Explorez tous les épisodes du podcast The Music Show

Composer Larry Sitsky is a charming sort of thorn in the side of the Australian music scene, and he’s about to turn 90. In this conversation recorded at the 2024 Canberra International Music Festival, he doesn’t hold back. 

New York based trumpeter Chloe Rowlands divides her time between playing with art brass quartet the Westerlies, and with groups like Fleet Foxes and the 8-Bit Big Band. She’s visiting both edges of Australia when she collaborates with the WA Youth Jazz Orchestra and the Sydney Conservatorium’s Equity in Jazz Program. 

Larry Sitsky’s The Compleat Busoni is published by ANU Press.

Chloe Rowlands performs a free concert at Sydney Conservatorium of Music on Thursday 5 September, 6.30-8.30pm. 

Chloe performs two shows in Perth with WA Youth Jazz Orchestra, in the Progressions 2024 Showcase and at The Ellington Jazz Club. 

Music heard in the show:

Title: When All of This is OverComposer: Chloe RowlandsArtist: The WesterliesAlbum: Songbook Vol. 2Label: The Westerlies Music

Title: Piano Concerto No. 1 – The Twenty-Two Paths of the Tarot; vi. The LoversComposer: Larry SitskyArtist: Roger Woodward, David Porcelijn, Adelaide Symphony OrchestraAlbum: A Concerto CollectionLabel: ABC Classics 481 1322

Title: Sonatina Seconda Composer: Ferruccio BusoniArtist: Marc-André Hamelin (piano)Album: Busoni Late Piano MusicLabel: Hyperion CDA67951

Title: Violin Concerto No. 3 ‘I Ching’ – The Eight Kua (Trigrams); i. WaterComposer: Larry SitskyArtist: Jan Sedivka, Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra, Christopher Lyndon-GeeAlbum: Australian ConcertosLabel: Australian Music Unit AMU4

Title: Arch (Fantasia No. 4)Composer: Larry SitskyArtist: Larry Sitsky (piano)Album: Contemporary Australian PianoLabel: Move M3066

Title: Blue and Red HorsesComposer: Adriene LenkerArtist: The WesterliesAlbum: Songbook Vol. 1Label: The Westerlies Music

Title: Tifa’s ThemeComposer: Nobuo UematsuArtist: The 8-Bit Big Band, Chloe Rowlands (flugelhorn)Album: Album 4 – Game ChangerLabel: 8-Bit 

Title: LaurieComposer: Chloe RowlandsArtist: The WesterliesAlbum: Wherein Lies the GoodLabel: The Westerlies Music

Technical production by Emrys Cronin, Isabella Tropiano, and John Jacobs

The Music Show is made on Gadigal and Gundungurra Country

Romano Crevici has been playing violins made by Harry Vatiliotis for decades. Now drawing to the end of their respective careers, Harry has made one final instrument, which will be Romano's last violin too. The process, challenged by sore joints, thin skin, and Harry's caring responsibilities to the love of his life Maria, have been captured in a moving film called The Last Violin by Carla Thackrah. Romano and Carla are in the studio with the titular violin.

Andrew Robertson's The Journeyman Suite is music about making music—documenting the realities and career arc of a jobbing musician. Big band music presents big possibilities for colour and texture and the composer tells Andrew Ford about writing for this intergenerational band, and why he added a string quartet.

The Last Violin is being screened on SBS on Sunday 15 September and will be available on SBS On Demand after that.

You can contact Romano Crivici here if you own an instrument made by Harry Vatiliotis. 

AR Big Band's The Journeyman Suite is out now on ABC Jazz.

 Romano Crivici and Carla Thackrah with the last violin.

Music in this program:

Title: String Quartet No. 4 ‘Undercurrents’Artist: Elektra String QuartetComposer: Romano CriviciAlbum: Ebb & FlowLabel: ABC Classics ABCL0015D

Title: Let it Go Artist: Allie OsborneComposer: Romano CriviciAlbum: The Vatiliotis Collection: music from The Last ViolinLabel: No-Self Records

Title: Ecstasy of CloudsArtist: Elektra String QuartetComposer: Romano CriviciAlbum: Flat EarthLabel: ABC Classics 4657042

Titles: Blow; Torment; The one less travelled by...; The BalladierArtist: AR Big Band & String QuartetComposer: Andrew RobertsonAlbum: The Journeyman Suite Label: ABC Jazz ABCJ0031D

Title: Symphony for Big Band; 3rd Movement Artist: AR Big BandComposer: Andrew RobertsonAlbum: The Journeyman Suite Label: ABC Jazz ABCJ0031D

Technical production by Emrys Cronin, Isabella Tropiano, and John Jacobs

The Music Show is made on Gadigal and Gundungurra Country

In 1961, the first elected leader of the Democratic Republic of the Congo was assassinated just months after the country’s newfound independence. Unbeknownst to themselves, US jazz musicians such as Louis Armstrong, Nina Simone, Dizzie Gillespie, Max Roach and Abbey Lincoln played an unlikely role in his death. Belgian director Johan Grimonprez joins us on The Music Show to explain the bizarre link between jazz and the CIA involvement in this Congolese coup, detailed in his new documentary Soundtrack to a Coup d’Etat, playing as part of Melbourne International Film Festival. 

Sinking Cities is a new work from jazz saxophonist, composer and arranger Rafael Karlen. It laments the 2019 flooding of 12,000-year old Türkish city Hasankeyf (one of the oldest continually inhabited cities in the world) to make way for a controversial dam. Karlen, who has never been to Türkiye, explains to Andrew Ford why this issue inspired him to write a large-scale piece of music for string orchestra, choir and saxophone.

Soundtrack to a Coup d'Etat, directed by Johan Grimonprez is showing as part of Melbourne International Film Festival on 12 + 24 August, and New Zealand International Film Festival on 15 + 17 August.

Rafael Karlen's album Sinking Cities is out now on ABC Classic.

Technical production by Ann-Marie Debettencor

The Music Show is produced on Gadigal and Gundungurra Country

With a voice comfortable singing baroque repertoire and world premieres, Roderick Williams is one of the most sought-after baritones in the UK. He’s also an arranger and composer (he wrote music for King Charles’ coronation), but tells Andrew Ford that his most important label is ‘musician’. He’s in Australia for concerts at the Australian Festival of Chamber Music, the Newcastle Music Festival, and with the Adelaide and Melbourne Symphony Orchestras.

“We who believe in freedom cannot rest, we who believe in freedom cannot rest until it comes” — Bernice Johnson Reagon (from the lyrics to Ella's Song)

The pioneering US civil rights activist, composer, scholar and singer Bernice Johnson Reagon died last week at the age of 81. The vocal group she founded, Sweet Honey In The Rock, has elevated the voices and music of Black women in America for decades. We'll hear again from a Music Show interview from the eve of the 2000 US election where Reagon explains what drives her, and how singing and protest are so intertwined. 

Roderick Williams' Australian performance dates:

Friday 26 July - ACFM Opening Night Concert - Festival FeelingsSaturday 27 July - AFCM Ray Golding Sunset Series 1 -Spanish SunsetSaturday 27 July - AFCM Governor's Gala - Angels, Demons and other Nasties...Sunday 28 July - AFCM SPECIAL EVENT Sunday Night Concert - SchubertiadeMonday 29 July - AFCM Concert Conversations 2 withAlexandra Raikhlina, Christian-Pierre La Marca, Roderick Williams, Umberto Clerici and Stephen JohnsonWednesday 31 July - Roam with the Adelaide Symphony OrchestraThursday 1 August - AFCM Ray Golding Sunset Series 4 - Brothers in LoveThursday 1 August - AFCM Evening Concert 3 - Baroque TemptationsSaturday 3 August - AFCM Ray Golding Sunset Series 6-Distant BelovedSaturday 3 August - AFCM Closing Concert - Festival FarewellSunday 4 August - AFCM After PartyFriday 23 August - Newcastle Music Festival masterclassFriday 23 August - Newcastle Music Festival recital Thursday 29 August - Fauré's Requiem with the MSOSaturday 31 August - Fauré's Requiem with the MSO Sunday 1 September - Siobhan Stagg and Roderick Williams in recital

Music in this show:

Title: Ella's SongComposer: Bernice Johnson ReagonArtist: Sweet Honey In The RockAlbum: BreathsLabel: Cooking Vinyl COOK 008

Title: The ShepherdComposer: Roderick Williams, words William BlakeArtist: Roderick Williams and Susie AllanAlbum: Vaughan Williams: A Birthday GarlandLabel: SOMM Recordings SOMMCD 0683

Title: Be Thou My Vision, Triptych for OrchestraComposer: Roderick WilliamsArtist: The Coronation Orchestra, Sir Antonio Pappano conductorAlbum: The Coronation of Their Majesties King Charles III and Queen Camilla: The Official AlbumLabel: Decca 5574786

Title: When I was one-and-twentyComposer: George Butterworth, words A. E. Housman, arr. Roderick WilliamsArtist: Roderick Williams, Hallé Orchestra, Mark ElderAlbum: A Shropshire Lad: English Songs Orchestrated by Roderick WilliamsLabel: Hallé CDHLL7559

Title: We Are The OnesComposer: Bernice Johnson Reagon, words June JordanArtist: Sweet Honey In The RockAlbum: ...Twenty-Five...Label: Rykodisc RCD 10451

Title: Ballad of the Broken WordComposer: Toshi ReagonArtist: Sweet Honey In The RockAlbum: Still On The JourneyLabel: EarthBeat! 9 42536-2

Technical production by Ann-Marie Debettencor

The Music Show is produced on Gadigal and Gundungurra Country

Kamilaroi and Tongan singer and musician Radical Son (AKA David Leha) has just released his second album, a full decade after his debut. Called Bilambiyal (The Learning) it demonstrates his growth as a songwriter with a knack for weaving personal stories alongside wider reflections on culture, community and Country. He's also a masterful collaborator, bringing in the voices of legends Frank Yamma and Emma Donovan and a crack team of producers to build out the album's lush sound.

Christopher Cerrone's Nervous Systems is an aural exploration of systems; from flesh and blood, to tides and oceans, to the brutalist architecture of Pier Luigi Nervi. With the original work barely dry on the score, Omega Ensemble have commissioned a new arrangement that brings new colour to this sonic landscape. Chris joins us on The Music Show to discuss this work, as well as mentoring, opera, and dystopian insect drones.

Radical Son's second album Bilimbiyal (The Learning) is out now, and he performs at CLANCESTRY Festival in Brisbane on 31 July.

Christopher Cerrone's new arrangement of Nervous Systems will be played as part of Omega Ensemble's Alchymia, with two shows playing at ACO Pier 2-3 in Sydney July 27. 

