Please note that this site has been superceded.  For up to date information on sound Travellers please visit www.soundtravellers.com.au.

Thanks and apologies for any inconvenience.

Joanne

JAZZ YOUR WAY

Sound Travellers initiative brings outstanding jazz to the nation

Three excellent jazz groups – Mace Francis Orchestra, Misinterprotato and Way Out West – will bring their exciting and unique sounds to towns and cities across Australia as they all embark on tours in the second half of this year with the help of the Sound Travellers initiative.

Sound Travellers is a new project funded by the Australia Council’s Music Board to support individual artists as well as small to medium sized organizations in the promotion and national touring of improvised jazz, sound art/electronica, and contemporary classical music.

“This is a fantastic initiative for both musicians and audiences.! It is an opportunity to inspire and connect like minded people who enjoy the richness of our uniquely Australian musical vocabulary and also a chance for artists to exchange creative ideas.” says Joanne Kee, Director Sound Travellers.

“One of the problems that jazz ensembles face in Australia is that the size of the country and the cost of travel make it very hard to develop an ensemble through touring and intensive performance. The Sound Travellers program makes a positive step in the right direction, which I’m sure will be beneficial for the bands involved, and for the audiences who get the chance to hear them perform,” says Adrian Jackson, Artistic Director of the Wangaratta Jazz Festival and member of Sound Travellers’ artistic advisory panel.

Mace Francis Orchestra (touring June/July)
Formed late in 2004 by band-leader and composer Mace Francis to experiment with composition in the style of the great modern big bands lead by Bob Brookmeyer, Thad Jones, Bill Holman and Maria Schneider. The result has been the coming together of 14 of Perth’s finest emerging young musicians and composers to create exciting new music for big band. An MFO gig is an experience not to be missed.

Tour destinations will include Fremantle, Perth, Brisbane, Byron Bay, Lismore, Canberra, Albury, Sydney,
Melbourne, Geelong, Mt Gambier and Adelaide.

Misinterprotato – ‘Variations’ Tour (touring Sept/Oct)
Formed while studying at the Queensland Conservatorium, Misinterprotato’s sound is driven by pianist Sean Foran, teamed with John Parker’s expansive dynamic range on percussion and Patrick Marchisella’s visceral touch on the double bass. This tour will showcase their captivating new album ‘Variations’.

Tour destinations will include Brisbane, Noosa, Lismore, Cairns, Perth, Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide.

Way Out West – ‘Old Grooves for New Streets’ Tour (touring Oct/Nov)
From Melbourne’s melting pot – Way Out West – featuring Sri Lankan born West African percussion master (Ray Pereira,) and Vietnamese traditional musician (Dung Nguyen), mixed with players diversely experienced in Western pop, jazz, and classical traditions (Peter Knight, Paul Williamson, Howard Cairns, Dave Beck). This tour will showcase the exotic alchemy captured on their most recent album ‘Old Grooves
for New Streets’.

Tour destinations will include Cairns, Mission Beach, Townsville, Byron Bay, Brisbane, Sydney, Newcastle,
Wollongong, Canberra, Adelaide, Melbourne.

FOR DETAILS OF ALL TOURS INCLUDING DATES AND VENUES PLEASE VISIT
www.soundtravellers.com.au

MEDIA INQUIRIES
Please contact
Clare McGregor
Email: claremcg@bigpond.net.au or jazzmedia@soundtravellers.com.au
Phone: 0418 192 524

Sound Travellers is supported by the Australia Council, the Australian Government’s arts funding and advisory body, Performing Lines and Ceres Solutions.

Please check venues, dates directly with venues, whilst all dates correct at time of writing, things do change!

Media release 21 May 2008

Classical music is dead! Long live classical music!

SOUND TRAVELLERS TAKES NEW MUSIC ON THE ROAD.
From June 2008, a collection of Australia’s most innovative classical musicians will be hitting the road to bring their diverse and exciting sounds to new audiences across the country, with the help of the Sound Travellers initiative.

