Walnut Park Elementary School presented their Christmas Concert last week. It came out as an easy to listen to performance that involved all ages in the school.
Colin Maskell is the new music teacher at the school. He hails from Vancouver and fell in love with Smithers.
The musical education of the students is very important to him. “There used to be a saying that playing music and teaching music is an outward journey and an inward journey. It’s about finding yourself inwardly and what you choose to express,” he said.
He feels that he is still getting used to teaching. After getting married in Vancouver, he and his wife decided to move here and they have no regrets.
Musical education is important for a number of reasons. For example, the audience is a part of the performance and they need to hear what is happening in the music. They need to understand the basic concepts of music and how it can affect you. He pointed to music in video games as an example of how it can affect the listener.
His attention to the performance was easily evident as students joyfully presented many of the favorite tunes as well as a few others that could become favorites in the future.
Maskell attention to the performance was more than evident as he injured his back while setting up the stage earlier in the week. This could not keep him away long and the show went on with good results.