Music in this program:

Title: ElderArtist: Radical Son, Jida GulpililComposer: Andrew Robinson, David Bridie, David Leha, Jida Gulpilil, Marcus LongfootAlbum: Bilambiyal (The Learning)Label: Wantok Musik

Title: Dhuwan Baraay YuligiArtist: Radical SonPerformed live in the RN Breakfast studio 

Title: Yuluwirri Wandabaa (The Rainbow Dreaming)Artist: Radical Son, Emma Donovan, Frank YammaComposer: David Bridie, David Leha, Marcus LongfootAlbum:  Bilambiyal (The Learning)Label: Wantok Musik

Title:  Nervous SystemsArtist: CIM New Music Ensemble (Greg Hamilton – clarinet, Kayla Bryan – violin, Minchae Kim – violin, Tristan Wilson – viola, Annamarie Wellems – cello)Composer: Christopher CerronePerformed live on Sunday, November 12, 2023 at Mixon Hall at the Cleveland Institute of Music

Title: Scene 7: The Murdered Man, Channeled by a MediumArtist: Metropolis Ensemble and full vocal castComposer: Christopher Cerrone, Stephanie FleischmannAlbum: In a GroveLabel: Independent -- ICR028

Title:  The Insects Became MagneticArtist:  Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester BerlinComposer:  Christopher CerronePerformed live by the Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin

Technical production by Russell Stapleton and Ann-Marie Debettencor

Produced on Gadigal and Gundungurra Country

Brett Dean and Matthew Jocelyn's Hamlet (2017) has been one of the most successful operas of recent years with performances at the Glyndebourne Festival, the Adelaide Festival, New York's Metropolitan Opera and the Bavarian State Opera. Now it comes to the Sydney Opera House in its original production by Neil Armfield, with the tenor Allan Clayton, who created the role of Hamlet, perhaps singing it for the last time. Brett Dean and Allan Clayton join Andrew Ford to talk about the opera's origins and its connection to Shakespeare's play.

New York-based jazz bassist and composer Linda May Han Oh is back in Australia for a string of concerts with her husband, the Cuban American pianist Fabian Almazan, as well as the WA Youth Jazz Orchestra (a nice full circle moment for the Perth-raised musician). She speaks to Andrew Ford about switching between electric and upright bass, incorporating her voice in compositions, and the environmental themes behind her piece Ephemeral Echoes which has just earned her a nomination at the forthcoming 2024 Art Music Awards. 

Hamlet runs from 20 July - 9 August at the Sydney Opera House. 

Linda May Han Oh performs 21 July at the Sydney Opera House, and 22 July at Church St Studios in Sydney.

Music in this program:

Title: Act I; Scene 4, ...or not to be (Live)Composer: Brett Dean, words William Shakespeare, libretto Matthew JocelynArtist: Allan Clayton, The Metropolitan Opera Orchestra and Chorus, Nicholas CarterAlbum: Brett Dean: Hamlet (Recorded Live at the Met, June 4 2022)Label: The Metropolitan Opera (digital release)

Title: Spring Symphony, Op. 44, Part II. Waters aboveComposer: Benjamin BrittenArtist: Allan Clayton, London Symphony Orchestra, Sir Simon RattleAlbum: Britten: Spring Symphony, Sinfonia da Requiem, the Young Person's Guide To the OrchestraLabel: LSO Live LSO0830

Title: Act I; Scene 4, Get thee to a nunnery (Live)Composer: Brett Dean, words William Shakespeare, libretto Matthew JocelynArtist: Allan Clayton, The Metropolitan Opera Orchestra and Chorus, Nicholas CarterAlbum: Brett Dean: Hamlet (Recorded Live at the Met, June 4 2022)Label: The Metropolitan Opera (digital release)

Title: Wring from him the cause (from Gertrude Fragments) Composer: Brett DeanArtist: Lotte Betts-Dean, Andrey LebedevRecording supplied by Brett Dean

Title: Firefly, from Ephemeral Echoes (Live)Composer: Linda May Han OhArtist: Linda May Han Oh, Steve Richter, Iain Robbie, Genevieve Wilkins, Fabian Almazan, Ben VanderwalLive recording from Perth Festival 2023, with thanks to Finding Our Voice

Title: HatchlingComposer: Linda May Han OhArtist: Linda May Han OhAlbum: The Glass HoursLabel: Biophilia Records

Title: ArchComposer: Vijay IyerArtist: Vijay Iyer, Tyshawn Sorey, Linda May Han OhAlbum: CompassionLabel: ECM 2760

Technical production by Russell Stapleton

Produced on Gadigal and Gundungurra Country

This program contains strong language throughout. 

Before Madonna brought voguing into the limelight, the queer community had been quietly putting on balls and celebrating this form of expression since the 1970s. Far from the ballroom of waltzes and tangos, queer ballroom is an artform, a community, a form of protest and its very own genre of music. You might have seen the seminal documentary Paris is Burning, or seen ballroom referred to on RuPaul’s Drag Race, or seen the drama Pose – but even if ballroom is brand new to you, Australia’s unique queer community has created its very own style of ball – and the music you’ll hear there.

You’ll hear from US “king of vogue” Dashaun Wesley, as well as local icons Xander Khoury (overall father of the House of Silky), DJ Mirasia (overall mother of the House of Silky), and multi-hyphenate artist Jamaica Moana.

Thanks to ABC Arts for their interview with Jamaica Moana, featured in this episode.

Technical production by Simon Branthwaite

The Music Show is made on Gadigal and Gundungurra Country

Andrew Gurruwiwi leads the Andrew Gurruwiwi Band in what they call 'Yolŋu funk', a mix between reggae, heavy metal, and funk in language from across the region. Andrew tells us about his music-making, his career as a radio presenter, and explains the stories behind some of the tracks on the band's dynamic debut album, Sing Your Own Song.

"He basically invents the rules of jazz. He shows you 'this is how to play a solo, this is how to sing, this is how to phrase, this is how to tell a story, this is how to swing. Ok, this is jazz. And now I'm going to break all those rules.'" - Ricky Riccardi on Louis Armstrong

Towards the end of the 1960s Louis Armstrong's performances were hit-and-miss. Plagued by health issues and pushing 70, the veteran entertainer was determined to keep playing, singing and touring, despite calls from his doctors to slow down. But in 1968, with a burst of vitality, he performed for BBC TV with hits spanning his remarkable five decades in music. This included What A Wonderful World, a song that had made him a household name just weeks prior. The concert recording of Armstrong's "last great performance" has been rediscovered, and now released as live album Louis In London. Ricky Riccardi is Director of Research Collections at the Louis Armstrong House Museum and joins Andy to talk about the great trumpeter and why we're still talking about him over 50 years after his death.

You can hear the Louis In London album in full on ABC Jazz program Jazztrack Live this Saturday 20 July at 4pm.

Music heard in the program:

Title: A Kiss To Build A Dream OnComposer: Bert Kalmar, Harry Ruby and Oscar Hammerstein IIArtist: Louis ArmstrongAlbum: Louis In London Label: Verve 602465686128

Title: Bare Necessities Composer: Bruce Reitherman and Phil HarrisArtist: Louis ArmstrongAlbum: Louis In London Label: Verve 602465686128

Title: When It's Sleepy Time Down SouthComposer: Clarence Muse, Leon René and Otis RenéArtist: Louis ArmstrongAlbum: Louis In London Label: Verve 602465686128

Title: Gatjumak (Dance Battle), Go To Sleep (The Legend of Ŋamini Baŋ Baŋ), Wata MäwiComposer: Andrew GurruwiwiArtist: Andrew Gurruwiwi BandAlbum: Sing Your Own SongLabel: Gaga Music

Technical production by Simon Branthwaite

The Music Show is made on Gadigal and Gundungurra Country

First Nations listeners are advised that this program contains the names and voices of people who have died.

At the start of NAIDOC Week, The Music Show explores the legacy of the late Ruby Hunter – short in stature, a giant in music, and a mentor and parental figure to so many First Nations musicians in subsequent generations. We’ll hear Ruby from the archives, and catch up with Emily Wurramara and Dan Sultan, both of whom have sung a tribute to Ruby Hunter alongside their fantastic new albums.

Dan Sultan reunites with the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra  to perform 12 & 13 July, before playing Yabaardu in Ceduna SA on 19 July.

Emily Wurramara is performing at Live in the Gardens on 13 November.

Music in this program

Title: Kurongk Boy, Kurongk GirlArtist: Ruby HunterAlbum: Thoughts WithinLabel: Mushroom – MUSH32309.2

Title: Proud, Proud WomenArtist: Ruby HunterAlbum: Thoughts WithinLabel: Mushroom – MUSH32309.2

Title: Midnight BluesArtist: Emily WurramaraComposer: Bed Edgar, Caiti Baker, Emily Blinter (Wurramara), James MangohigAlbum: NARALabel: ABC Music

Title: Lordy LordyArtist:  Emily Wurramara, Tasman KeithComposer: Emily Blinter (Wurramara)Album: NARALabel: ABC Music

Title: It’s OkayArtist:  Ruby HunterAlbum: Feeling GoodLabel: Mushroom – MUSH332672 

Title: True LoversArtist:  Ruby HunterAlbum: Feeling GoodLabel: Mushroom – MUSH332672 

Title: Nobody Knows Artist:  Dan SultanAlbum: BlackbirdLabel: Liberation Music – LMCD0238

Title: Ringing in My Ears Artist:  Dan SultanComposer: Chris Collins, Dan Sultan, Joel QuartermainAlbum: Dan SultanLabel: Liberation Music – LRCD0040

Title: Chance to Lose Control Artist:  Dan SultanComposer: Dan Sultan, Joel QuartermainAlbum: Dan SultanLabel: Liberation Music – LRCD0040

Title: Sister YappaArtist: Ruby HunterRecorded live at WOMADelaide 1995

Technical production by Russell Stapleton

Produced on Gadigal, Wurundjeri Woi-Wurrung and Gundungurra Country

Russian-American conductor Lidiya Yankovskaya comes to Opera Australia to conduct Puccini’s Il trittico, a rare triptych of operas which span tragedy, farce, and religious fervour. Lidiya is at home with the operatic canon but she’s also conducted a swathe of new opera world premieres. She joins Andy to talk about finding the same passion for the music through new and old works.

Three of India's most revered instrumentalists have formed trio Triveni. Tabla maestro Zakir Hussain (who's played with everyone from Herbie Hancock to Béla Fleck) joins Kala Ramnath's singing violin and Jayanthi Kumaresh's Saraswathi veena. The musicians drop by the studio in the midst of a whirlwind Australian tour to talk about their shared language of improvisation and how they seamlessly blend North (Hindustani) and South (Carnatic) Indian musical traditions.

Il trittico is on at the Sydney Opera House until 19 July. 

Triveni perform in Melbourne on Friday 5 July and Sydney on Sunday 7 July.

Music in this program:

Live concert recording: Chowdiah Memorial Hall, Bangalore, India 2022Artist: Zakir Hussain - tabla, Jayanthi Kumaresh - veena, Kala Ramnath - violin

Title: O Mio Babbino Caro (from Gianni Schicchi)Composer: Giacomo PucciniArtist: Victoria De Los Angeles, Orchestra Del Teatro Dell'Opera Di Roma, conducted by Gabriele SantiniAlbum: The Very Best Of Victoria De Los AngelesLabel: EMI Classics 5 75888 2

Title: Now, at the BeginningComposer: Ricky Ian Gordon, libretto Frank BidartArtist: Jennifer Zetlan, Nathan Gunn, Aeolus Quartet, Evan Premo, conducted by Lidiya Yankovskaya Album: Ellen WestLabel: Shiny Bright Things

Title: Forty Days and Forty NightsComposer: Kamala Sankaram, libretto Jerry DyeArtist: Chicago Opera Theater, conducted by Lidiya YankovskayaAlbum: Taking Up SerpentsLabel: Chicago Opera Theater digital release

Live concert recording: Chowdiah Memorial Hall, Bangalore, India 2022Artist: Zakir Hussain - tabla, Jayanthi Kumaresh - veena, Kala Ramnath - violin

Technical production by Russell Stapleton and Richard Girvan

Produced on Gadigal, Wurundjeri Woi-Wurrung and Gundungurra Country

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander listeners are advised that this program contains the names and voices of people who have died.

