YOU’RE INVITED

AN

EVENING

WITH

MAX

COOKE

7pm Thursday 20th April

Join us for a close up evening

with Professor Max Cooke, an

icon of the Australian piano

world. Hear about Professor

Cooke’s colourful life journey

and experience him perform a

selection of his favourite piano

works.

ATELIER OWNERS

MASTERCLASS

2pm – 4pm, April 3rd & 17th

An exclusive owners

Masterclass series with Tony

Fenelon, exploring popular

playing styles, flourishes,

arrangements and user tips.

PLAYERS AFTERNOON

2pm Thursday 27th April

Theme: Swing and Big Band

TONY FENELON IN

CONCERT

2pm & 7.30pm Thurs 15th June

Join us for to hear the world’s

greatest theatre organist, Tony

Fenelon in a spectacular new

performance event. Witness

Tony perform a series of piano

concertos and accompany

himself with stunning orchestral

arrangements. Breathtaking!

BOOK NOW: 9872 5122

♪�♪

MusiClub Newsletter AUTUMN 2017

Dear MusiClubbers,

Massive thank you for the patience on waiting to receive this

edition. In summer, as well as having the lovely warm weather,

we worked exceptionally hard for a massive January and

February, which you can read about in this edition.

Congratulations to the Team of Pianists on the success of their

Piano Marathon on Australia Day. The ballroom at Rippon Lea is

a superb location to celebrate piano performance and we were

proud to support this event (two pictures on the right).

It was wonderful to celebrate at the wedding of our warehouse

team members, Alecs and Jacqueline in February (pictured

right). We wish them a future of happiness and blessings.

The top right picture is my grandson Bradley (age 2, third of four

grandchildren) testing the newly arrived Schimmel Nouveau!

We are starting our renovation process and focusing on allowing

space for the trade people. Hence, there are lots of autumn

clearance bargains for you on the enclosed specials flyer.

More and more people are realising the benefit of making music

themselves. Studies are showing how music can help the brain

and relax the body too. The beauty of a piano or electronic

keyboard is that when you look at the keyboard you see music...

low to high tones. At Bernies, we tailor our programs to

encourage you to play, plus give you support to develop and

encourage others as well. Already this year we have been

inspired by so many educators and guests, and our upcoming

Dateline is full of events not to be missed.

At this time of the year, I often meet with schools and institutes

who naturally want to produce the best musicians. No one has

ever taken the time to explain that to have a good musician, you

need a good instrument. Most people have little knowledge about

what makes a piano different; the dynamics of tone, the variation

in volume, and the weight and repetition of the action. And

particularly having the right instrument for the right use;

otherwise it’s like trying to drive a Barina on a race track. At our

Inside the Piano workshops we explain how to test the

difference. If you or your friends are considering updating your

piano please come to the workshops or ask one of our team to

explain the categories to you.

Special thank you to Michelle for her amazing talent in putting

this newsletter together. Big thanks also to our contributors;

Craig Douglass and Rob Gee.

