Music, Place and Country

For Spring Fling, the Wheeler Centre and ACO join forces to bring together a panel of musical artists to explore the deep connections between music, place and country, drawing parallels and counterpoints between composers and musicians from diverse cultures.

William Barton is a Kalkadunga man, widely recognised as Australia’s leading didgeridoo player. An esteemed composer, instrumentalist and vocalist, his work expands the musical horizons of the didgeridoo, and the culture and landscape it represents.

Deborah Cheetham AO is a Yorta Yorta woman, soprano, composer and educator. Her work Eumeralla: a war requiem for peace, explores the wars on Gunditjmara country between traditional owners and those who sought to dispossess them.

Mindy Meng Wang 王萌 is a Chinese/Australian composer and world-class modern guzheng player, whose unique compositions explore the fertile space between Chinese classical and Western contemporary music.

Together with host Santilla Chingaipe, they will delve into questions around how music responds to and expresses culture, and how this convergence can refresh our perceptions of place.

The evening will feature a special performance by William Barton.

This event will be photographed and recorded for use by the Wheeler Centre.

Presented in partnership with the Australian Chamber Orchestra

Celebrating our return to the stage and the rejuvenation of the arts and culture communities, Spring Fling is a short series of big ideas offering a delectable picnic spread of events with leading thinkers, writers and creators from Australia and abroad.

Spring Fling is supported by the Melbourne City Revitalisation Fund, a Victorian Government and City of Melbourne partnership.