The series of new music tours kicks off with collaborative performances by improvisation artists Alex Masso and Peter Farrar in early June, and will be followed in coming weeks by performances from Ensemble Offspring, Metalog, Colin Offord, and two special shows of Con Koukiatis’s Prayer Bells. Each performance will push the boundaries of contemporary classical music practice, and will give audiences the chance to experience something new and inspirational.

Funded by the Australia Council’s Music Board, Sound Travellers is a new project, created to allow some of the country’s most interesting music practitioners to promote and tour their art, in contemporary classical music, as well the diverse fields of as improvised jazz, and sound art/electronica.

“This is a fantastic initiative for both musicians and audiences. It is an opportunity to inspire, with the diversity and quality of music being produced all around Australia, to connect like-minded people who enjoy the richness of our uniquely Australian musical vocabulary and a chance for artists to exchange creative ideas.” Joanne Kee, Director – Sound Travellers

Sound Travellers was created to support individuals and small to medium sized organizations touring new music. The artists that will be touring through the second half of the year will visit every State and will be travelling the length and breadth of the country, plus many of the places in between. A total of 13 tours, over 60 artists and more than a few road trips and flights with over 50,000 kilometres to be travelled, Sound Travellers are helping these musical journeys come to a place near you

“Ironically it is often easier for Australian artists to tour their work overseas than interstate. The Sound Travellers scheme goes some way to addressing the huge need to nurture ensemble-to-ensemble and musician-to-musician connections around the country.” David Young, Aphids

www.soundtravellers.com.au

Sound Travellers is supported by the Australia Council, the Australian Government’s arts funding and advisory body, Performing Lines and Ceres Solutions.

TOUR DETAILS

JUNE 2008
Masso and Farrar
When Masso and Farrar kick off the series of dates, audiences will be treated to an exploration of the possibilities of purely improvised music. With stylistic influences harking back to 1960s jazz, Masso and Farrar are heavily influenced by Australian musicians working with new approaches to sound, forms and musical interaction. Both musicians have been heavily involved with the Splinter Orchestra; formed the group Quarantine with Rod Cooper (Melb) and Rory Brown; performed with the unique musician Gerard Crewdson; and in April 2008 with creative music legend Wadada Leo Smith. They are closely involved with the NOW now.

Tuesday 3rd June, The Make It Up Club @ Bar Open, Melbourne
Wednesday 4th June, The Brisbane Hotel, Hobart
Thursday 5th June, The Exeter Hotel, Adelaide
Saturday 7th June, Club Zho, Perth
Sunday 8th June, Audiopollen Social Club, Brisbane
Thursday 12th June, Venue tbc, Canberra

www.myspace.com/massoalex or http://www.trioapoplectic.com/massofarrartour.html

Ensemble Offspring – Waiting to Turn into Puzzles

Working with the Aphids Reel Music Festival, Ensemble Offspring have created Waiting to Turn into Puzzles – a cinematic experience with live music. Curham’s hand-processed, etched and looped super 8 films are simultaneously an intense visual experience as well as functioning as music notation for Ensemble Offspring.

David Young ascribes a vocabulary of musical gestures and techniques to the textures, colours and shapes f the projections through a process of composition that explores the continuum between improvisation and notated music. David’s music has been likened to the “aural equivalent of seeing a world in a grain of sand”.

Wednesday 25 June, Chauvel Cinema Paddington, Sydney
Thursday 26June, Australian Centre for the Moving Image, Federation Square, Melbourne
http://www.ensembleoffspring.org.au

Please check venue details, times and dates directly with venues at time of publishing all info correct – however things sometimes change!

Publicist Susie Cairns – “newmusicmedia@soundtravellers.com.au”

SOUND TRAVELLERS INITIATIVE TOURS SOUND ART NATIONALLY

Sound Travellers is on the road! Australia’s most innovative emerging and accomplished sound artists are taking sonic explorations cross-country. Ghosts of 29 Megacycles and Adam Trainer, Tom Hall, ii and roaming festivals Liquid Architecture 9 and Room 40’s Open Road Project are set to tour the nation.