Remember what we say at Bernie’s... please bring some more

music into your lives every day! Bernie Capicchiano

Around Town Events Sponsored by Bernies

The Team of Pianists’ Twilight Chamber Music at Rippon Lea Estate Sunday 9th April, 6.30pm Sunday 21st May, 6.30pm Sunday 18th June, 6.30pm Sunday 16th July, 6.30pm Sunday 20th August, 6.30pm Sunday 17th September, 6.30pm Ph: 9527 2851 www.teamofpianists.com.au When The Rain Stops Falling A play by Andrew Bovell with musical composition by Bruce Rowland. Wednesday 26th April – Saturday 6th May At Metanoia Theatre, Brunswick www.trybooking.com/book/event?eid=248865 Melbourne Opera presents HMS Pinafore Saturday April 22nd, 7.30pm At Robert Blackwood Hall, Monash Uni Clayton https://mapa.monash.edu Maroondah Symphony Orchestra Concerts Sunday 18th June, 2.30pm Sunday 10th September, 2.30pm Sunday 26th November, 2.30pm At: George Wood PAC, Ringwood Tickets at door. Enquiries: Elaine 9720 8575 www.maroondahsymphony.org.au Dandenong Ranges Orchestra Concerts May 6th, 7.30pm at The Gem Arts Centre, Emerald August 20th, 2.30pm at Burrinja Centre, Upwey November 19th, 2.30pm at Tecoma Uniting Church December 3rd, 2.30pm at St Margarets, Mooroolbark Tickets $15 / 10 at door. Preston Orchestra Auditions Thursday 8th June, 7pm at Bernies Music Land, Ringwood Enquiries: 9481 8810 Peninsula Music Society Full 2017 program now available at: www.pmsmusic.asn.au Ringwood Eisteddfod Gala Concert Saturday 15th July, 8.00pm Hear the winners of this illustrious Eisteddfod at this exciting concert. All welcome! At Karralyka Theatre, Mines Road, Ringwood Tickets: book at Bernies Music Land 9872 5122

Australian Directors of

Music in Independent

Schools Conference 2017

The peaceful location of Torquay was a

great spot to gather and discuss our

future music leaders. To help make this

event in March possible, sponsors like

Bernies Music Land have a display of our

instruments and services for their music

departments. Bernie and Jon Wade (our

Hammond Specialist and Artist) were

thrilled to meet and chat with so many

Music Directors and to see how we can

support the good work they do.

381 Canterbury Road, Ringwood, Vic, 3134 P:03 9872 5122 www.musicland.com.au

BERNSTEIN

NEWS

Bernstein Australia is proud to

announce the launch of two

stunning new catalogues.

The Platinum Series is now

complete; with award winning

upright piano and grand piano

models.

With already over 10,000 proud

Australian owners, Bernstein

has a proud history and the

future looks even better.

Please drop in or phone us on

9872 5122 for a copy.

Travel Tips – Hire Cars

How many of you go on trips and spend

endless time queuing up for buses, trains

and taxis?

Well, have you checked out the cost of a hire

car recently? In Australia, it is really can be

cheaper and more convenient than you think.

Tip 1: never book the cheapest. Usually the

next level is not a great deal of difference

and you are sure to be treated with a bit

more attention on collection. For example, I

usually book the Camry category and not the

Corolla, and end up with a Calais!

Tip 2: sign up with a Hire Car Company

loyalty club. They will be happy to see you

back.

Tip 3: don’t always accept what they give

you. I have a profile preference for white or

silver cars and do not like the large SUVs

that they try to give you. Why white or

silver? Because they are easier to see! The

truck in Brisbane did not see the grey

Mitsubishi I was driving. So whilst merging,

he collected the mirror and ran me off the

road. The dark green Commodore in Sydney

was even better. While parked near an

intersection, I watched a truck reverse from

an underground carpark, then proceed to

turn left while running over the front of my

car... I don’t think you ever forget the sound

of metal crunching like that! Happy travelling.

Bernie C.

Ringwood Eisteddfod 2017

Great news for this year’s Ringwood Eisteddfod is

the move to Federation Estate in Ringwood,

where the eisteddfod will enjoy the best in comfort

and performance facilities for their events.

Ringwood Eisteddfod has proud 63 year history

and offers a broad range of divisions. Heats run

from June 2nd to June 26th and the grand final

concert is on 15th July, held at Karralyka.

This year, bookings can be made online for your

convenience, for both competitors and audience,

and also for the grand final concert.

Collect schedules at Bernies today or please visit:

www.ringwoodeisteddfod.org.au Bernie C.

NEW Silent Piano System

Are there times when you would like your piano

to have headphones? Now you can add a

Genio silent system to almost any upright or

grand piano, and play your piano without

disturbing anyone!

The new Genio Essence system is a sleek,

slimline box fitted to your piano that

incorporates the latest optical sensor

technology, capturing the notes that you play,

plus the velocity of your playing. Your piano

becomes muted and the sounds you hear

through headphones are very accurate to

traditional piano sounds.

