Term 4

On Thursday, December 5, our Senior School community gathered in the Dorothy Knox Centre (DKC) for Speech Day - a celebration of our girls' academic achievement in 2024. 

Those gathered were entertained by our Bel Canto Voices and Senior String Ensemble performance before Senior School Year Group Award certificates were handed out to each student and the announcement of our special prize recipients for 2024. 

Our guest speaker was Ms Alice Rickards (Class of 1998), who performed and presented aspects of her professional journey inspired whilst a student of the College to pursue her studies in music. Alice completed undergraduate and post-graduate studies at the Queensland Conservatorium and the Royal Academy of London, respectively. She was appointed to the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra and Australian Haydn Ensemble, where she works professionally as a violinist.

Emily Blake, our 2025 Head Prefect, thanked her for demonstrating how focusing on being the best you can be in your profession can allow you to use your success to follow your passion and serve others.

In her parting address, our 2024 Head Prefect, Caitlin Kable, spoke about the privilege of a PLC Armidale education and what makes a PLC Armidale girl. She closed by challenging students to make the most of their time at the College.

"PLC Armidale is like no other school; it is so beautifully unique," she said. 

"The passion that both the teachers and students exhibit all year round is inspiring."

"As we gather here at the close of another extraordinary year, it is a privilege to be ableto reflect on our journey as a school community, our collective accomplishments, and the lessons we have learnt. Despite that, I found it hard to find the right words to use while writing this speech, words that would inspire, provoke laughter, and impart wisdom, all in the hope I would be remembered and potentially a new building would be named after me; perhaps the CRK centre.

2024 has been nothing short of transformative, full of growth and development supported by the PLC Armidale community. After 6 years of boarding here at PLC there have been quite a number of lessons I have learnt.

Firstly, whatever you may be thinking about doing in the boarding house, Miss Latham will find out. It’s inevitable. Now, this lesson I wish I learnt sooner.

The second key lesson is that PLC Armidale is like no other school, it is so beautifully unique. The passion that both the teachers and students exhibit all year round is inspiring. This year, the second Year 9 program of Explore Serve Journey was another great success, and even though I wasn’t able to experience this program, the difference it makes is so clearly evident and yet boldly unique to PLC Armidale. Ultimately ensuring that each PLC Armidale girl who undertakes Explore Serve Journey returns as a better version of themselves, ready to contribute meaningfully to our world. 

Another notable mark of progress this year was the inaugural Indigenous Sporting Round, aimed to celebrate and honour Australia’s First Nation culture within our school. This initiative, I hope, will continue evolving and improving in the following years to promote inclusivity, diversity, and awareness through sport, which connects us all. 

Further, the continued success of the annual Anya’s Wish fundraiser is a testimony to PLC Armidale girls and their genuine compassion for others. These small successes from this year epitomise the culture here at PLC Armidale, one that is focused on others, in giving back and improving ourselves so we can be better for the people around us.

After sitting in classes for the past six years listening to teachers talk about standard deviations, titrations, essay structures and so on, it was often lost on me, to be completely honest, the privilege it was to be able to learn and study mathematics, science, history, and english with little to no restrictions, abundant resources and constant assistance. This brings me to my third and final point, the education you will receive at PLC Armidale is a privilege, it is an opportunity I urge you to make the most of. In a world of chaos, hatred, and disparity, it is a gift to receive an education and one day that will be clear.  So while you’re here, I challenge you to make the most of it.

Before I end this speech, I would like to thank you, PLC Armidale. Attending PLC has shaped the person I am today which leaves me forever indebted to this school. Thank you to the dedicated teachers, boarding house staff, administrators, dining hall staff, cleaners, IT staff, workmen, P&F, and all those who contribute to this school to ensure it is a place that uplifts young women and builds quality character.

Finally, thank you for entrusting me with the role of Head Prefect. This past year has been an honour and a challenge in which I have learnt more about myself and others than I have in these past 6 years. I am beyond proud to identify as a PLC girl and am so excited to see how this school and its girls will continue to grow.