Neal Peres Da Costa’s most recent recordings include a Mozart piano concerto and a Robert Schumann song cycle, each using a model of piano its composer would have recognised. But as he explains on today’s show, there’s much more to this music than getting the instrument right – there’s also the matter of historical style. Mozart would have expected his soloists to embellish their music and Schumann’s singers would have been more melodramatic than their modern counterparts. Can modern ears adjust to this? 

And... Croeso i Rhaglen Cerddoriaeth! Jenny M Thomas might be best known to Music Show audiences for her band Bush Gothic, but this time she’s back with The Côr of the Matter, a Welsh language choir based in Naarm/Melbourne. Jenny joins Andy to delve into the complex and contradictory darkness and warmth of Cymru/Wales and its culture.

The late Ruby Hunter first performed in public at Bondi Pavilion in 1988, and an array of great artists are now coming together to that same venue to play tribute to her in a concert called Proud, Proud Woman. Emily Wurramara and Dan Sultan are part of it and talk about her legacy. 

Neal Peres Da Costa plays with the Australian Brandenburg Orchestra for a Night in Versailles, 5 – 14 July in Sydney and Melbourne.

The Côr of the Matter performs at Melbourne Welsh Church on 6 July

Bush Gothic performs at Selby Folk Club on 5 July and at Port Lounge 23 August

Music heard in the show:

Title: MyfanwyComposer: Joseph ParryArtist: Rhos Male Voice ChoirAlbum: Music from the Welsh Mines, Songs of Peace & GoodwillLabel: Moochin’ About 

Title: Piano Concerto No. 23 in A major, K488; II. AdagioComposer: Wolfgang Amadeus MozartArtist: Neal Peres Da Costa, Australian Romantic & Classical Orchestra/Rachael BeesleyAlbum: Heavenly MozartLabel: ABC Classics 197190404852

Title: Dichterliebe, Op. 48; No. 1, Im wunderschönen Monat MaiComposer: Robert SchumannArtist: Koen van Stade, Neal Peres Da CostaAlbum: Schumann: DichterliebeLabel: Deux-Elles DXL1193

Title: Concerto for Four Keyboards in A minor (after Vivaldi), BWV1065 - II. LargoComposer: Johann Sebastian BachArtists: Kenneth Gilbert (harpsichord), Lars Ulrik Mortensen (harpsichord), Nicholas Kraemer (harpsichord), The English Concert/Trevor Pinnock (director/harpsichord)Album: JS Bach: The Concertos for 3 and 4 HarpsichordsLabel: DG Archiv 4000412

Title: MyfanwyComposer: Joseph ParryArtist: Jenny M Thomas, The Côr of the MatterCourtesy of Jenny M Thomas

Title: Si hwi hwiComposer: Trad.Artist: Jenny M Thomas, The Côr of the MatterRehearsal recording courtesy of Jenny M Thomas

Title: Proud, Proud WomanArtist: Ruby HunterAlbum: Thoughts WithinLabel: White – MUSH32309.2

Title: It’s OkayArtist: Ruby HunterAlbum: Feeling GoodLabel: Mushroom Records - MUSH332672

Technical production by John Jacobs and Michelle Barry

The Music Show is made on Gadigal and Gundungurra Country

British singer songwriter Grace Petrie has an EP called “There’s No Such Thing As A Protest Singer” – but if there was such a thing she would definitely be one of the preeminent ones. Her musical career started in the early years of the UK Conservative Party’s now 15 years in government, and she’s railed against injustice throughout those years. She’s on The Music Show to talk about hope, activism, and cynicism and to play live in studio.

Unsound is a Polish festival with an adventurous spirit. Co-director Mat Schulz has made Adelaide Unsound's Australian home for the past ten years, and he joins us on The Music Show to talk about the genesis of the festival, the similarities between jazz and grimy electronica, and why he was accused of Satanism.

Unsound Adelaide runs from 19 - 20 July at Dom Polski Centre, Adelaide SA.

Grace Petrie tours Australia from 25 September to 4 October playing Perth, Adelaide, Hobart, Brisbane, Melbourne, Canberra and Sydney. More details here. 

Music heard in the show:

Title: Pandemonium InstituteComposer: Lee GambleArtist: Lee GambleAlbum: Diversions 1994-1996 Label: Independent

Title: King & Country Composer: Grace PetrieArtist: Grace PetriePerformed Live in The Music Show studio

Title: Fixer UpperComposer: Grace PetrieArtist: Grace PetrieAlbum: Build Something BetterLabel: The Robots Needs Home Collective TRNHC013

Title: Black Tie Composer: Grace PetrieArtist: Grace PetriePerformed Live in The Music Show studio

Title: Our Good Deeds Will Lead to a Better Life for the Next GenerationComposer: TraditionalArtist: Yeshi, Bhutan BalladeersAlbum: Your Face Is Like the Moon, Your Eyes Are StarsLabel: Independent

Title: CruisingComposer: Bendik GiskeArtist: Bendik GiskeAlbum: CracksLabel: Smalltown Supersound STS381

Title: Yuangan (Dugong)Composer: Fred Leone, Sam PankhurstArtist: YirindaAlbum: YirindaLabel: Chapter Music CH187LP

Title: Concerto for Four Keyboards in A minor (after Vivaldi), BWV1065 - II. LargoComposer: Johann Sebastian BachArtists: Kenneth Gilbert (harpsichord), Lars Ulrik Mortensen (harpsichord), Nicholas Kraemer (harpsichord), The English Concert/Trevor Pinnock (director/harpsichord)Album: JS Bach: The Concertos for 3 and 4 HarpsichordsLabel: DG Archiv 4000412

Technical production by John Jacobs and Michelle Barry

The Music Show is made on Gadigal and Gundungurra Land

Good times and bum times, she’s seen them all and she’s here: Geraldine Turner, lynchpin of the Australian music theatre scene from 1970s repertory to the current run of The Mousetrap, reflects on her massive career (so far), her love of Sondheim, and Judy Garland.

Geraldine Turner is performing in The Mousetrap until 15 September. 

Music heard in the program:

Title: I’m Still Here (Follies)Composer: Stephen SondheimArtist: Geraldine TurnerAlbum: Great Australian Voices: Geraldine TurnerLabel: Désirée Records - GAV 008

Title: Down With LoveComposer: music Harold Arlen, lyrics Yip HarburgArtist: Geraldine TurnerAlbum: Great Australian Voices: Geraldine TurnerLabel: Désirée Records - GAV 008

Title: All That Jazz (Chicago)Composer: music John Kander, lyrics Fred EbbArtist: Geraldine TurnerAlbum: Great Australian Voices: Geraldine TurnerLabel: Désirée Records - GAV 008

Title: Sondheim Medley: The Little Things You Do Together (Company) - We're Gonna Be Alright (Do I Hear A Waltz-) - Could I Leave You (Follies)Composer: Stephen Sondheim, Richard RogersArtist: Geraldine TurnerAlbum: Great Australian Voices: Geraldine TurnerLabel: Désirée Records - GAV 008

Title: It Never Was YouComposer: music Kurt Weill, lyrics Maxwell AndersonArtist: Judy GarlandAlbum: That’s Entertainment!Label: Capitol Records - CDP 7 48426 2

Title: Being Alive (Company)Composer: Stephen SondheimArtist: Geraldine TurnerAlbum: Great Australian Voices: Geraldine TurnerLabel: Désirée Records - GAV 008

The Music Show Is produced on Gadigal and Gundungurra Country

Technical production by Bethany Stewart and Nathan Turnbull

Sixty years ago The Fab Four toured Australia for the first and last time. Greg Armstrong is the co-author of When We Was Fab - Inside The Beatles' Australasian Tour 1964. He takes us behind the scenes of the tour— the promoters who lucked out by signing the band up before the height of their fame, the late inclusion of the Adelaide shows, the band's unprecedented reception in the streets, and how Australia's music scene was left permanently changed when it was all over. 

Our thanks to all of the listeners who got in touch with us about their memories of the 1964 Australian tour. In this episode we hear from Gillian, Maggie, Jane, Paul, Robert, Geoff, Geraldine, Dianne, Pauline and Chris.

Music heard in the show:

Title: It Won't Be LongArtist: The BeatlesComposer: Lennon-McCartneyAlbum: With The BeatlesLabel: Parlophone PMCO 1206

Title: I Want To Hold Your HandArtist: The BeatlesComposer: Lennon-McCartneyAlbum: (Single)Label: Parlophone A8103

Title: MiseryArtist: The BeatlesComposer: Lennon-McCartneyAlbum: Please Please MeLabel: Parlophone PMCO 1202

Title: Roll Over BeethovenArtist: The BeatlesComposer: Chuck BerryAlbum: With The BeatlesLabel: Parlophone PMCO 1206

Title: Can't Buy Me Love (Live in Melbourne 1964)Artist: The BeatlesComposer: Lennon-McCartneyABC Recording

Title: (Let's Have A) PartyArtist: Johnny ChesterComposer: Jessie Mae RobinsonAlbum: Rocker 1961-1966Label: ScreenSound Australia CD/SSA/3C0026

Title: Long Tall SallyArtist: The BeatlesComposer: Enotris Johnson, Robert Blackwell, Richard PennimanAlbum: (Single)Label: Parlophone GEP 8913

Title: She Loves YouArtist: The BeatlesComposer: Lennon-McCartneyAlbum: (Single)Label: Parlophone A8093

Title: LotusArtist: The TwilightsComposer: Terry BrittenAlbum: The Way They PlayedLabel: Raven Records RVCD-364

Title: Twist And Shout (Live in Melbourne 1964)Artist: The BeatlesComposer: Bert Berns, Phil MedleyABC Recording

The Music Show is made on Gadigal and Gundungurra Country.

Technical production by Simon Branthwaite

American composer Caroline Shaw’s latest album, a collaboration with Sō Percussion, is called Rectangles and Circumstance. It’s a collection of ten songs run through with words by Emily Dickinson, Emily Bronte, William Blake and Christina Rossetti, as well as Caroline herself. She joins Andy from her home in the US to talk about her collaborators and her co-poets.

German cellist Nicolas Altstaedt takes the role of guest director, soloist, and conductor in his first tour with the Australian Chamber Orchestra. Nestling Haydn’s jubilant Cello Concerto in C major amongst works by significantly more angular composers like Kurtag, Veress and Xenakis, he joins Andy on The Music Show to map out his versatile and prolific life on the concert platform and beyond.

Music heard in the show: 

Title: Partita for 8 Voices i. AllemandeComposer: Caroline ShawArtist: Roomful of TeethAlbum: Partita for 8 VoicesLabel: New Amsterdam

Title: Sing On, And So, The Parting Glass, and To MusicComposer: Caroline Shaw, Sō PercussionArtist: Caroline Shaw, Sō PercussionAlbum: Rectangles and CircumstanceLabel: Nonesuch

Title: Cello Concerto in C Major; iii. FinaleComposer: Joseph HaydnArtist: Nicolas Altstaedt, Australian Chamber OrchestraCourtesy of the ACO

Title: Atlas; iii. Perpetuum Mobile – Ladon the DragonComposer: Helena WinkelmanArtist: Nicolas Altstaedt, Lockenhaus ArtistsAlbum: CreationLabel: Alpha ALPHA861

Technical production by Simon Branthwaite

The Music Show is made on Gadigal and Gundungurra Land.