The advantage of this new system is that it

operates via MIDI, so you can connect it to your

computer for recording, scoring and editing.

The Genio Essence has the ability to record on-

board plus the premium model includes a

number of high resolution orchestral sounds.

These sounds can be sent via audio to your

sound system or keyboard amplifier, so they

can be played as additional sounds with your

piano playing.

Now on display at Bernies is the new Genio

Essence Premium unit, fitted to the Bernstein

Platinum series 178cm grand piano. Priced very

reasonably from $2200 for upright pianos

(including installation) and from $3600 for grand

pianos (including installation), you can now

bring your treasured piano into the 21st century.

Drop in for a demonstration today!

Bernie C.

Review: Leslie Speaker

Leslie is a name that is synonymous with organ

speakers. Ever since Don Leslie designed his

first cabinet with a rotating speaker, it has been

a stalwart in blues, jazz and rock organ sounds

and continues today as a brand name that

delivers nothing but quality and innovation in

loudspeaker design. So, it was with great

pleasure that I got to test out and hear the new

SPA-150R-L Ensemble Speaker from Leslie in

recent weeks. As I was trying a Hammond stage

piano, it only made sense to hear how it sounds

through one of these speakers; the two being a

true match made in heaven.

A WORLD OF POSSIBILITIES

The team at Leslie have really thought this

speaker system through, making it very usable

for a range of instrument applications, not just

keyboards or organs. Whether used as a single

speaker cabinet, or linked as a pair, there are

several ways in which you can make use of the

inputs for harmonica, melodion, vocals, backing

tracks and keyboards. The four inputs have a

somewhat unusual setup in that they do act as

mono inputs, however each of the two pairs

share an EQ circuit. So, using the inputs in the

correct configuration will give you better control

of the sound. A switchable reverb circuit can

also be engaged across the master output,

which starts off very subtle, but gets very wet

when you increase the effects pot all the way.

Finding the balance to best suit all your inputs

with this reverb is the key to a great sound.

STOP, LOOK AND LISTEN

Let’s face it; we are not going

to judge a book by its cover

when it comes to speaker

design. After all, it really is all

about how it sounds in the

end. With that in mind, the

Leslie SPA-150R-L is a very

impressive unit. The front

ported three-way speaker

design is ideal for full range

amplification, but it has been specially designed

to work best with keyboards and organs. For

those of you looking for a keyboard amplifier,

you will no doubt know of the trouble finding a

PA speaker that doesn't break up, or deliver

physical speaker distortion when playing notes

in the lower octave range of your instrument.

This isn’t usually noticeable at low volume, but

when you crank it up, the low frequencies tend

to go south very quickly. This is not the case

with the SPA-150R-L. The cross over range and

speaker design allows the low and low-mid

frequencies to hold their own with this unit. Big

organ sounds with effects on them sound like

big organ sounds with effects. You get to hear

everything and don’t feel like you need to turn

the speaker down for fear of damaging it. This is

the keyboard amplifier that many of you have

been looking for.

Reviewed by Rob Gee for Mixdown Magazine.

Schimmel Shines

At Chinese New Year The Australian Chinese Events Committee

proudly presented the Chinese New Year

Charity Ball on February 4th and Bernies Music

Land / Schimmel Australia were very proud to

be sponsors.

Held in the ballroom at Crown Palladium, the

event was a massive fundraiser for Very

Special Kids. As part of our contribution, we

placed a white Art Nouveau special edition

grand piano in the welcome drinks area, and

provided fabulous piano entertainer, Peter

Sullivan, for pre-dinner entertainment.

Our advertisement with the picture of the

mahogany Schimmel Pegasus grand created a

lot of interest and many new Schimmel fans.

The white Art Nouveau is on stage here at

Bernies Music Land and ready for a wonderful

home, so please visit us today.

Piano Educators Day:

The Best Yet!

The eighth annual Piano Educators Day was the

best yet, with a sell-out crowd and more guests

involved than ever before. Even our air

conditioner was in a good mood and kept up with

the heat, as we welcomed almost 90 teachers to

the store over two days.

