Alongside athletics, Mulan and Miya are equally involved in music. Here's what they've been doing:
Mulan:
Last year (2024) Mulan was very involved with music at her school (Westlake Girls High School). The Westlake schools (both girls and boys) have an excellent music programme, and are especially active in the large group orchestras, bands and choirs.
Mulan played cello in the Westlake Symphony Orchestra and Westlake Chamber Orchestra, and also sang in the Cigno Voce choir. Mid year, they performed at the KBB Festival and Big Sing events. Her string quartet performed at the Chamber Music Contest.
Through Westlake, Mulan had weekly lessons in both cello and singing. She joined two weekend school music camps, for choir and orchestra.
She also played flute in the West City Youth Concert Band, and performed at the New Zealand Concert Bands Association Nationals in Hamilton.
But her main instrument continues to be the recorder, which she had private lessons in throughout the year.
Mulan took music as a Year 13 subject, and sat NCEA 3 Music, achieving excellence.
She also sat Music Scholarship, which involved her performing on the recorder and writing a 3000-word essay analysing the piece she played. Scholarship is tough to get, and in 2024 of the 2088 New Zealand students who sat it in music, only 60 got scholarship plus 6 got outstanding (stats here).
Delightfully, Mulan got Music Scholarship (and $500 for her efforts)!
This year (2025) Mulan has stepped back a bit with her music, to focus on her university studies.
However, she continues to play flute in the West City Youth Concert Band. The National Festival this year will be in July in Wellington. This will be Mulan's first big independent trip, flying down and staying in a backpackers for the weekend.
This year Mulan has also started a part-time student job, teaching recorder at Birkdale North Music Centre. On Saturday mornings, Mulan teaches five classes of beginner recorder to primary-aged children.
Miya:
Last year Miya started at Westlake Girls High School, and immediately got involved in lots of music groups.
She was in the Year 9 Music Academy subject class. She newly picked up the French horn, and had weekly lessons in that and also clarinet.
She auditioned for and was selected into the senior Westlake Concert Band, playing clarinet. She also played in the junior Symphonic Band. She performed at the KBB Festival, and attended two weekend school music camps.
Miya also played clarinet in the West City Youth Concert Band, and performed at the Nationals.
This year, Miya is doing even more music at Westlake.
She is in four groups -- Westlake Symphony Orchestra, Westlake Concert Band, Westlake Symphonic Band, and Nota Bella choir. She's having lessons in clarinet, French horn and singing. Again, she's taking music as one of her subject options. And again, she went away on a weekend music camp.
In the coming months Miya will perform at the Big Sing, KBB Festival, and the Chamber Music Contest.
With being so busy doing Westlake music, Miya decided to stop playing in the West City Band.
But the big exciting news for Miya is that Westlake is planning a music group trip to China in April of next year. About 100 students across the four senior orchestra/bands will go to Beijing, Xi'an and Shanghai, performing and sightseeing.