This week on the Music Show, we take a look into the archives to an interview with the late, great Clive James. Andy spoke to Clive back in 2003 about what it was like writing for the song and the stage, and they discussed some of Clive's favourite pieces of musical poetry — from Stephen Sondheim to Aretha Franklin. 

As ever, we’re indebted to Penny Lomax and Maureen Cooney for producing the first thirtyish years of this show from which to draw this archive.

Technical production from Roi Huberman and Nathan Turnbull. 

The Music Show is produced on Gadigal land and Gundungurra country.

Three authors on music from The Music Show archives.

Margaret Atwood spoke to Andrew Ford back in 2003, after the transformation of her novel The Handmaid’s Tale into an opera by Danish composer Poul Ruders.

Andrea Goldsmith joined Andy on stage for the 2013 Melbourne Writers’ Festival after her novel The Memory Trap invoked Beethoven amongst other composers. Live performance from Zoe Knighton and Amir Farid.

And Anna Goldsworthy is a concert pianist as well as a writer. Her two lauded volumes of memoirs were followed up by her debut novel Melting Moments in 2020, when she spoke to Andy about how music inspired the structure of the book.

Music in the show:

Track: Prologue and “The Wall, from The Handmaid's TaleComposer: Poul RudersArtist: Royal Danish Opera Company & Royal Danish OrchestraAlbum: The Handmaid's TaleLabel: Dacapo 8.224165-66

Track: Cello sonata No. 4 in C major (Op. 102, No. 1)Composer: Ludwig van BeethovenArtists: Zoe Knighton and Amir FaridPerformed live on The Music Show at Melbourne Writers’ Festival

Track Title: Moment Musicaux Nos 1 and 3, Op 94Artist: Paul LewisComposer: Franz SchubertAlbum: Schubert Piano Sonata D.845, "Wandererfantasie" D.760, 4 Impromptus D.935, Moments Musicaux D.780Label: Harmonia Mundi ‎– HMC902136.37

The Music Show is made on Gadigal and Gundungurra Country.

Technical production by Nathan Turnbull. 

The Music Show goes Deep Inside the Blues with photographer and writer Margo Cooper, who’s assembled a beautiful book of photographs and interviews with blues musicians from Chicago to the Mississippi Delta. She joins Andy on The Music Show to outline a sprawling, searching and ultimately living tradition, plus interviews with Blues legends from the Music Show archive.

Deep Inside the Blues is published by University Press of Mississippi. 

Archive interviews heard in the show:

Cedric Burnside, 2016 and 2019

Billy Boy Arnold, 2006

Buddy Guy, 1996

Music heard in the show:

Title: Mannish BoyArtist: Muddy WatersAlbum: Hard AgainLabel: Blue Sky Records

Title: Messin’ with the KidArtist: Buddy Guy & Junior WellsAlbum: Buddy Guy & Junior Wells Play The BluesLabel: Rhino Records

Title: Hard TimesArtist: Cedric Burnside & Trenton AyersLive in The Music Show studio

Title: Damn Right I’ve Got the BluesArtist: Buddy GuyAlbum: Damn Right I’ve Got the BluesLabel: Silvertone

Title: Shake the BoogieArtist: Sonny Boy Williamson (I)Album: Million Years of Blues Vol. 4Label: Quadromania

Title: Born With ItArtist: Cedric Burnside ProjectAlbum: I Be TryingLabel: Single Lock Records

Title: The Blues Is Alive and WellArtist: Buddy GuyAlbum: The Blues Is Alive and WellLabel: Silvertone Records

Title: Bo DiddleyArtist: Bo DiddleyAlbum: single releaseLabel: Checker Records

Title: Whiskey, Beer and ReefaArtist: Billy Boy ArnoldLive on The Music Show from Wangaratta Jazz Festival

Title: We Made ItArtist: Cedric BurnsideAlbum: Benton County RelicLabel: Single Lock

The Music Show is made on Gadigal and Gundungurra Country.

Technical production by Isabella Tropiano. 

Indie-rock veterans Deerhoof are set to make their first appearance in Australia in a decade, and drummer Greg Saunier joins us on The Music Show to discuss their journey. With a repertoire spanning nineteen albums and a diverse range of styles, Greg talks to us about politics, conceptual art, and his own foray into solo work for the first time in the band's long career. 

Soprano Anna Fraser sings brand new contemporary opera, renaissance chant, and Schubert… under water. She’s also the curator of the sadly land-based concert IMPOSTO, where her eclectic tastes bring together not only disparate repertoire but disparate composer/performers too – she’s joined by singer Jane Sheldon, baryton player Laura Vaughan, and koto player Satsuki Odamura – and there’s music based on everything from Sylvia Plath to a jellyfish.

And do you remember The Beatles’ 1964 tour of Australia? Beatles superfan and co-author of When We Was Fab: Inside The Beatles Australasian Tour 1964 will be joining us to talk about the phenomenon — but we want your memories too! 

Were you at one of 1964 Beatles' concerts? Did you catch a glimpse of them on the street? Send us your memories via email at: musicshow_rn@abc.net.au

Performance details:

Deerhoof

12 June, Brunswick Ballroom, Melbourne, VIC13 June, VIVID Sydney, Machine Hall, Sydney, NSW14 June, The Zoo, Brisbane, QLD15 June, The Jive Bar, Adelaide, SA16 June, The Milk Bar, Perth, WA

Anna Fraser

14 June, IMPOSTO: Sympathetic Resonance Vibrations, Woodburn Creatives Redfern

Technical production by Bella Tropiano

The Music Show is produced on Gadigal Land and on Gundungurra Country

Ziggy Ramo returns to The Music Show with a new album that’s more than just an album. Human? will be released later this year but right now the only way you can hear it is through QR codes in his book of the same name. 

It’s a new and beautifully contradictory sound for Ziggy, blending folk (with guest vocals from Vonn) and his signature rap, precipitated by Ziggy picking up the guitar for the first time in the wake of his 2021 single Little Things. 

Ziggy joins Andy to talk about the project (which spans the album, the book, and a related exhibition), an exploration of dark histories and big questions. 

Human? A Lie That Has Been Killing Us Since 1788 (the book) is out now via Pantera Press. 

Human? (the album) is out via Ramo Records in July.

Tracks from the album heard in the show:

Banamba

Little Things

April 25 (Black Thoughts and Human? versions)

Sorry

Shame

Human

The Music Show is made on Gadigal and Gundungurra Country

Technical production by Simon Branthwaite on Gadigal Country.

Artist Jeremy Deller first made the connection between acid house music and brass bands back in 1995. The project that emerged, ACID BRASS, brings community bands together in raucous live events. Deller says he was “liberated by brass bands” – since then he’s won the Turner Prize, made conceptual, installation and video art across the world, and represented the UK at the Venice Biennale. Now he brings ACID BRASS to Melbourne’s Rising festival, and he talks to Andy about what music has given his art practice, and what his art has given his music.

Bach’s St John Passion is not his most famous Passion oratorio – often eclipsed by the St Matthew Passion, this earlier work is wilder and more extravagant. John O’Donnell is getting ready to conduct Accademia Arcadia, Ensemble Gombert, and a cast of soloists in a period instrument performance of the Passion to mark its 300th anniversary.

Composer, artist, and archaeologist Victoria Pham joins us on The Music Show to talk about her latest bio-installation Listening Gardens ii - soil fields showing at Bathurst Regional Art Gallery. Her work crosses the boundaries of music and sound in order to communicate otherwise-unheard symphonies of nature. She leans on her background as a biological anthropologist to create a mushroom opera, an orchestral Boeing 747, and draught conservation plans told through synthesisers. 

Performance dates:

Jeremy Deller

1 - 16 June, ACID BRASS, Rising Festival Melbourne. Full details of free performance locations here.

Bach's St John Passion 

8 + 9 June, Bach's St John Passion, Woodend Winter Arts Festival. St Ambrose Church Templeton St, Woodend.

Victoria Pham

4 May - 23 June, Listening Gardens ii -- Soil Fields, Season One: Terrestrial. Bathurst Regional Art Gallery.

Technical production by Simon Branthwaite

This episode of the music show was produced on Gadigal Land and on Gundungurra Country

Errollyn Wallen’s memoir Becoming a Composer is a look into the mind of the composer as well as the life of one. Born in Belize but now based in the far-flung north of Scotland, where she sometimes inhabits a lighthouse, she works at a brisk pace, composing prolifically for orchestra, chamber ensemble, choir, and over twenty operas.

Her major public commissions have included music for The Last Night of the Proms, the Paralympic Opening Ceremony, and the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee, and she joins us from her home in the Orkney Islands to talk about Becoming a Composer, and becoming a composer.

Music heard in the show:

Title: Horseplay i. Dark and mysteriousArtist: The Continuum Ensemble/Philip HeadlamComposer: Errollyn WallenAlbum: The Girl In My AlphabetLabel: Avie AV0006

Title: DervishArtist: Matthew Sharp (cello), Dominic Harlan (piano)Composer: Errollyn WallenAlbum: The Girl In My AlphabetLabel: Avie AV0006

Title: Sojourner TruthArtist: Madeleine Mitchell (violin), Errollyn Wallen (piano)Composer: Errollyn WallenAlbum: Violin ConversationsLabel: Naxos 8574560

Title: Cello ConcertoArtist: Matthew Sharp (cello), Ensemble X, Nicholas KokComposer: Errollyn WallenAlbum: PhotographyLabel: NMC NMCD221

Title: Boom BoomArtist: Palaver Strings, Nicholas PhanComposer: Errollyn WallenAlbum: A Change is Gonna ComeLabel: Azica Records 71365

The Music Show is made on Gadigal and Gundungurra Country

Technical Production by Simon Branthwaite and Tegan Nicholls

Playwright, screenwriter, and actress Kate Mulvany has been commissioned with the task of writing the lost prologue for the first true English opera, Purcell’s Dido and Aeneas. She joins Andy on The Music Show to chat about getting into the head of the queen of Carthage, and what it was like writing for opera for the first time. 

Independent hip-hop label Elefant Traks has had a huge cultural impact on the Australian music industry, and in 2024 after 26 years they are wrapping up operations. Back in 2018 we chatted to Tim Levinson and L-Fresh the Lion for Elefant Traks 20th birthday, and we're bringing it back for this week's show as the label begins preparations for their farewell concerts.

Plus, a new release of an old tune by Louis Armstrong, recorded live at the BBC. 

Technical production by Tegan Nichols and Simon BranthwaiteThis episode of the music show was produced on Gadigal Land and Gundungurra Country.

Performance dates:

Dido and Aeneas by Pinchgut Opera:

30 May, City Recital Hall, Sydney, 7pm1 June, City Recital Hall, Sydney, 2pm2 June, City Recital Hall, Sydney, 5pm3 Jun, City Recital Hall, Sydney, 7pm

Elefant Traks:

26 May, Elefant Traks 25th Anniversary – The Finale, Sydney Opera House, 7:30pm8 June, Elefant Traks: 25 The Finale, Open Season at the Tivoli Brisbane, 7pm15 June, Elefant Traks 25th Anniversary – The Finale, Melbourne Recital Centre, 3pm and 7:30pm

Friend of The Music Show Kate Fagan’s new book of poetry is entitled Song in the Grass and it’s full of music. She returns to the show to talk about the book, the relationship between her musical and poetic writing, and her enduring connection to folk artists Peggy Seeger and Lisa O’Neill. 