First time guests included examination board, St.

Cecilia School of Music, and author Angela

Turner (pictured top left). It was an honour to

also have representatives here from AMEB,

ANZCA, Trinity London and ABRSM.

In the biggest program ever, four keynote

speakers (Robert Chamberlain, Angela Turner,

Mark Gibson and Samantha Coates) were

received with great enthusiasm. Thanks to Music

Sales, Accent and Hal Leonard for their support.

A popular inclusion is the session Maintaining

Teaching Pianos and it was great to have

Vincent Tarin, Schimmel Master Technician, to

present this.

Naturally, a crowd favourite is the Print Music

Exhibition, where teachers can explore all the

latest publications from Hal Leonard, Music

Sales, Alfred, Accent Publishing, and Encore.

This special day was created by the team at

Bernies Music Land with the aim of giving piano

teachers the information and inspiration they

need to start a successful teaching year. And the

feedback we are receiving is a testament to its

success. Such a huge event is a massive feat of

coordination. Thank you to the amazing team

here at Bernies and to the teachers who come

along and support us throughout the year.

Michelle C.

CLASSIC ORGAN NEWS

The organ department has been very busy in the last few months and our most exciting news since last edition is the signing of the contact to install a new Johannus organ in Avondale Memorial Seventh Day Adventist Church in Cooranbong NSW.

Avondale Memorial is the Australian home to Suzuki Organ Education Australia. About 8 years ago, organist Mr David Clark first floated the idea of us supporting this innovative method of teaching classical organ to students as young as 4 years of age. The Suzuki Method is holistic in its approach to teaching and over the last years we have seen the tremendous success of this program and the exponential growth in the number of students now learning. Bernies Music Land is indeed honoured to be foundation and exclusive sponsors of Suzuki Organ Australia.

In August this year, we will install the magnificent Ecclesia D470 66 stop 3 manual organ with customisations (pictured below). I am a regular visitor to Cooranbong and my last visit was a very exciting one, to complete the audio layout and final specifications. In addition to the 13.3 audio, I have upgraded the subwoofer to a high power large scale mega-woofer and added two extra 2.1 monitor systems for clarity and good dispersion of sound. Keep an eye out for more news.

No less exciting was the pre-Christmas installation of the lovely Ecclesia T370 3 manual organ at Our Lady of Good Counsel in Deepdene which was the culmination of months of planning with some cleverly designed speaker cabinets in the rear gallery and with double subwoofer audio. Recital dates will be announced soon.

Due in the forthcoming shipment is the new LiVE 2T, a 2 manual 44 stop organ based around the leading-edge technology of the LiVE III organ we launched last year. More details including a launch in the next edition.

Keep an eye on our website for the release of an exciting new model. If your excitement becomes too much for you, give me a call after the 3rd of April and I will be glad to share the news. Craig D.

Piano Teacher Seminars 2017

Classical Piano: The T(h)rill Of It All

Renowned educator and pianist, Darryl Coote, will examine matters

of ornamentation such as melodic, harmonic and rhythmic factors,

the way in which music notation has evolved and how to guide your

students to a better interpretation of stylistic trends.

9.30am – 12.30pm Tuesday 4th April at Bernies Music Land

Making Scales Fundamental

Acclaimed co-author of How To Blitz General Knowledge, Abe

Cytrynowski will share techniques and tips for reinforcing and

strengthening scales, and making them fast and accurate. Filled with

plenty of tips and useful ideas!

9.30am – 12.30pm Tuesday 4th April at Bernies Music Land

Bookings: www.musicland.com.au/events

Bernstein® Piano Masterclass

Enrolments now open!

Masterclasses for piano students aged up to 16

years are held at Bernies Music Land with an

exceptional range of guest teachers:

Tuesday 4th July: Kenji Fujimura

Saturday 8th July: Tamara Smolyar

Saturday 15th July: Professor Max Cooke

Saturday 23rd September: Darryl Coote

Monday 25th September: TBA

Reserve places for your students now:

9872 5122 www.musicland.com.au/events