Event and Ticketing Details
Dates & Times
Thursday 18 July
12:45 PM - 1:15 PM
How do you maintain live music in a culture that does not value it? Jon Rose, acclaimed improvising violinist and instrument-maker, examines Australia’s history of improvised music and musicians and argues that the practice of music has lost its key functions and roles in society.
Expanding on his recent Platform Papers essay, he rejects blaming popular music and digital downloads, and delves deeper – proposing ways to re-engage with the culture and practice of music.
Lunchbox/Soapbox
Sometimes there’s nothing better than a good rant. Every Thursday, the Wheeler Centre hosts an old-fashioned Speakers’ Corner in the middle of the city, where writers and thinkers can have their say on the topics that won’t let them sleep at night.
Featuring some of our most compelling voices across just about every sector of human endeavour you can imagine, the themes dominating Lunchbox/Soapbox are proudly idiosyncratic. BYO lunch. Ideas provided.
Featuring
Jon Rose
Jon Rose was recently commissioned by the Kronos String Quartet to write and build Music from 4 Fences for the Sydney Opera House. He realised his bicycle-powered Pursuit project at Carriage Works (Sydney) and The Mona Foma Festival (Hobart) and performed a completely new and improvised solo part for the Tchaikovsky Violin Concerto with the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra.
Jon created two major radiophonic works for the BBC on the first Aboriginal string orchestra and the history of the piano in 19th century Australia. He has toured in Europe with his current improvisation groups Futch and Strike, premiered his interactive Ball project at The Melbourne Festival and Sounds Outback (WA), and performed his interactive multi-media composition Internal Combustion for violin and orchestra at The Philharmonic, Berlin.
Last Year Jon was honored with The Music Board of The Australia Council’s senior prize – the Don Banks Award for a lifetime’s achievement and contribution to Australian music.