New national tour network to take Western Sydney’s ‘sound’ to the world

Image: Worlds Collide

A new national tour network, the Cross-Cultural Music Alliance, has been formalised as a pathway for the sounds of Western Sydney to reach a wider audience.

It’s the latest initiative by the Cultural Arts Collective which runs festivals, artist management and a record label to showcase the dynamic collaborations coming from Sydney’s most culturally diverse area and is also the midpoint of Sydney hip hop.

Founders Richard Petkovic and Maria Mitar, along with project partner Sacred Currents, connected with regional arts organisations.

“We’re there to wake it up,” Petkovic said of tapping the potential market.

“With our community partners in the regional areas, we want to see what is possible.

“We’re not part of the mass media, we’re just a little niche group doing great things.”

The first tour kicked off this month and covers regional NSW and Victoria, and Greater Sydney.

It features the Worlds Collide, an inter-generational, tri-lingual, cross-genre, cross-cultural band from Mt Druitt which sings about unity, social justice and people power.

Their sound is described as a fusion of Fela Kuti, KISS and Ice T.

The tour is a mix of concerts, workshops and team-ups with local musicians, in venues that include galleries, museums and art centres.

“It’s about connecting with artists,” Petkovic explained of the range of spaces.

“Artists are always at the forefront of culture. They get what we’re doing, and they get it that their communities will love it once they see it.

“They’re happy for us to go to their communities and, more important for us, we want to perform with them.”

Mitar added: “Through the partnerships we’re creating, we’re hoping to bring their artists to Sydney to create a full touring network.”

The Pathways Beyond The Mainstream project is supported by the Australia Council’s Re-imagine Sector Recovery Initiatives.

With the West Sydney scene virtually ignored by the mainstream live sector, the Collective found new ways to expand the audience.

Its festivals include Sydney Sacred Music, Grass Roots World Music and Women Of The West.

It manages and creates other acts as well, such as Shohrat Tursun Trio and the Sydney World Music Chamber Orchestra.

It runs writing sessions, set up a record label, and runs concerts.

The April 9 launch of the Worlds Collide album coincides with the screening of the In Search of the Western Sydney Sound documentary.

“What inspires us is the energy and the diversity of the sounds,” according to Petkovic.

“We think it’s a way forward for contemporary Australian music.

“It’s an inclusive way forward where we embrace our diversity and make it a fusion of our Australian contemporary culture.

“There’s the Seattle Sound, the Manchester Sound and the LA Sound.

“If you invest in the Western Sydney Sound you can create a unique music that the world has never heard before.”

Mitar emphasised: “We live, and grew up, in Western Sydney, and for us that multiculturalism in our neighbourhood was normal.

“We never saw that reflected on stage or screens or on the radio in the music sector, or in other cultural sectors.

“It has changed but there’s a lot of room to grow and we want to be at the forefront of that.”