The ABC’s iconic old News theme is new again: a new version by sound designer David McDonald puts a fresh lick of paint on Peter Wall and the late Tony Ansell’s 1980s bulletin soundtrack. David and Peter join Andy to talk about what makes a news theme work. 

Song in the Grass is published by Giramondo Books. Kate launches the book at Margaret Whitlam Galleries in Parramatta on 29 August. 

Music heard in the show: 

Title: Majestic FanfareArtist: Sydney Symphony Orchestra/Stuart ChallenderComposer: Charles WilliamsAlbum: Classic ABC TV & Radio ThemesLabel: ABC Classics 4724462

Title: ABC News ThemeArtist: Tony Ansell & Peter WallComposer: Tony Ansell, Peter WallAlbum: Classic ABC TV & Radio ThemesLabel: ABC Classics 4724462

Title: JJJ News ThemeComposer: Paul McKercher, John JacobsCourtesy of Triple J

Title: Gotta Get Home By MidnightArtist: Peggy SeegerComposer: Peggy SeegerAlbum: First FarewellLabel: Red Grape Music

Title: All Of This Is ChanceArtist: Lisa O’NeillComposer: Lisa O’NeillAlbum: All Of This Is ChanceLabel: Rough Trade Records

Title: ABC News ThemeArtist: Tony Ansell & Peter WallComposer: Tony Ansell, Peter WallAlbum: Classic ABC TV & Radio ThemesLabel: ABC Classics 4724462

Title: ABC News Theme (Pendulum Remix)Artist: Pendulum, Tony Ansell & Peter WallComposer: Tony Ansell & Peter WallAlbum: Pendulum Remix (single)Label: single release

Title: ABC News Theme (2024)Composer: Tony Ansell, Peter Wall and David McDonaldCourtesy of the ABC

The Music Show is made on Gadigal and Gundungurra Country

Technical production by Bethany Stewart and Nathan Turnbull

Omar Musa is an author, artist, poet, and woodcutter making music and art from Borneo to Brooklyn. He is back in Australia to talk about his latest album The Fullness. His third album touches on the environment, culture, religious identity, and mortality. He creates poetry from a spoken-word background, melding hip-hop, jazz, and electronic sounds with earnest lyricism. 

Gillian Dooley joins us on The Music Show to talk about her latest book She Played and Sang, which explores the music of Jane Austen. From Haydn piano sonatas to Scottish folk songs, Gillian gives us a sense of what not only Elizabeth Bennett and the Dashwoods were playing in their parlour, but also Jane Austen herself. 

Also new music from Leila and Sean Shibe

Performance Dates -- Omar Musa

4 May – 2 June All My Memories Are Mistranslations, Humble House Gallery Canberra, 2 August ACO Up Close: Omar Musa and Mariel Roberts, ACO Pier 2-3 - The Nielson, 7pm

Gillian Dooley -- She Played and Sang: Jane Austen and Music, Manchester University Press

Australian tenor Stuart Skelton returns to The Music Show as he prepares to sing Mahler’s Song of the Earth (Das Lied von der Erde) with the Australian Chamber Orchestra. Looking over his increasingly heroic career from oddball roles like the titular Peter Grimes to the pantheon of Wagner’s men, Stuart reflects on growing into his voice, and what he learned from the conducting and musical leadership of the late Andrew Davis.

Story of Another Soul is a “decolonial dreaming of new futures that seeks truth in the roots of improvisation”, from Meanjin/Brisbane based spoken word poet Huda Fadlelmawla and jazz trumpeter, composer and producer Reuben Lewis. They join Andy to talk about the process of improvisation in which words and music come together.

Stuart Skelton performs Mahler’s Song of the Earth with the Australian Chamber Orchestra until 26 May.

Story of Another Soul is out now via Life Before Man.

Title: These StoriesComposer: Reuben Lewis, Huda FadlelmawlaArtist: Huda The Goddess & Reuben LewisAlbum: Story of Another SoulLabel: Life Before Man

Title: Das Lied von der Erde; i. Das Trinklied von Jammer der ErdeComposer: Gustav MahlerArtist: Stuart Skelton, Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, Sir Simon RattleAlbum: Das Lied von der ErdeLabel: BR Klassik 900172

Title: “Now the Great Bear and Pleiades” from Peter GrimesComposer: Benjamin BrittenArtist: Stuart Skelton, Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra, Edward GardnerAlbum: Peter GrimesLabel: Chandos CHSA5250

Title: “Take me away, and in the lowest deep there let me be” from The Dream of GerontiusComposer: Edward ElgarArtist: Stuart Skelton, BBC Symphony Orchestra, Sir Andrew DavisAlbum: The Dream of GerontiusLabel: Chandos CHSA5140

Title: When People Ask You, BreakComposer: Reuben Lewis, Huda FadlelmawlaArtist: Huda The Goddess & Reuben LewisAlbum: Story of Another SoulLabel: Life Before Man

Title: Love So DeepComposer: Omar MusaArtist: Omar MusaAlbum: The FullnessLabel: Monkeycat Music

The Music Show is produced on Gadigal and Gundungurra Country

Technical production by Ann-Marie Debettencor

Andrew is at the Canberra International Music Festival, where we get to catch up with an Australian who lives in the UK, a Belgian who tours the world, and another Belgian who lives in Australia.

Lotte Betts-Dean, Aussie mezzo-soprano now based in London, makes a trip home to perform a series of form-expanding vocal works from composers like Michael Finnissy, one of the masters of so-called "new complexity". 

Belgian jazz pianist Bram de Looze invites The Music Show into the Belgian Embassy where he's staying with the two resident llamas to talk about where improvisation and composition meet for him, and what he's taken from jazz idols like Hank Jones, Keith Jarrett and Thelonious Monk. 

And CIMF Artistic Director Roland Peelman looks back on his ten years leading the festival, the joys and tribulations of wearing multiple hats, and the particular way the city of Canberra has shaped the festival. 

Look out for Bram De Looze on ABC Jazz’s Jazztrack Live in June.

Music heard in the show:

Title: Spotting GatewaysArtist: Bram de LoozeLive in Canberra – courtesy of ABC Jazz

Title: Blessed Be IArtist: Lotte Betts-Dean, Marsyas TrioComposer: Michael FinnissyAlbum: Alternative ReadingsLabel: Divine Art MEX77102

Title: Botany BayArtist: Lotte Betts-Dean, Marsyas TrioComposer: Michael FinnissyAlbum: Alternative ReadingsLabel: Divine Art MEX77102

Title: parallaxis formaArtist: Lotte Betts Dean, Explore EnsembleComposer: Catherine LambAlbum: 3 Compositions for Voices and EnsembleLabel: Another Timbre at-215CD

Title: BowArtist: Bram De LoozeComposer: Bram De LoozeAlbum: Spotting GatewaysLabel: Independent release

Title: Monk’s MoodArtist: Bram De Looze, Joey Baron, Robin VerheyenComposer: Thelonious MonkAlbum: MiXMONKLabel: UCJ

Technical production by Simon BranthwaiteRecorded on Ngunnawal and Ngambri Country, produced on Gadigal and Gundungurra Country.

Rainbow Chan returns to The Music Show to discuss her latest audio-visual project, The Bridal Lament. In an attempt to preserve her mother's mother tongue, Rainbow has spent the last five years researching and learning the Weitou language, an endangered Cantonese dialect, through learning traditional bridal laments. Rainbow talks to Andy about the defiant tradition of performing these laments in the face of arranged marriages, and her process of learning the language through song from the 'grannies' preserving it. 

You might think Broadway composer George Gershwin and pioneer of 12-tone music Arnold Schoenberg would have had little in common, but when Gershwin arrived in Beverly Hills in August 1936, he found Schoenberg (who had fled Nazi Germany in 1933), was his neighbour. Gershwin was in the last year of his life, but during that time the two composers played tennis together every week. They also admired each other’s music - and Schoenberg admired Gershwin’s business acumen. When Gershwin asked Schoenberg for lessons, the older man enquired how much Gershwin earned, suggesting he should the one taking lessons from Gershwin. When George Met Arnold is the title of a film/concert from pianist Simon Tedeschi and conductor/violist Roger Benedict with the Sydney Symphony Orchestra, and they’ll be in the music studio to 

This week’s show was recorded on Ngunnawal and Ngambri Country and produced on Gadigal Land.

Technical production by Simon Branthwaite.

Bringing huge amounts of energy, musicianship and a sense of humour to the Australian folk scene is Apolline. They chat to Ce Benedict about their trio's unusual line up (fiddle, cello, bass), their approach to arranging and layering tunes, and having varied musical influences—from jazz to Scandi folk and Eurovision. They'll also perform two sets of tunes live in The Music Show studio.

American jazz pianist and singer Blossom Dearie would have turned 100 this week. We revisit a delightful interview from 1995 (one of the first Andrew Ford ever recorded), where he gets a strong telling off for suggesting that she played chords like Thelonious Monk. 

And we hear new music from Tessa Bird, Cedric Burnside, and Allysha Joy.

Norwegian trumpet player Tine Thing Helseth returns to The Music Show as she prepares to play with the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra. She talks to Andy about the peculiarities of trumpet concertos, about composers writing for her versus writing for her instrument, and about expanding her musical life to include playing and writing.

Maanyung is a proud Aboriginal man with strong connections to Gumbaynggir and Yaegl nations. His songwriting comes from Language and Country – he’s a surfer, a youth worker and a songwriter and he’s released a string of singles in the last few years. He’s on The Music Show to talk about saltwater, sand, and sound.

Plus new music from Charlie Grey and Joseph Peach.

The Music Show is produced on Gadigal and Gundungurra Land

Technical production by Roi Huberman and Tim Symonds

It's been forty years since the 1984–5 United Kingdom miners' strike and The Music Show has dug into the archives for a special program looking at the role that music played in this political, industrial and personal struggle. From Peggy Seeger to Paul Weller, Billy Bragg to brass bands—there's music supporting the striking miners, songs tormenting strikebreakers and tracks referencing (and sometimes sampling) National Union of Mineworkers leader Arthur Scargill and Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher.

Emeritus Professor of Politics at the University of East Anglia John Street guides us through the history and music of this divisive time, plus we hear interviews from the ABC archives with folklorist A L Lloyd, singer songwriter Billy Bragg, Grimethorpe Colliery Band, folk singers Ewan MacColl and Peggy Seeger and composer David Lumsdaine.

For over fifty years, Sir Andrew Davis (1944–2024) was one of the world's busiest conductors, He conducted in the opera house and the concert hall and his repertoire ranged from Bach to Birtwistle. In the mid 1970s, he became chief conductor of the Toronto Symphony Orchestra, then took on Glyndebourne Opera, the BBC Symphony Orchestra and the Lyric Opera of Chicago - always for long stretches. From 2012 to 2019 he was chief conductor of the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra, and thereafter the orchestra's conductor laureate. He died this week at the age of 80, and we remember him in the company of Benjamin Northey, the MSO's principal conductor, and listen to excerpts from some of Sir Andrew's Music Show interviews.  

Martha Wainwright returns to Australia, playing old and new songs. She dips into her family’s discography as well as her experiences of rebirth over the last few years in her latest album, Love Will Be Reborn, which was accompanied by a memoir that looks back at a life of joy, grief and family.