Here’s to another year of connection, improvement, and success."

Caitlin Kable - PLC Armidale Head Prefect 2024

Alice Rickard (Class of '98) 

"It’s an absolute honour to be asked to speak today. Any parts that go particularly well, you can attribute to Mrs. Jan Patterson (fondly known as Mrs. P.), who taught me speech and drama. Being in her class at PLC was always so much fun, with countless hilarious moments during group improvisations. I just hope I manage to remember to close my mouth when pronouncing my m’s, b’s, and p’s today—something that was always a bit of a bugbear for her!

"The guest at my PLC Speech Day was Patricia Lovell, who was MIss Pat on Mr. Squiggle, a show I loved as a child. She also produced iconic Australian films, including Picnic at Hanging Rock and Gallipoli, the powerful war film starring a young Mel Gibson. I remember listening to her speak and thinking, ‘Goodness, what an impressive life she’s had.’ At the time, I felt a bit daunted, thinking that she was once a PLC girl, and look at what she’s created and contributed. It made me wonder, what would my life be like?

I came to PLC in 1997 to complete Years 11 and 12. While I had enjoyed my time at Duval High School, it felt like the right moment to make the move across the road. I wanted to study music at a higher level, and there was no better teacher than my mother, Deidre Rickards (and this is not nepotism!), as she is a passionate and inspiring music teacher.

My final years at PLC offered many more opportunities for growth. The smaller school size allowed for more personal attention in the classroom, while still providing a wide variety of courses, extracurricular activities, and fantastic facilities.

The experiences I had at PLC continue to shape my life beyond the school gates, whether it’s visiting an art gallery, exploring ancient ruins, reading literature, watching Wimbledon, or understanding the low odds of winning the lottery. One regret is not learning a language—especially when I find myself pointing and grunting to order lunch during my summer camping trips in France. I never thought I’d need another language, never imagining I might live overseas one day. How wrong I was!

➡The tune I played a few moments ago was one I first heard on ABC Classic FM, performed by a Scottish fiddler named Alastair Fraser. I was drawn to the sound of Scottish folk music, so I arranged the tune and performed it with the PLC Armidale string group.

Little did I know at the time, I would one day be living in Scotland and attending fiddle workshops with Alastair himself. As you can see, I’m featured in the Glasgow Herald, which captured the event. This was part of Celtic Connections, a three-week festival held annually in Glasgow. It’s a large world music festival, and I love the idea of bringing together musicians from different cultures to see what comes out of the mix. It’s the kind of connection that’s interesting because it shows that we’re not just individuals, but part of a much bigger web of life. The unexpected collaborations that happen are a reminder of how our paths are shaped by chance encounters. I always liked playing music, but the thing that really cemented my desire to do it as a profession was going to national Music camp. I loved the social interaction with other musicians and the experience of being part of an orchestra, where in the moment of performance everyone creates sound with same intention, one of the most ultimate and often exhilarating examples of teamwork. I knew it was a world that I wanted to be part of.

After finishing school, I attended the Queensland Conservatorium in Brisbane to study a Bachelor of Music. During this time, I practiced extensively on my own, following a guide my teacher had given me outlining what I should cover each hour of the six hours a day she insisted on. Unfortunately, much of this practice focused on quantity rather than quality.

I made many good friends at the Con, including Skye, who I met in my first year. I remember asking her for some rosin before orchestra, and we quickly became housemates. After graduating, I went to London to study at the Royal Academy of Music, and Skye joined me a year later. I suggested she try learning the baroque violin, an older instrument that sounds more earthy because it uses sheep’s gut strings. Many years later,

Skye now leads her own group, The Australian Haydn Ensemble, performing on these historical instruments.

Last year I toured America with her group performing in California, Carnegie hall in New York and the Australian embassy in Washington, where they served lamingtons and Bundaberg ginger beer.

This week we’ve been performing on home soil to audiences in Sydney, Canberra and Bowral. I think back and consider, if I hadn’t needed rosin that day both our lives may have been a little different.