Sound Travellers is a new project supported by the Australia Council’s Music Board to assist individual artists and small to medium organisations with the promotion and national touring of Sound Art and Electronic, improvised jazz and contemporary classical music.

“….this is a fantastic initiative for both musicians and audiences. It is an opportunity to inspire, with the diversity and quality of music being produced all around Australia, to connect like minded people” Joanne Kee, Director, Sound Travellers

Ghosts of 29 Megacycles – Adam Trainer (touring June). Solo experimental musicians Greg Taw and Adam Trainer play loosely composed musical scores mixed and sequenced visual film loops, experimenting with musical elements such as organ, guitar, strings, vocal drones, bass and percussion.

Tom Hall (touring July) Tom Hall’s tour of Sight Beyond is an extension of his studio practices and research into live instrument processing and the resynthesis of found sound and imagery, resulting in a viscerally provoking live performance that incorporates input from performer and audience, striving to blur the boundaries between artist and viewer.

ii (touring July/August). Long time Melbourne collaborators Alex Nosek and Jon Tjhia make up ii, an improvisationcentric duo trading in ambient pop, secret noises and hidden melodies.

Liquid Architecture 9 (touring July). In its 9th consecutive year, Liquid Architecture is Australia’s premier sound-arts festival. Centred around a series of performance events, the festival will showcase contemporary and experimental music by Australian artists alongside key international figures.

Open Frame – Open Road (touring October). The Open Road Project is a touring programme that will take annual Brisbane festival Open Frame to locations around Australia. Open Frame focuses on the intersections of sound, music, media and discrete listening showcasing a selection of Room 40 Australian artists and visiting international artists.

For media content, interviews or if you would to review a show in your city; please contact Amy Curl on details below.
For a full programme, visit www.soundtravellers.com.au

Sound Travellers is supported by the Australia Council, the Australian Government’s arts funding and advisory body, Performing Lines and Ceres Solutions.

Media release 20 May 2008

ON THE ROAD
Musical points of departure, arrival and the space between

The first tours for Sound Travellers, a national touring project for sound art/electronica, improvised jazz and contemporary classical music are about to commence, headed for every State and Territory over the next six months.

We are launching a National media campaign in association with each individual tour having its own media/marketing campaign.

June
The Ghost Of 29 Megacycles/ Adam Trainer, Greg Taw
Alex Masso and Peter Farrar
Ensemble Offspring, Waiting to turn into Puzzles

June/July
Mace Francis Big Band Tour

July
Metalog – Jim Denley, Amanda Stewart, Ben Byrne, Natasha Anderson, Robbie Avenaim, Dale Gorfinkel
Liquid Architecture – Festival of Sound Arts

July/August
Tom Hall, Sight Beyond
Jon Tjhii and Alex Novak

September – November
Colin Offord, solo performance
Misinterprotato, Variations tour – jazz trio
Open Frame Tour, from Lawrence English Room 40
Ihos Music Theatre and Opera – Prayer Bells
Way Out West, Old Grooves for New Streets Tour.

Sound Travellers is supported by the Australia Council, the Australian Government’s arts funding and advisory body and aims to support individuals and small to medium sized organizations touring new music. The artists that will be touring through the second half of the year will visit every State and will be travelling the length and breadth of the country, plus many of the places in between. A total of 13 tours, over 60 artists and more than a few road trips and flights with over 50,000 kilometres to be travelled, Sound Travellers are helping these musical journeys come to a place near you

We are working with the following publicists, so you may receive more than one email about different tours. Please be patient, it’s all good information.

Clare McGregor – Jazz 0418 192 524 email jazzmedia@soundtravellers.com.au
Amy Curl – sound art/electronic 0420 960310 email soundmedia@soundtravellers.com.au
Susie Cairns – new music 0418 635 684 email newmusicmedia@soundtravellers.com.au

More information is available on www.soundtravellers.com.au
All other queries please contact -jkee@soundtravellers.com.au-

Media release – full copy available here in pdf

Musical points of departure, arrival and the spaces between.