Martha Wainwright is on tour around Australia:

Wednesday, May 8 – Princess Theatre, Brisbane, QLDThursday, May 9 – Anita’s Theatre, Wollongong, NSWFriday, May 10 – City Recital Hall, Sydney, NSWSaturday, May 11 – Civic Theatre, Newcastle, NSWSunday, May 12 – Blue Mountains Theatre, Blue Mountains, NSWTuesday, May 14 – The Gov, Adelaide, SAThursday, May 16 – Odeon Theatre, Hobart, TASFriday, May 17 – Recital Centre, Melbourne, VICSaturday, May 18 – Capital Theatre, Bendigo, VIC

Music heard in the show:

Title: Symphony No. 9 in E minorComposer: Ralph Vaughan WilliamsArtist: Bergen Philharmonic, Sir Andrew Davis (conductor)Album: Symphony No. 9Label: Chandos CHSA5180

Title: Your RockabyComposer: Mark-Anthony TurnageArtist: Martin Robertson (saxophone), BBC Symphony Orchestra, Sir Andrew Davis (conductor)Album: Turnage: Your Rockaby; Night Dances; Dispelling The FearsLabel: Argo 4525982

Title: Enigma Variations; x. NimrodComposer: Edward ElgarArtist: BBC Symphony Orchestra, Sir Andrew Davis (conductor)Album: The Queen’s Diamond JubileeLabel: Warner Classics 2564660472

Title: The Mask of Orpheus; 3 Orphic Hymns – Hymn of CatharsisComposer: Harrison BirtwistleArtist: BBC Symphony Orchestra, BBC Singers, Martyn Brabbins (conductor), Sir Andrew Davis (conductor)Album: The Mask of OrpheusLabel: NMC NMCD050

Title: Brigg Fair (An English Rhapsody)Composer: Frederic DeliusArtist: Royal Scottish National Orchestra, Sir Andrew Davis (conductor)Album: Delius Orchestral WorksLabel: Chandos CHAN10742

Title: Love Will Be RebornComposer: Martha WainwrightArtist: Martha WainwrightAlbum: Love Will Be RebornLabel: Pheromone Records

Title: Dinner at EightComposer: Rufus WainwrightArtist: Martha WainwrightAlbum: Love Will Be RebornLabel: Pheromone Records

Title: Tell My SisterComposer: Kate McGarrigleArtist: Martha WainwrightAlbum: Love Will Be RebornLabel: Pheromone Records

Title: Being RightComposer: Martha WainwrightArtist: Martha WainwrightAlbum: Love Will Be RebornLabel: Pheromone Records

Title: There Is Power In A UnionComposer: Billy BraggArtist: Billy BraggAlbum: Talking With the Taxman About PoetryLabel: Cooking Vinyl COOKCD304

The Music Show is produced on Gadigal and Gundungurra Country

Technical production by John Jacobs

Beethoven's five sonatas for cello and piano span his career - two from the beginning, one from the middle and two from his late period - so they provide a good framework for talking about the composer. Timo-Veikko Valve and Aura Go have recorded them alongside the complete music for cello and piano by Anton Webern (three works, together lasting under ten minutes) and they'll be in the studio to talk about them and play excerpts. 

Alison Cotton is a London-based experimental artist whose viola/drone/voice/soundscape-rich music is very hard to pigeonhole. Her new album Engelchen (meaning 'little angels') follows the incredible story of British opera-loving sisters Ida and Louise Cook who helped save 29 Jewish people before the start of World War II. The sisters used their love of attending operas as a guise for travelling to Germany, where they actually met refugees and helped smuggle their valuables out of the country. Items like jewellery, furs and watches were sold in the UK to help fund their owner's safe passage. The sisters would do things like restitch British labels to the German coats to avoid suspicion from the Nazi border guards... who thought they were just spinsters dressed in finery returning from a weekend trip to the opera. 

Timo-Veikko Valve and Aura Go are performing at ACO Up Close: Beethoven Arranged on 20 April in Sydney and 22 April in Melbourne.

Alison Cotton’s Engelchen is out now.

Music in the show:

Title: Cello Sonata No. 3 in A Major, Op. 69; ii. ScherzoComposer: Ludwig van BeethovenArtist: Timo-Veikko Valve (cello) and Aura Go (piano)Performed Live in The Music Show studio

Title: Three Little Pieces, Op. 11Composer: Anton WebernArtist: Timo-Veikko Valve (cello) and Aura Go (piano)Performed Live in The Music Show studio

Title: Cello Sonata No. 4 in C major, Op. 102 No. 1; ii. Adagio – Tempo d'andante – Allegro vivaceComposer: Ludwig van BeethovenArtist: Timo-Veikko Valve (cello) and Aura Go (piano)Album: Beethoven Cello Sonatas, Webern Works for Cello & PianoLabel: ABC Classic

Title: The Letter Burning; We Were Smuggling People’s Lives; Crepuscle; Engelchen NowArtist: Alison CottonAlbum: EngelchenLabel: Feeding Tube Records LAUNCH339R

Title: CrepuscleComposer: Jules MassenetArtist: Amelita Galli-CurciAlbum: Amelita Galli-Curci Volume OneLabel: The Rubini Collection GV.578

Title: As The Trees Have Always KnownArtist: Melanie HorsnellAlbum: As The Trees Have Always Known (Single)Label: Independent release

Technical Production by Russell Stapleton and John Jacobs

The Music Show is produced on Gadigal and Gundungurra Land

In Southern Louisiana, a few hours from New Orleans, Ann Savoy has spent a lifetime studying, playing and collecting Cajun music. She's best known for her trio Savoy-Doucet Cajun Band, her duet album with Linda Ronstadt Adieu False Heart, and touring and playing festivals with the Savoy Family Band. Ann has just released her first ever solo album, Another Heart, which pays tribute to her early musical loves, the English and American singer songwriters of the 1960s and 70s, but with a Cajun twist.

Pianist and composer Wilbur Whitta has released Wildfire, his debut album as bandleader. During the midst of a NSW tour, Wilbur joins Andrew on The Music Show to explain the blend of improvisation and composition on the album, writing for a quartet with two horns and no bass, and about the importance of having mentors in jazz.

Music in the show:

Title: Two Step D'AmédéArtist: Savoy-Doucet Cajun BandComposer: Marc SavoyAlbum: Two-Step D'AmédéLabel: Arhoolie Records CD-316 

Title: Cajun Love SongArtist: Ann SavoyComposer: Ann SavoyAlbum: Another HeartLabel: Smithsonian Folkways Recordings SFW40256

Title: Waterloo SunsetArtist: Ann SavoyComposer: Ray DaviesAlbum: Another HeartLabel: Smithsonian Folkways Recordings SFW40256

Title: Walk Away ReneeArtist: Linda Ronstadt, Ann SavoyComposer: Bob Calilli, Mike Brown, Tony Sansome Album: Adieu False HeartLabel: Vanguard 79808-2

Title: Stolen CarArtist: Ann SavoyComposer: Bruce SpringsteenAlbum: Another HeartLabel: Smithsonian Folkways Recordings SFW40256

Titles: Leave To Enter; Pizza; Not Interested; RED; Sea LegsArtist: Wilbur Whitta piano and keyboards, Tom Avgenicos trumpet, Jack Stoneham saxophone, Alex Inman-Hislop drumsComposer: Wilbur WhittaAlbum: WildfireLabel: ABC Jazz ABCJ0026D

Harnessing looping pedals, percussion and vocal manipulation, Tune-Yards make a very big sound for a core membership of two people. It's been ten years since the experimental pop project released their third album Nikki Nack and creepy hit Water Fountain. Songwriter and singer Merrill Garbus is on The Music Show to talk about the duo's complex rhythms, vocal athleticism, and how to play with words.

What does it take to start your own record label in this economy? Andrew Ford chats to two people who did just this—Coco Eke was involved in the early days of First Nations label Bad Apples and pianist and composer Nat Bartsch's new label Amica focuses on 'kind' music. We find out what exactly a record label does, why they still have a role in the age of streaming, and what success can look like for an independent artist.

Nat Bartsch launches her new album Forever Changed on Saturday 16 November.

Tune-Yards' 10th anniversary Deluxe Edition of Nikki Nack is out now via 4AD/Remote Control Records.

And you can find more information about the Bush Music Fund here.

Music in the program:

Title: Heart AttackComposer: Merrill GarbusArtist: Tune-YardsAlbum: I Can Feel You Creep Into My Private LifeLabel: 4AD 0052

Title: Water FountainComposer: Merrill Garbus, Nate BrennerArtist: Tune-YardsAlbum: Nikki NackLabel: 4AD CAD3414CD

Title: Water Fountain (Live)Composer: Merrill Garbus, Nate Brenner, arranged by Kristopher FultonArtist: Vancouver Youth Choir

Title: BiznessComposer: Merrill Garbus, Nate BrennerArtist: Tune-YardsAlbum: w h o k i l lLabel: 4AD CAD3106

Title: Hey LifeComposer: Merrill Garbus, Nate BrennerArtist: Tune-YardsAlbum: Nikki NackLabel: 4AD CAD3414CD

Title: PowaComposer: Merrill GarbusArtist: Tune-YardsAlbum: w h o k i l lLabel: 4AD CAD3106

Title: hypnotizedComposer: Merrill Garbus, Nate BrennerArtist: Tune-YardsAlbum: sketchy.Label: 4AD 4AD0309

Title: Hope (for orchestra)Composer: Nat BartschArtist: Budapest Art Orchestra, conducted by Peter PejtsikAlbum: (Single)Label: Amica AMI006

Title: Na​-​kalamandjardaComposer: Rona Lawrence and Jodie KellArtist: Ripple Effect BandAlbum: (Single)Label: Independent

The Music Show is made on Gadigal, Gundungurra, Turrbal and Yuggera Country

Technical production by Russell Stapleton and Bethany Stewart

Legendary jazz pianist Herbie Hancock returns to The Music Show. He’s a bandleader, a composer and a professor, and at the age of 84 he’s got one of the longest living memories in the jazz world. He joins Andy to remember collaborators like Miles Davis and Wayne Shorter, and to ask whether jazz can be a path towards peace. 

Tenzin Choegyal is a Tibetan multi-instrumentalist, and as he shares Tibetan music and story around the world he’s become a sort of activist by default. His new album Whispering Sky is the product of slow, experimental recording process across Australia, Japan, Canada and the UK which blends the voices of international collaborators with his nomadic Tibetan roots. 

Herbie Hancock is in Sydney, Canberra, Brisbane, Melbourne, Adelaide and Perth in October. 

Whispering Sky is out now via 4000 Records.

