INCREDIBLE FLORIDAS
Incredible Floridas is chamber music at its most intense, visceral and radical in the shadowy surrounds of Carriageworks. Directed by Michelle St Anne, this choreographed performance includes two world premieres that pay homage to Richard Meale's complex musical language. A rare and unforgettable experience.
DETAILS
Friday 23 June, Carriageworks, Sydney
Saturday 24 June, Carriageworks, Sydney
PROGRAM
Josephine Macken - the imaginary line about which the body rotates (2023)*
Martin Wesley-Smith - For Marimba & Tape (1983)
Augustin Braud - Hexis (2023)*
Richard Meale - Incredible Floridas (1971)
* World Premiere
PERFORMERS
Claire Edwardes (Artistic Director, percussion)
Jason Noble (clarinets)
Lamorna Nightingale (flutes)
Véronique Serret (violin, viola)
Benjamin Kopp (piano)
Blair Harris (cello)
Jack Symonds (conductor)
DESCRIPTION
At the centre of this program is Richard Meale’s Incredible Floridas, an homage to the surrealist poetry of Arthur Rimbaud. Fifty years on from its premiere by Fires of London, Ensemble Offspring revives this landmark piece of Australian chamber music in an immersive staging by creative director Michelle St Anne.
Flanking Meale’s masterpiece in the shadowy surrounds of Carriageworks are world premieres from Augustin Braud and Josephine Macken, both of whom draw inspiration from Meale’s brooding and complex musical language. Finally, bridging the period between Meale and Macken is Martin Wesley-Smith’s simply titled For Marimba and Tape.
This performance explores the depths of the human psyche through choreography, set design and music of nuance and virtuosity. A snapshot of Australia’s modern music history, join us for what promises to be a rare and unforgettable experience.
“★★★★ Ensemble Offspring’s performance under conductor Jack Symonds was spiky and seductive, drawing out the piece’s variegated textures over its six movements with reverent care, while emphasising the work’s brittle brilliance.”
“Sweetness here, full on aggression there, impassioned beauty and virtuosity thrown off as if it was a mere trifle made this performance both exhilarating and strangely comforting...Every performer was both a soloist and an ensemble member and all were simply perfect.”
“The concert was a magnificent testament to Ensemble Offspring’s mission – to make audiences
aware of the cutting edge of contemporary, especially Australian, music.”
“★★★★ The work is a dazzlingly synchronised dance between human and machine and it brought the house down.”
DOWNLOAD THE PROGRAM
Ensemble Offspring is assisted by the NSW Government through Create NSW.