They say it takes 10,000 hours to master something. Well, I’m pretty sure I’ve practiced far longer than that. While the process was often lonely, frustrating, and even boring at times,

it was something I had to go through. Now, I’ve gained the skills and the language to communicate through music, and I’m part of a vast musical community—not only of players, but also of listeners.

I remember feeling stuck at one point in my education, wondering why I was learning the violin when there are so many problems in the world. Shouldn’t I be doing something more useful? I loved other things in life too—maybe they’d be better career paths. I went for a walk in the rainforest with my father and shared these thoughts with him.

He made a great point, once you excel in your profession, you can use that platform to influence or contribute to other causes you’re passionate about, all the while continuing to grow in your field.

Fourteen years ago, I formed a violin and cello duo with my friend Sonia. We started at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, performing standard repertoire, and soon began creating more themed and original programs. We became Chamber Music Scotland’s ensemble in residence, and during this time, we discovered music by the Scottish composer James Oswald. In 1755, he wrote 96 pieces, each about a different plant. At the same time, I learned from a conservation group called Plantlife that Britain had lost 98% of its native wildflower meadows since World War I. I felt we had to find a way to communicate this through music. Using Oswald’s work as a starting point, we decided to commission contemporary composers to write pieces inspired by endangered plants.

Our project, TRANSPLANTED: Sounding Scotland’s Wild Plants in Music, was our first positive experience working creatively to raise awareness for the environment. It brought together composers, botanists, conservationists, concert promoters, artists, and photographers. We created performances for audiences, along with an education program for schools. What began as just two people grew into a vibrant community focused on plants and music. It was an exciting and rewarding experience.

Another project I came up with was inspired by the fact that people in Scotland and Australia have totally different views on rain. Whether I’m chatting with my family here or with friends and neighbours in Scotland, the conversations couldn’t be more different.

WATER MUSIC source to sea is a musical imagining of the journey taken by a raindrop as it travels along Scotland’s waterways. It was a pretty ambitious undertaking and the project included live performances, an audio release, online music videos, education resources and workshops in primary schools. We were part of the cultural activities during COP26 in Glasgow and the album release coincided with World Water Day.

We partnered with environmental charities like Save Scottish Seas, the Community of Arran Seabed Trust, Upstream Battle, Keep Scotland Beautiful, and the Marine Conservation Society to create music videos that communicate environmental messages creatively. We wanted to try a new approach, as scientific facts and statistics are often hard for the public to connect with.

“WATER MUSIC was a passion project for Sonia and me, and we were thrilled to win this trophy at the 2023 Scottish New Music Awards. The trophy is a colourful hand holding music notes, symbolising ‘the future of music is in our hands.’”

For my year 12 PLC valedictory assembly we were swept into the hall by the thunderous, soul-stirring wail of bagpipes. This distinctive sound belongs to Scotland, as does the iconic tartan of your uniform. It is quite surreal for me to be here in Australia, returning to my old school with it’s origins belonging to a country where I now live. It’s all so familiar but now it’s sensed through the prism of life experience.

I moved to Glasgow in 2008 to take a position with the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra. The highlights of this job include annual Proms performances at the Royal Albert Hall in London, international tours to Europe, Japan, India, and China, and the orchestra is in South Korea as I speak.

 I’ve taken a break to come out and play music here instead. I was in the orchestra for Pinchgut Opera’s recent production of Julius Caesar. As well as being visually striking the musical experience was fantastic. The singers performed with thrilling athletic virtuosity and the musical Director Erin Helyard was inspiring and utterly trustworthy as he navigated us through the 3 hours of this fiery diva driven musical drama. As the theatre Director Neil Armfield put it ‘Erin just makes you want to be really good.’ Simple, but ultimately what more can you ask for in work or in life. We are naturally social beings and we rely on each other. I would like to thank those of you who welcomed and assisted my girls, Selma and Maia over the past two weeks. They have loved the PLC Armidale experience and I felt happy working away in Sydney knowing they were in good hands.

Thank you for listening to me share my experiences and creative materials, I’ve enjoyed the opportunity to reflect and I wish you a safe and happy summer."