicated entirely to the DoReWe Family Day. We hope you enjoy reading it and participate by writing to us or simply having fun at home playing the piano or singing. If you received this message from a friend, please forward it to others who you think would pass the DoReWe test :-). You can also find some videos and updates on our social media. Follow us on Facebook and Instagram.
In the fifth edition of the DoReWe Diary, you will find the following exciting stories:
DO RE WE NEWS: DoReWe Family Day and student and teacher concert
FANTASTIC TIP: How to deal with stage fright
SONATA FROM THE STREET: Opinion from Ana Trojnar, the director of Ana Ballet School
LA LA QUIZ: Competitiveness - yes or no?
TINY TREASURERS: Choose your favorite photo and pass it on
DO RE WE NEWS
DoReWe DoReWe Family Day - Student and teacher concert
On Saturday, March 25th, both in Slovenia and around the world, we celebrated Mother's Day. At DoReWe, however, we decided that we should celebrate not only mothers more often but also fathers, grandfathers, grandmothers, brothers, sisters, uncles, aunts... in short, all family members who support children on their musical and life journey and stand by their side. For this purpose, we organized our first DoReWe Family Day - a concert of our students and teachers at the Ljudski dom in Šentvid. To make the family day even more lively and diverse, we invited Ana Ballet School led by Ana Trojnar to collaborate. Ana is the only teacher in Slovenia with Registered Teacher Status RAD. She teaches ballet in Kamnik and Radomlje, and her dancers delighted the audience with beautiful choreographies and elegant costumes.
We were also joined by Glas Srca Singing School led by Neža Bogataj, who was chosen as the best debutant at the Slovenian Song Festival a few years ago. Neža teaches singing at home near Kamnik, and starting from September, she will also be conducting group singing lessons in primary schools in the Kamnik municipality in collaboration with DoReWe.
The program was truly rich, featuring 42 performances, including piano, singing and dance, making it a mini cultural marathon. There were 36 students singing and playing the piano, 13 dancers, and 6 teachers performing. We heard songs such as Hallelujah, Bohemian Rhapsody, Mojster Jaka, Zdravljica, Jaz pa grem na zeleno travco, Cara Gina, Ode to Joy, Shallow, Gray Path, and more. For many students, performing for family members and friends is one of the highlights of the musical year, and the day was appropriately festive.
The youngest performer was Mila, who turned 6 in February. She presented herself in three different ways - with a dance routine, a vocal performance, and by playing the piano. Our adult students also performed, both my way singing and instrumental pieces. The oldest performer, Mr. Maks, sang Elvis Presley's "My Way" and gave an excellent performance at the age of 86.
The event concluded with the DoReWe anthem, written and composed by our teacher Špela, followed by refreshments and socializing with everyone present. DoReWe members paid tribute and expressed gratitude to all the families for their support. The role of parents and family is beautifully captured in the lyrics of the song "You Raise Me Up," performed by our teacher Boris at the concert:
You raise me up, so I can stand on mountains
You raise me up, to walk on stormy seas
I am strong, when I am on your shoulders
You raise me up to more than I can be.
Thank you, dear parents and family members, for all the support you provide to the students, without which they wouldn't be where they are today. Congratulations to all the performers for their courage and wonderful performances!
FANTASTIC TIP
#5 How to deal with stage fright?
Stepping onto the stage is not an easy task. Especially if it's our first time. Since everyone experiences stage fright before a performance, we have prepared some tips that can help us muster up courage.
BREATHE IN AND OUT. Before stepping on stage, take a few deep breaths and repeat encouraging thoughts to yourself (I can do it, I'm doing well, everything will be fine, I've practiced a lot, I'm prepared).
STAGE FRIGHT IS OUR FRIEND. Be aware that a healthy dose of adrenaline contributes to concentration and effectiveness, so our performance can be even better because of stage fright.
THE AUDIENCE IS ON OUR SIDE. Keep in mind that the audience is usually supportive and they want our performance to succeed. Mistakes often go unnoticed or only we are aware of them.
PERFORMING IS A LEARNING PROCESS. Treat performing as part of the learning process and gaining experience. After the performance, we can identify areas that need more effort and the parts we have mastered.
PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT. Make an effort to be well-prepared for the performance and allocate enough time for preparation, as it always pays off.
If we still feel fear of performing, the most effective approach is to have our first performance in a pair or a small group. Remember that with each subsequent performance, stage fright diminishes. So, take a deep breath, exhale, and let's get on stage! We can do it!
SONATA FROM THE STREET
This is what Ana Trojnar, the director of Ana's Ballet School, wrote about DoReWe:
"DoReWe is a school with exceptional enthusiasm and respect for every atom invested by everyone: teachers, students, and all the supporters, even the less visible ones (parents, grandparents, aunts...).
We waited for the right moment to start collaborating with our dancers at their events, and we finally experienced it in style: on a proper theatre stage covered with a ballet floor, as it should be.
The atmosphere was so inspiring that it tempted me as well to sing and dance again - this time with the tips of my fingers - on the keys. :)"
Ana Trojnar
LA LA QUIZ
Our concert program included a total of 42 performances. Some were more basic, as some students started playing the piano just over a month ago. Others were very advanced, as some students and teachers have invested years and years of practice and effort.
Our advice to all performers was not to compare themselves to others. Not to compete with others, as there will almost always be someone better. If not in the same group or class, then at the same school or in the same city, country, and so on.
Therefore, we suggest that if we do compete, let's compete only with ourselves - to be better today than we were yesterday. To play a more challenging second piece than the first. To have our second performance better than the first. And if we manage to overcome or improve ourselves, then we are truly winners!
What do you think about competitiveness?
TINY TREASURERS
On our Facebook page, we posted several photographs from the DoReWe Family Day event. Choose your favourite and please share it.
Thank you for your time, and we'll read and have fun together in the next edition.
DoReWe greetings!