Music heard in the show:

Title: Kailish Roof of the WorldArtist: Tenzin Choegyal feat. Tony White and Evie Composer: Tenzin ChoegyalAlbum: Whispering SkyLabel: 4000 Records

Title: The Sorcerer Artist: Miles Davis (trumpet), Wayne Shorter (tenor sax), Herbie Hancock (piano), Ron Carter (bass), Tony Williams (drums)Composer: Herbie HancockAlbum: SorcererLabel: Columbia CK 65 680

Title: Visitor from NowhereArtist: Herbie Hancock & Wayne ShorterComposer: Herbie Hancock & Wayne ShorterAlbum: 1 + 1Label: Verve Records 537 564-2

Title: RiverArtist: Corinne Bailey Rae (vocals), Herbie Hancock (piano), Wayne Shorter (soprano sax), Lionel Loueke (guitar), Dave Holland (bass), Vinnie Colaiuta (drums)Composer: Joni MitchellAlbum: River: The Joni LettersLabel: Verve Records – B0009791-02

Title: Dolma Whispering SkyArtist: Tenzin Choegyal feat. Taro Terahara and Manao DoiComposer: Tenzin ChoegyalAlbum: Whispering SkyLabel: 4000 Records

Title: Gyallu Tibetan AnthemArtist: Tenzin Choegyal feat. Matt Antal and Metta StringsComposer: TraditionalAlbum: Whispering SkyLabel: 4000 Records

Title: Jampa A Big HugArtist: Tenzin Choegyal feat. Hico Natsuaki and Tenzin KunsangComposer: Tenzin ChoegyalAlbum: Whispering SkyLabel: 4000 Records

The Music Show is made on Gadigal, Gundungurra, Turrbal and Yuggera Country

Technical production by Russell Stapleton and Bethany Stewart

For someone referred to as "the Queen of Jazz" and "First Lady of Song", there's a surprising amount we don't know about legendary jazz singer Ella Fitzgerald. She didn't fit the image of a star: she was incredibly polite, avoided drugs and swearing, and kept her private life entirely private. But when she sang, people listened. Her clear diction, perfect intonation and master of scat singing made her one of the greatest vocalists of the 20th century.  

Music historian and author of Becoming Ella Fitzgerald: The Jazz Singer Who Transformed American Song Judith Tick reveals as much as she can about the great singer.

Music heard in the show:

Title: Lover, Come Back to MeArtist: Ella FitzgeraldComposer: Sigmund Romberg (music), Oscar Hammerstein II (lyrics)Album: Sweet And HotLabel: Decca DL8155

Title: A-Tisket, A-TasketArtist: Ella Fitzgerald & the Chick Webb OrchestraComposer: trad., embellished by Ella Fitzgerald and Al FeldmanAlbum: A-Tisket, A-TasketLabel: Decca S8140

Title: Oh, Lady Be GoodArtist: Ella FitzgeraldComposer: George Gershwin, Ira GershwinAlbum: Lullabies of Birdland Label: Decca DL8149

Title: Oh, Lady Be GoodArtist: Ella FitzgeraldComposer: George Gershwin (music), Ira Gershwin (lyrics)Album: Ella Fitzgerald Sings the George & Ira Gershwin SongbookLabel: Verve MG V-4029

Title: Ev’ry Time We Say GoodbyeArtist: Ella FitzgeraldComposer: Cole PorterAlbum: Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Cole Porter SongbookLabel: Verve MG V-4001

Title: Cheek to CheekArtist: Ella Fitzgerald & Louis ArmstrongComposer: Irving BerlinAlbum: Ella & LouisLabel: Verve MG V-4003

Title: Mack the KnifeArtist: Ella FitzgeraldComposer: Kurt WeillAlbum: Mack the Knife: Ella in BerlinLabel: Verve MG V-4041

Title: Cry Me A RiverArtist: Ella Fitzgerald & Joe PassComposer: Arthur HamiltonAlbum: Duets in Hannover 1975Label: Impro-Jazz IJ 546

Technical production by Simon Branthwaite, Tim James and Roi Huberman

The Music Show is made on Gadigal, Gundungurra and Wurundjeri Woi Wurrung Country

Finnish violinist Pekka Kuusisto makes a welcome return to The Music Show, this time with American singer-songwriter Gabriel Kahane. They talk about collaborating and songwriting and perform live in the studio; and Pekka tells us about completing and conducting a symphony by his late brother, Jaakko Kuusisto.

When was the last time you sat down and listened to a record from start to finish? And when did you last do that in a room with other people? In Japan, people have been gathering in ongaku kissaten (‘music cafes’) for 100 years. They drink coffee and listen to records, usually in silence and always on very high quality sound systems. Nick Dwyer is the director of a new documentary series called A Century in Sound which is being screened at Melbourne International Film Festival. It takes us into three of these cafes in Tokyo to reveal the proprietors, the records, the customers and the role that these dedicated listening spaces play in the life of a busy city. 

Pekka Kuusisto and Gabriel Kahane are on tour as Council with Musica Viva Australia from 6-17 August. 

A Century In Sound screens at Melbourne International Film Festival on 18 and 20 August. 

Music in this program: 

Title: India And On Down To Australia Composer: Laurie Anderson feat. ANOHNIArtist: Laurie AndersonAlbum: Amelia (forthcoming, due 30 August)Label: Nonesuch

Title: Märchentänze III: A Skylark for JaneComposer: Thomas AdèsArtist: Pekka Kuusisto, Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Nicholas CollonAlbum: Adès: Orchestral WorksLabel: Ondine ODE 14112

Title: BaedekerComposer: Gabriel KahaneArtist: Gabriel KahaneAlbum: Book of TravelersLabel: Nonesuch 571525-2

Title: Symphony, Op. 39; II. Lento (Live)Composer: Jaakko KuusistoArtist: Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra, conducted by Pekka KuusistoAlbum: Kuusisto: Symphony, Op. 39, Pictured Within & Birthday Variations for M.C.B.Label: BIS 2747

Title: Bright Forms (Live)Composer: Pekka Kuusisto and Gabriel KahaneArtist: Council Performed live in The Music Show studio 

Title: Piano Concerto No. 21 In C Major, K. 467, I. Allegro MaestosoComposer: Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Artist: Walter Klien piano, Mainzer Kammerorchester, Günter Kehr conductorAlbum: Mozart: Piano Concerto No. 21 In C Major, K. 467Label: Turnabout TV-S 34504

Title: An Oscar For Treadwell (Alternate Take)Composer: Charlie ParkerArtist: Charlie Parker and Dizzy GillespieAlbum: Bird and DizLabel: Mercury MGC-512

Title: Walk, Don't RunComposer: Johnny SmithArtist: The VenturesAlbum: Walk Don't RunLabel: Dolton Records BST 8003

Title: DakishimetaiComposer: Eiichi Ohtaki and Takashi MatsumotoArtist: Happy EndAlbum: Kazemachi RomanLabel: URC URG-4009

Technical production by Simon Branthwaite, Tim James, and Roi Huberman

The Music Show is made on Gadigal, Gundungurra and Wurundjeri Woi Wurrung Country

How The Saints and Radio Birdman paved the way for punk and independent music in Australia.

Australian music icon and proud Torres Strait Islander Christine Anu has just released her first album of new music in 20 years. Waku-Minaral A Minalay was recorded across the Pacific in places like New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, the Torres Strait Islands and the Solomon Islands - utilising traditional percussion instruments like the Warup (drums), the Urub (shakers) and the Kulap (seed pot rattles). It’s a deeply personal bilingual album which includes songs written by Christine Anu, her grandfather and her daughter. 

British countertenor Iestyn Davies is about to make his Australian debut singing music by JS Bach and Arvo Pärt alongside the Australian Chamber Orchestra and dancers from Sydney Dance Company. He speaks to Andrew Ford about what links these two composers (born nearly three centuries apart) and the changing attitudes, and repertoire, for high male voices.

Christine Anu performs at the Mt Isa Rodeo on 8 August, at Cairns Festival on 23 August and at North Australian Festival of Arts on 13 October.

Iestyn Davies performs with the Australian Chamber Orchestra and Sydney Dance Company in Silence & Rapture from 2-19 August.

Music in Christine Anu's interview:

Title: Aukum of SaibaiComposer: Christine Anu, David BridieArtist: Christine AnuAlbum: Waku - Minaral A MinalayLabel: ABC Music ABCM0029

Title: Koey Dhoerim Composer: Nadi AnuArtist: Christine AnuAlbum: Waku - Minaral A MinalayLabel: ABC Music ABCM0029

Title: My Popu Nadhi AnuComposer: Christine Anu, David BridieArtist: Christine AnuAlbum: Waku - Minaral A MinalayLabel: ABC Music ABCM0029

Title: Laga Saibai Composer: Nadi AnuArtist: Christine AnuAlbum: Waku - Minaral A MinalayLabel: ABC Music ABCM0029

Title: Dhibagaw GabuComposer: Zipporah Corser AnuArtist: Christine AnuAlbum: Waku - Minaral A MinalayLabel: ABC Music ABCM0029Music in Iestyn Davies' interview:

Title: King DavidComposer: Herbert Howells, words Walter de la MareArtist: Iestyn DaviesAlbum: Divine Music: An English SongbookLabel: Signum Classics SIGCD725

Title: 'Wer Sünde tut, der ist vom Teufel' from Cantata No. 54, 'Widerstehe doch der Sünde,' BWV 54 (BC A51)Composer: Johann Sebastian BachArtist: Iestyn Davies, Arcangelo, Jonathan Cohen conductorAlbum: Cantatas Nos 54, 82 & 170Label: Hyperion CDA68111

Title: Or la tromba (from Rinaldo)Composer: George Frideric HandelArtist: Iestyn Davies, La Nuova Musica, artistic director David BatesAlbum: Handel’s Unsung HeroesLabel: Pentatone 5186892

Music at the end of the show:

Title: (I’m) StrandedArtist: The SaintsComposer: Chris Bailey, Ed KuepperAlbum: (I’m) StrandedLabel: EMI -- EMC-2570

Technical production by Russell Stapleton

The Music Show is produced on Gadigal and Gundungurra Country

German countertenor Andreas Scholl returns to The Music Show whilst he’s in the country with the Australian World Orchestra. He talks to Andrew about the life of a countertenor: old repertoire, new repertoire, and looking after a voice when great demands are made of it.

American pianist Donna Coleman deep dives into the life and influence of American modernist composer Charles Ives, whose 150th anniversary is this year. There’s more to this composer than the experimental (and sometimes chaotic) sounds he is best-known for.

Julia Fredersdorff, Artistic Director of Van Diemen's Band, talks about music from perhaps the most turbulent time in England's history - its Civil War. And, violinist, composer and vocalist Véronique Serret collaborates with nature on her latest (and ARIA Award nominated) album Migrating Bird.

Alynda Segarra has been making music as Hurray For The Riff Raff for nearly two decades. They ran away from NYC as a teen to ride trains across states—busking, sleeping rough and meeting all sorts of characters. They then settled in New Orleans and their music career kicked off, but their ninth and latest album, The Past Is Still Alive, finally shares the memories of those formative years of grief, love and finding community on the fringes.

Jazz drummer Laurence Pike’s new album is called The Undreamt-Of Centre and it’s a modern take on the requiem mass. Influences come from places as different as modern classical music, Japanese environmental ambient music, fourth world electronics, free jazz and the choral traditions of Estonia. Laurence joins Andy to explain how all those things come together.

Laurence Pike performs at Sydney's Church St Studios on Friday 20 September with pianist Mike Nock.

Hurray For The Riff Raff are in Australia from 4 - 13 October playing dates in the Hunter Valley, Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Williamstown and Korumburra.

Performance artist, composer, and violinist Laurie Anderson once told The Music Show that she sometimes starts off thinking something is an opera, and it ends up being a potato print. Her latest album, Amelia, began life as a much longer orchestral piece that “didn’t work at all”, but at least it avoided the fate of becoming a potato print. It’s a portrait of Amelia Earhart and a sprawling, atmospheric imagining of her last flight. Laurie returns to The Music Show, with frequent contributions from her dog Willie, to talk to Andy about technology, identifying as an “artist”, and the “thrill” of her 1981 single O Superman finding a new audience with kids on TikTok. 