From Karratha to Canberra – Darwin to Hobart, Sound Travellers is pleased to announce our first round of funding with tours that cover every state and territory of this wide brown land. Between June and November 2008, Australia will be treated to ome of the most exciting new sounds the artists of this country have to offer.

Sound Travellers is a new project funded by the Australia Council’s Music Board to support individuals and small to medium sized organizations in the promotion and national touring of sound art/electronica, improvised jazz and contemporary classical music.

The artists that will be touring through the second half of the year represent every state and will be travelling the length and breadth of the country, plus many of the places in between. A total of 13 tours, over 60 artists and more than a few roadtrips and flights with over 50,000 kilometres to be travelled, Sound Travellers is helping these musical journeys come to a place near you.

Artist/s

Metalog, – Jim Denley, Ben Byrne, Natasha Anderson, Amanda Stewart, Dale Gorfinkel, Robbie Avenaim (NSW)

Ensemble Offspring (NSW)

Liquid Architecture 9 (various)

Mace Francis Orchestra (WA)

Tom Hall (QLD)

IHOS (TAS)

Alex Masso & Peter Farrar (NSW)

Misinterprotato – Sean Foran, John Parker, Pat Marchisella (QLD)

Colin Offord (QLD) – presented by TURA

Jon Tjhia and Alex Nosek (VIC) ii

Greg Taw, Adam Trainer (WA) Ghost of 29 Megacycles

Room 40 – various artists (QLD) Open Frame

Way Out West – Peter Knight, Paul, Williamson, Dung Nguyen, Ray Pereira, Howard Cairns, Dave Beck (VIC)

Also coming to keep you up to date with the tours, is the Sound Travellers gig guide. Register at www.soundtravellers.com.au (bottom of the page) to stay in touch.

Media release available please email -jkee@soundtravellers.com.au-

Sound Travellers is a project initiated by the Australia Council and produced by a partnership between Performing Lines and Ceres Solutions.

Please find grant guidelines and application forms for Round 1.  Please note the next round is Sep/Oct 2008 and these forms will be updated.  Please do not use these forms..

PDF Application form

Word Application form

PDF Grant guidelines

Word Grant guidelines

Welcome to Sound Travellers.

Ceres Solutions and Performing Lines have joined forces to announce the New Music Touring Project – Sound Travellers – a two year project to facilitate and promote the national touring of sound art/electronica, improvised jazz and contemporary classical music. Initial seed money is being provided by the Australia Council.

This project is being managed as a partnership between established touring organisation Performing Lines and arts strategy company Ceres Solutions, with director Joanne Kee leading the project.

The intention of Sound Travellers is to bring these genres to a larger audience nationwide at the same time as securing assistance for existing artists across the country to further develop their practice.

Sound Travellers will:

• Support performance opportunities in a touring context
• Support and broaden existing touring networks
• Develop opportunities and new networks for the artforms
• Leverage the funding with other financial and in kind support
• Provide infrastructure support including marketing/publicity to enable skills growth within the sectors, which enables artistic and audience growth.

There will be two components to Sound Travellers. For artists there is a grant based program designed to assist Australian artists to tour nationally. Sound Travellers will also explore the options to both broaden and strengthen the national touring opportunities for these music genres.

An artistic advisory panel with specialists from each genre has been formed to make recommendations to the executive committee regarding the overall objectives of the project and the assessment of applications in the grant rounds. This panel includes – John Davis (Australian Music Centre), Professor Andy Arthurs (Queensland University of Technology), Adrian Jackson (Wangaratta Festival of Jazz), Ronny Ferella (musician and Half Bent), Roland Peelman (AD, Song Company) and other members to be confirmed.

If you wish to discuss a project that has the potential to provide infrastructure/new opportunities or will strengthen touring networks or you would like more information about this project please contact:

Joanne Kee on 0414 973 095 or jkee-at-soundtravellers.com.au or
Performing Lines on 02 9319 0066 or info-at-oundtravellers.com.au