Classical, jazz & experimental music celebrated at 2019 Art Music Awards

Australia’s art music sector – contemporary classical music, jazz and experimental music – met tonight (Monday, August 19) at the University of Sydney’s Great Hall for the 2019 Art Music Awards.

They were presented by APRA AMCOS and the Australian Music Centre (AMC).

Very little statistics and data are available specifically for these genres, in terms of a percentage of industry revenue or changes of consumer behaviour,

We do get bits and pieces, like the fact these genres tend to appeal to educated mid- to high-income music lovers and, from the 2004 bureau of statistics report, 62% of those who play jazz and 58% of classical players are instrumentalists.

Nevertheless, there’s always a great amount of excitement around their proponents with 11 national categories and eight state categories handed out through the night.

The newly-titled Richard Gill Award for distinguished services to Australian music (determined by the APRA board of writer and publisher directors) went to experimental jazz trio The Necks, the first band to receive this honour.

Over three decades, the trio carved out a unique space, walking the line between avant-garde, improvisation and minimalism while still paying respect to jazz.

The Jazz Work of the Year was Trombone Song Cycle, a collection of obscure love songs composed by Joshua Kyle and arranged by Andrew Murray for the unusual combination of trombone quartet and voice.

Excellence in Jazz went to composer and bass player Ross McHenry for new works, international touring, residencies and commissions in 2018.

Excellence in Experimental Music was won by The Bendigo International Festival of Exploratory Music for its ongoing contribution

String ensemble Zephyr Quartet took out Excellence by an Organisation in recognition of their 2018 program which defied genre, style and expectation, as well as their championing of Australian work over 20 years.

Winner of Excellence by an Individual was Lyn Williams for her significant contribution over 30 years to the creation and performance of choral music in Australia by setting up world-renowned children’s choirs including Sydney Children’s Choir and Gondwana Voices.

Performance of the Year was Speak Percussion and Jessica Aszodi for t the genre-defying Atlas of the Sky by Australian composer Liza Lim.

Orchestral Work was Carl Vine’s Implacable Gifts (concerto for two pianos and orchestra) inspired by surrealist painting Arrival of Implacable Gifts by James Gleeson.

Mary Finsterer was recognised in Instrumental Work of the Year for Ignis, a meticulously crafted duet for cello and the six-stringed viola d’amore

Vocal/Choral Work of the Year was awarded to wordless opera The Howling Girls, composed by Damien Ricketson with direction from Adena Jacobs, with a single soprano and a teenage chorus of howling girls.

West Australian Symphony Orchestra was the recipient of Excellence in Music Education for their Crescendo program. Inspired by the Venezuelan El Sistema, tit delivers free, regular music education programs to WA schools.

Illawarra-based Steel City Strings won Excellence in a Regional Area for their performance activity in the last 12 months and commitment to new Australian music.

Among state & territory Awards were Mona Foma curator Brian Ritchie, Canberra International Music Festival, Warren H. Williams, Michael Sollis and Barkly Arts for One Sky Many Stories about the relationship between indigenous culture and the night sky, and Victorian educator Cat Hope.

Hosted by Jonathan Biggins, the night’s presenters included Australia Council CEO Adrian Collette AM; Create NSW executive director of investment & engagement, Elizabeth W. Scott; ABC Classic FM’s content manager Toby Chadd; SIMA artistic director Zoe Hauptmann; Copyright Agency, chair Kim Williams AM and Dr Simon Barker, senior lecturer in Jazz Studies at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music.

Live performances curated by musical director Barney McAll featured composer Alice Chance; pianist Sonya Lifschitz performing a work by Robert Davidson; a duo improvisation by saxophonist Scott McConnachie and organist Amy Johansen; and a performance of Rhyan Clapham’s Talk To Me I’m Listening, performed by Ensemble Offspring’s Jason Noble and Emma Jardine joined by Benjamin Kopp, Sonya Holowell and Chloe Kim.