The Apollo Bay music teacher is in the running to be named 2022 Telstra ARIA Award for Music Teacher of the Year.
One of the region’s hardest-working musicians and beloved Apollo Bay music teacher, Matt Orchard, has been named a nominee in this year’s Telstra ARIA Music Teacher Award in partnership with Telstra, and proudly supported by The Song Room.
This award, now in its sixth year, shines a light on the importance of music education and music teachers across the country. Three out of four Australian schools do not have a specialist music teacher, despite evidence suggesting that students’ participation in music and the Arts increases school attendance, improves learning across the curriculum, and builds student confidence and resilience. There is much work to be done to improve this situation.
Keep up with the latest music news, festivals, interviews and reviews here.
Matt Orchard joins three other nominees including Jane Nicholas from Willandra Primary School in Perth, WA; David Collins White from Haberfield Public School, Haberfield, NSW; and Kath Dunn from Wollondilly Public School in Goulburn, NSW.
The ony Victorian nominee, Orchard is a seasoned musician on the local circuit and one quarter of The Rank Outsiders, Orchard has played thousands of live shows, venues and private functions and hones in one his love for the sound of vintage guitars played through fine amplification, writing and playing bluesy, rock’n’roll tunes and a little denim.
Over the course of his career as a musician, becoming a music teacher evolved organically across several years, leading him to his current position as a Victorian music teacher at Apollo Bay College P-12.
“To be honest, I shied away from teaching for about a decade after receiving my degree but one thing led to another and I gradually morphed into it. I was working as a musician at The Apollo Bay Hotel in 1998 and was approached by the, then principal of Apollo Bay P-12 College, Dick Lythgo, to see if I was interested in coming along to help out with a few classes. He knew me from when I had completed some teaching rounds there many years before,” he explains.
“Soon after, I began teaching Years 7, 8 and 9 and found that I really enjoyed the process and also that, I seemed to be kind of OK at it. Besides, it’s always lovely to spend your days surrounded by electric guitars!”
The Rank Outsiders @ Aireys Inlet Open Mic Festival at Aireys Pub Marquee Stage on March 17, 2019 in Aireys Inlet, Victoria.
© 2019 Patrick Callow, all rights reserved.
A well loved music teacher in the Apollo Bay community, Matty O, as he is affectionately known, provided students a game-changing opportunity in music, turning a single, rundown portable with a few elective classes, into a ‘House Of Rock’ music program that teaches students from prep through to Year 12. It’s so popular students still return 20 years later to help work in the program.
“IMO it’s definitely the coolest room in the school! The House Of Rock contains five main music spaces including two fully set up band rooms. Our walls are plastered with images of hundreds of bands and music icons and we have a cool selection of electric guitars, basses, drums, keyboards and PA’s. Everything one needs to release their inner rock demon!
“The school received decent grant in 2010 with which we were able to design and install a fully, fledged recording studio within the actual music room. Students have had the luxury of recording hundreds of hours of bands, solos, duos, production soundtracks, radio ads and sound effects since then. It’s a dream set up, and for a music nut like me, it’s the coolest ‘man pad’ ever.”
Upon receiving the nomination, ex Silverchair drummer, Ben Gillies, visited the school to give Orchard the good news, which the teacher cites as a career highlight.
“The aforementioned building of the studio was huge but my personal favourite happened recently when Ben Gillies from Silverchair visited the House Of Rock as my ARIA ambassador to present me with the official nomination,” he says.
“During the visit he mentioned that there was someone else who wanted to congratulate me, before playing a video of, none other than Jack Black sending me “much love” as he called it!
“I’m absolutely chuffed to have made it this far. I don’t usually sit around and ponder the affect my music classes have had on people and it’s been totally humbling to receive the incredible encouragement and well wishes from so many folks from near and far. I still can’t quite believe it.”
The Telstra ARIA Music Teacher Award category is the first to be launched for the 2022 ARIA awards, with the winner to be awarded as part of the ARIA Awards in a live event this November.
The winner will join previous winners; Zoë Barry (2021, Sacred Heart School, Fitzroy VIC) Sarah Donnelly (2020, Wilcania Central School, Wilcannia NSW), Antonio Chiappetta (2019, St Andrews College, Sydney NSW), and Scott Maxwell and (2018, Grant High School, Mount Gambier SA), Renee McCarthy (2017, Woodcroft College, Morphett Vale SA).
“The ARIA whirlwind continues. Voting closes on November 16th at 11.59pm. The following week I fly to Sydney and will be sitting on a panel, hosted by Murray Cook (the original Red Wiggle), with the three other nominees discussing music education,” he says.
“On Thursday 24thwe all hit The Horden Pavillion for the 2022 ARIA Awards ceremony including the red carpet and all the bells and whistles. Who knows…with a bit of luck I might just get to hold that very pointy trophy aloft!”
You can vote for Matt Orchard here. Voting can be done once per day, per device until 11:59pm on 16 November!
