Adam Simmons – Travelling Tales 2017
The third of "The Usefulness of Art" concert series 2017-2018
The Melbourne premiere performance of Adam Simmons’ “Travelling Tales,” composed and performed for the 2013 Piraeus Festival in Athens, Greece with Intrarti Orchestra. The music is influenced by a mix of Adam’s road trips around Australia, European travels, his love of Japanese shakuhachi music and his belief in the essential nature of art. The experiences, sounds and concepts come together to create musical landscapes and images, both panoramic and up close. Consider each one as a musical postcard, evocations of exotic locations on one side with personal and maybe insightful comments on the other.
Adam has worked with Timothy Phillips in various collaborations including with composers Kate Neal and James Hullick, as well as in Arcko. As one of only a few ensembles in Australia focussing on large-scale, overwhelmingly Australian repertoire from this and the last century, Arcko has assumed a unique place in the Australian music landscape. Adam and Timothy share a strong passion in promoting Australian music and culture and so this is a perfect partnership to strengthen musical and personal bonds.
Travelling Tales – composed by Adam Simmons (2013)
A collection of thoughts, inspirations, and observations regarding travelling have been the catalyst for this suite.
1. beginnings
- the allure of the unknown, the search for knowledge ,the dreams of a child, the whiff of adventure
2. a single step
- “A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.” Lao-tzu
3. miłość
- a man once told me that travelling playing music was not about music, but about the life experience to be gained.
4. a nod to the old world
- travel gives insight to different cultures, but also to previous cultures.
5. the city that never slept
- New York, Prague, Barcelona, Szczecin, Paris, Tallinn, Melbourne, Wangaratta… some of the cities where I have seen the sun come up.
6. threnody
- this song of mourning is for travellers past and present that do so not for pleasure but out of necessity.
7. living by numbers
- too often we do what’s expected, follow the footsteps of those before us – getting off the beaten track can elicit the most memorable experiences
8. a song for sharing
- one thing I have learnt is that while I love to travel, its not the same without someone to share the experience with.
9. warm croissants
- after a night of talking philosophy, love and solving the problems of the world, nothing quite beats a croissant fresh from the oven as the bakery opens.
Encore
10. Travelling
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credits
released December 20, 2017
Composed by Adam Simmons
Performed by
Adam Simmons – soprano/tenor saxophones, bass clarinet
Arcko Symphonic Ensemble – conducted by Timothy Phillips
Violin 1 – Zachary Johnson, Jeremy Blackman, Larissa Aguiar, Felicité Heine, Leigh Raymond
Violin 2 – Philip Healey, Susan Pierotti, Naomi Durston, Sophie Dunn, James Steendam
Violas – Christian Read, Matt Laing, Eli Vincent, Eunise Cheng
Cellos – Caerwen Martin, Stephanie Arnold, Yelian He, Gemma Tomlinson
Double Bass – Nicholas Synot, Miranda Hill
Visual design by Christine Crawshaw and Adam Simmons
Recorded by Myles Mumford at fortyfivedownstairs, December 9-10, 2017
Graphic Design by Celsius Design
Photography by Sarah Walker
Special thanks to
- Mary Lou and all of the wonderful staff at fortyfivedownstairs
- Brian Ritchie, David Jones, Ian Pidd and Owen McKern for support of this endeavour and many others – Sarah Walker (photography) for capturing images that will be shared later
- Efy Trian of Specs’n’Arts (Athens) for the opportunity that inspired this work
- Andrea Keeble for her expert advice and encouragement
- Everyone who supported my Pozible campaign for my airfare to Greece.
This project has been assisted by the Australian Government through the Australia Council for the Arts, its arts funding and advisory body.
This project is supported by the Victorian Government through Creative Victoria.
