Australian Composers Orchestral Forum provides emerging composers the opportunity to work with a professional symphony orchestra
ORCHESTRAS AUSTRALIA : Summary
Project Summary
Converting the Masses – contemporary music performance with students (Originally published in the AMC's Update No. 141 2006)
Dr Kevin Cameron, Director of Music at Pembroke (Adelaide, SA) reports on The Pembroke Symphony Orchestra’s performance of composer Katy Abbott’s latest orchestral work Fast Ride in a Suave Machine.
The Pembroke Symphony Orchestra is one of Australia’s finest school orchestras. Each season, the Pembroke Symphony Orchestra performs six concerts – usually consisting of major works of the mainstream repertoire. However, the Orchestra sometimes undertakes special projects, one of which has been the Composers_Connecting_Community program. This program, proposed by Orchestras Australia and funded by the Australia Council, linked composers in active collaboration with several orchestras through the commissioning of one new work.
As a conductor, I have often commissioned new works, worked with composers, and conducted the first performances of many works. I know that, for composers, it is not necessarily the premiere performance that is most significant. All stakeholders involved in the production of new work hope that the work will gain a life beyond the first performance, reach other ears, and take its place in the repertoire. The Composers_Connecting_Community program ensured that the new works created as part of the program received several performances across the country – wonderful exposure for the individual works and the composer.
Composer Katy Abbott visited a Pembroke Symphony Orchestra rehearsal late in 2005. She was able to experience the orchestra first hand, meet the students, and discuss music with them. The students in the orchestra, ranging from Year 7 to 12, were enthusiastic about this project, but were excited by the idea of working with a composer that was to paraphrase their words) young, female, and alive! I discussed the proposed work with Katy and suggested that the work would need to be challenging but achievable, have scope for emotive interpretation, and be successful substance to which students could relate and interpret – anything patronising, or something ‘dumbed down’ for a ‘school’ orchestra would be rejected very quickly by the students.
A Fast Ride in a Suave Machine was the result of the commission. It is an eminently enjoyable work, energetic in rhythm, rich in colours and special effects, and provides opportunities for soloists and sections to feature. It is a good example of a contemporary Australian work that can be enjoyed by a range of orchestras. In my view, there is a ready market in Australia for works that can be performed by orchestras that are not necessarily professional – there are many fine school, youth, community, and university orchestras that need to be performing more Australian works of good quality and intensity.
The Pembroke Symphony Orchestra gave the world premiere of A Fast Ride in a Suave Machine at Orchestras Australia’s National Orchestral Forum at Camberwell Civic Centre on 19 August 2006. Hopefully we gave this piece a good birth! The students in the orchestra formed critical views concerning the piece and the performance – it was exciting to overhear the discourse about the work, and the opinions argued in such a meaningful and intelligent manner. The Composers_Connecting_Community program certainly provided a unique opportunity for our students to interact with a composer in the production of a new work that has been enjoyable to rehearse and perform, and has provided an insight into the world of contemporary Australian composition for orchestral players at Pembroke, and those players in other orchestras involved in this project across Australia.
Report from Orchestras Australia (Originally published in the Australian Music Centre's Update No. 142. 2006)
Rachelle Elliott, executive officer of Orchestras Australia (OA), discusses OA's involvement in a new initiative of the Music Board of the Australia Council, Composers_Connecting_Community. OA, along with Dandenong Ranges Youth Music Council and Youth Orchestras Australia have been granted funds to each host a composer residency or commission new works for youth and community-based music organisations.
Orchestras around the country embrace the wealth of Australian works available which is evidenced through the increasing number of Australian works being included in concert repertoire and the number of new works being commissioned. The highest profile activities are those involving works composed by established composers, performed often by professional orchestras. However, in all areas of the orchestral scene commissions are being given to composers of varying levels of experience to write new works for orchestras with varied skills, ages and range of instruments.
Feedback from members of Orchestras Australia (OA) over the last few years indicates that many more orchestras would like the opportunity to perform new Australian works, but often they are restricted by:
• access to new works suitable for their orchestra’s makeup and skill level
• insufficient funding to source and perform new works
• limited knowledge about the works available if they are not listed with the Australian Music Centre
As a service-based membership organisation, OA is attempting to address some of the restrictions to member orchestras so that more groups, especially those which are self-funded, have the opportunity to play and perform new music.
One of the initiatives taken to address access to suitable new works is a project titled Composers_ Connecting_ Community which is funded by two Australia Council new work grants (the Annual New Work Grant and Composers_Connecting_Community Grant) received by OA. Both grants involve the commissioning of two new Australian works for use by youth and community orchestras.
OrA has commissioned emerging Melbourne composer Katy Abbott to write one symphony orchestra and one string orchestral work, and Sydney composer Matthew Hindson to write two works for symphony orchestras.
During this project, participating orchestras in SA, VIC, NSW, & QLD will have the opportunity to work with either Abbott or Hindson as they create a new work. For many players and conductors, this will be the first time they will meet and work with a living composer. To date the project has focused on Abbott’s commission, and the response to her – especially by the youth orchestras – is great. This reflects the understanding she has of her craft and of how to work with people to help them feel involved in the compositional process. Abbott said recently:
This project interests me a great deal. The fun of composing for such ensembles lies in tailoring musical ideas and the orchestration to each group. The art is composing a new piece that is playable for youth and non-professional groups, yet extends and excites the performers. The collaboration so far with conductors has been very encouraging and I am looking forward to presenting them with the new works later in the year. I have really enjoyed meeting the musicians who we have worked with and look forward to hearing their performances of the commissioned pieces.
The interactions both Abbott and Hindson have with the Orchestras Australia orchestras will be documented as we hope to learn more about the process of composers working with players and conductors.
Orchestras Australia is looking forward to the world premiere performance of these commissioned works on Saturday 19 August, 2006 in Melbourne with orchestras from NSW, SA & VIC along with the composers.