Finnish-Australian composer and cellist Simon Svoboda has bunkered down and used the darkest, coldest time of year in Finland to write suite of music KAAMOS. Each piece is inspired by a different element of winter (like mist, frost, smoke, light) and blends his cello with his soaring falsetto. He speaks to Andrew Ford about the healthy state of music in Scandinavia and the complexities of writing minimalist music. 

Arnold Schoenberg’s music tore a hole in the fabric of the twentieth century. Over the course of his life, he charted a new course through expressionism, atonality, and ultimately to the invention of twelve tone serialism. As the father of the Second Viennese School, he’s been both cursed and adored (often at the same time) by the people who’ve taken up his scores – you’ll hear quite a lot of the adoration and no small amount of the cursing on this episode of The Music Show. Danaë Killian, who is about to perform his complete solo piano works, and Jeremy Eichler, who wrote about Schoenberg in his prize-winning book Time’s Echo, join Andy, and you’ll hear voices including Pierre Boulez, singers Tabatha McFadyen, Merlyn Quaife and Jane Manning, conductors Simone Young and Roger Benedict, pianist Simon Tedeschi, violinists Jack Liebeck and Michael Barenboim, and author Joy Calico from The Music Show’s archives.

Danaë Killian performs Schoenberg’s complete solo piano music at Tempo Rubato in Naarm/Melbourne on 13 September.

Jeremy Eichler’s Time’s Echo is published by Alfred A. Knopf and Faber, newly in paperback. 

Music heard in the show:

1899 - Verklärte Nacht, Op. 4 

Artist: Amichai Grosz; Maxim Rysanov; Jens Peter Maintz; Janine Jansen; Boris Brovtsyn; Torleif ThedéenAlbum: Janine Jansen plays Schoenberg & SchubertLabel: Decca 4783551

1905 – String Quartet No. 1, Op. 7

Artist: Julliard String QuartetAlbum: Schoenberg: String Quartet No. 1 Label: Sony G010004560203F

1908 - String Quartet No. 2, Op. 10 

Artist: Amaryllis Quartet, Katharina PersickeAlbum: YellowLabel: Genuin GEN16438

1909 - Three Piano Pieces, Op. 11

Artist: Danaë KillianAlbum: Arnold Schoenberg - Complete Works for Piano SoloLabel: Move Records MCD513 

1911 - Six Little Pieces for Piano, Op. 19 

Artist: Danaë KillianAlbum: Arnold Schoenberg - Complete Works for Piano SoloLabel: Move Records MCD513 

1911 - Gurrelieder 

Artist: Philharmonia Orchestra, City of Birmingham Symphony Chorus, Philharmonia Voices, Esa-Pekka SalonenAlbum: Schoenberg - GurreliederLabel: Signum SIGCD173

1912 - Pierrot Lunaire, Op. 21

Artist: Patricia Kopatchinskaja (violin/sprechgesang), Meesun Hong (violin), Julia Gallego (flute), Reto Bieri (clarinet), Thomas Kaufmann (cello), Joonas Ahonen (piano), Marko Milenkovic (viola)Album: Schoenberg – Pierrot LunaireLabel: Alpha ALPHA722

Artist: Mary Thomas (soprano/reciter), London Sinfonietta, David AthertonAlbum: Schoenberg – Pierrot Lunaire and SerenadeLabel: Decca 4256262

1923 - Five Pieces for Piano, Op. 23 

Artist: Danaë KillianAlbum: Arnold Schoenberg - Complete Works for Piano SoloLabel: Move Records MCD513 

1923 - Suite for Piano, Op. 25 

Artist: Danaë KillianAlbum: Arnold Schoenberg - Complete Works for Piano SoloLabel: Move Records MCD513 

1929/1931 - Two Pieces for Piano, Op. 33 

Artist: Danaë KillianAlbum: Arnold Schoenberg - Complete Works for Piano SoloLabel: Move Records MCD513 

1930 – Accompaniment to a film scene, Op. 34 

Artist: BBC Symphony Orchestra, Pierre BoulezAlbum: Pierre Boulez Edition – Schoenberg ILabel: Sony G010001828334P

1936 - Violin Concerto, Op. 36 

Artist: Michael Barenboim, Vienna Philharmonic, Pierre BoulezAlbum: Schoenberg: Violin and Piano ConcertosLabel: Peral 4811613

Artist: Jack Liebeck, BBC Symphony Orchestra, Andrew GourlayAlbum: Schoenberg and Brahms – Violin ConcertosLabel: Orchid Classics ORC100129

1942 - Piano Concerto, Op. 42 

Artist: Simon TedeschiPerformed in The Music Show studio

1947 - A Survivor from Warsaw, Op. 46 

Artist: Gunther Reich (speaker), BBC Singers, BBC Symphony Orchestra, Pierre BoulezAlbum: A Survivor from WarsawLabel: Sony M35882

1949 - Phantasy for Violin and Piano, Op. 47

Artist: Patricia Kopatchinskaja (violin), Joonas Ahonen (piano)Album: Schoenberg – Pierrot LunaireLabel: Alpha ALPHA722

Interviews heard in the show:

Jeremy EichlerDanaë Killian Simone Young (2024)Tabatha McFadyen (2022)Jane Manning (1996)Merlyn Quaife (2003)Roger Benedict (2024)Pierre Boulez (2001)Michael Barenboim (2014)Jack Liebeck (2022)Joy Calico (2015)

The Music Show is made on Gadigal and Gundungurra Country

Technical production by Bethany Stewart, Nathan Turnbull and Tegan Nicholls

Jazz has always been about innovation and collaboration, and saxophonist and composer Sandy Evans has excelled on both counts for nearly four decades. She returns to The Music Show studio to perform live with an eclectic trio—the bass trombone of Adrian Sherriff and Suresh Vaidyanathan's ghatam (Indian clay drum). Sandy reflects on a life filled with musical conversations and why she's re-releasing her old albums for the streaming generation. 

How do you make historical speeches something that people will actually want to sit down and listen to? You set them to music. Composer Robert Davidson has teamed up with pianist Sonya Lifschitz to create a series of live musical portraits that weave archival audio from women like Frida Kahlo, Greta Thunberg, Michelle Obama and Patti Smith with piano music and video projections. Both the composer and performer will be on to talk about the inherent musicality of speech and how the work can breathe new life into figures from the past. 

So Much Myself: Piano Portraits is on at Brisbane Festival on 21 September.

Sandy Evans performs with Adrian Sherriff and Suresh Vaidyanathan at Local Edition on 7 September, Festival of the Winds in Bondi on 8 September and at JazzLab in Melbourne on 15 September.

Sandy Evans Trio (with Brett Hirst and Toby Hall) perform at Church St Studios on 30 September and at Inner West Jazz Fest on 20 October. 

Music in the program:

Title: So Much Myself (Nina Simone)Artist: Sonya LifschitzComposer: Robert DavidsonLive recording courtesy of the composer

Title: One PlanetArtist: Sandy Evans, Suresh Vaidyanathan, Adrian SherriffComposer: Sandy EvansRecorded live in The Music Show studio

Title: Improvised percussion duetArtist: Adrian Sherriff, Suresh VaidyanathanComposer: Adrian Sherriff, Suresh VaidyanathanRecorded live in The Music Show studio

Title: Ritual BurningArtist: Sandy Evans Trio (Sandy Evans, Brett Hirst, Toby Hall)Composer: Sandy EvansAlbum: The Running Tide (due 27 September)Label: Independent

Title: To Connect (Michelle Obama)Artist: Sonya LifschitzComposer: Robert DavidsonLive recording courtesy of the composer

Title: Sweet Spring (E. E. Cummings)Artist: Sonya LifschitzComposer: Robert DavidsonAlbum: Stalin's PianoLabel: Independent

Title: Portrait of Diego (Frida Kahlo)Artist: Sonya LifschitzComposer: Robert DavidsonLive recording courtesy of the composer

Title: Susan SontagArtist: Sonya LifschitzComposer: Robert DavidsonLive recording courtesy of the composer

Title: Pierrot Lunaire, Op. 21: XII. GalgenliedComposer: Arnold SchoenbergArtist: Patricia Kopatchinskaja, Thomas Kaufmann, Reto Bieri, Júlia Gállego, Joonas Ahonen, Meesun HongAlbum: Schoenberg: Pierrot LunaireLabel: ALPHA Classics ALPHA 722

Technical production by Nathan Turnbull, Tegan Nicholls and Beth Stewart

The Music Show is made on Gadigal and Gundungurra Country

Elisabeth Lutyens and Edward Clark were a kind of power couple of the 20th century: she a prolific composer; he a less successful conductor but an influential producer and administrator. Annika Forkert is the author of Elisabeth Lutyens and Edward Clark: the orchestration of progress in British twentieth-century music, and she tells Andy the story of their relationship and their work.

Electronic pioneer Ash Wednesday has had a “self-imposed hiatus” from music over the last decade as he was confronted by a diagnosis of progressive multiple sclerosis. He joins Andy to talk about his new album, AfterMATH, a work for electronics and the majestic Melbourne Town Hall Grand Organ, composed and generated around Ash’s loss of movement in the right side of his body.

Percussionist Dame Evelyn Glennie and poet Raymond Antrobus are two of the UK’s most famous Deaf artists and their first collaboration is Another Noise, an album that captures first-takes of Raymond’s spoken word poems, accompanied by Evelyn’s percussion, completely improvised without her having prior knowledge of any poem performed. They join Andy at the start of what promises to be a beautiful friendship. 

Electronic artist Marcus Whale was last on The Music Show when he was in year 10, having composed a saxophone quartet entitled “The Whistler” as part of his high school’s composer scheme. Now he’s four solo albums and two critically acclaimed bands into his career, and he’s about to perform a live version of his album Ecstasy as part of the Liveworks festival in Sydney. He joins Andy to talk about the ritual and sensuality of both the church and the dancefloor, and to remember his friend and collaborator, the singer songwriter Jack Colwell, who has died at the age of 34. 

If you need support, you can reach Lifeline on 13 11 14 or Beyond Blue on 1300 22 4636.

Crooked Fiddle Band refer to their music as “chainsaw folk”, but their fourth studio album The Free Wild Wind & the Songs of Birds is heavier on the folk than on the chainsaw. The band comes into The Music Show studio to play live from the new album, and talk about eighteen years playing together.

What’s it like to have thousands of fans sing your own words back at you? Angie McMahon knows this feeling well after touring last year’s ARIA-nominated album Light, Dark, Light Again. And she recently surprised us with the five-track companion EP Light Sides. 

Angie joins Andrew Ford to talk about the catharsis she gets from songwriting, and how she also loves to 'live inside' other peoples' songs (ABBA, Bonnie Tyler, Australian Crawl). 

Henry Wagons remembers Outlaw Country figurehead Kris Kristofferson, who has died at the age of 88. From Nashville to Hollywood, from Oxford University to the US Army, he had a life almost as unique as his voice.

That leaves Willie Nelson the last of the Highwaymen, the original Outlaw supergroup, and his music is the subject of New Zealand-based Canadian songwriter Tami Neilson’s new album Neilson Sings Nelson. From a childhood singing in the travelling Neilson Family Band to a career that’s put her on stages with greats like Johnny Cash, Tanya Tucker and Willie Nelson, Tami returns to The Music Show after a US tour performing at venues like Dollywood and the Grand Ole Opry to talk about the legacy of country music in the US, as well as Willie Nelson and Kris Kristofferson.