Zephyr Quartet’s Belinda Gehlert wins mentorship from inaugural She Shoots, She Scores

Zephyr Quartet’s Belinda Gehlert has won a mentorship through South Australia’s inaugural She Shoots, She Scores.

The paid composer attachment is an initiative of the South Australian Film Corporation (SAFC) and the SA government’s Music Development Office (MDO), in partnership with the Australian Guild of Screen Composers (AGSC).

Aside from being a member of the quartet, classically trained violinist Gehlert a freelance composer and theatre performer and works regularly with Patch Theatre.

She holds a bachelor in classical performance and a post-graduate diploma in jazz performance from the University of Adelaide.

The She Shoots, She Scores win sees her work with former Go-Betweens member Amanda Brown.

Brown toured and/or recorded as a freelancer with R.E.M, Silverchair, The Vines, Youth Group, Josh Pyke, The Church, David Bridie, The Apartments and Toni Collette.

The multi-award winning Brown’s screen music credits include feature documentaries The Family and Red Obsession (with Burkhard Dallwitz).

Feature films include Kings of Mykonos (with Nick West) Son of a Lion and Look Both Ways.

She was the composer on television series Grace Beside Me and Wonderland.

Brown explained, “Belinda was an outstanding applicant for a variety of reasons.

“Her writing for strings was superb but she also demonstrated compositional flair across other musical genres – a necessary skill in the life of a screen composer.

“I look forward to working with Belinda and giving her the professional grounding to succeed as a film composer in SA — a state already known for quality filmmaking and support for music and the arts.”

Gehlert added, “I am really excited to be working with Amanda Brown and am looking forward to learning more about screen composition and the screen industry from someone with such extensive experience.”

Minister for industry and skills, David Pisoni commented, “Artists like Belinda provide strong foundations for the cultural, social and economic fabric of South Australia and their art forms make not only a positive societal impact but an important contribution to our economy.”

Gehlert’s win was announced at a special screening of Claudia Sangiorgi Dalimore’s documentary about women in Australian music, Her Sound, Her Story at the Mercury Cinema presented by the SAFC and the MDO.

It was followed by a panel discussion hosted by broadcaster and Adelaide Cabaret Festival artistic director, Julia Zemiro, together with the filmmakers, Amanda Brown and Adelaide singer/songwriter MANE (aka Paige Court).