'A black dog near me' premiere

Photo courtesy of Joel Walmsley

Recently I was commissioned by the Australian National Academy of Music as part of the ANAM Set, an initiative to get the art music ball rolling post covid. The result was a short, powerful piece about mental health called ‘A black dog near me’

The title is taken from a poem called ‘Melancholia’ by Robert Bly. The work uses flugelhorn and piano to explore some soulful, lonely sounds. The premiere took place on December 3 at the Abbotsford Convent home of ANAM, performed by Joel Walmsley on flugel and Peter de Jager on piano. It was introspective and emotional - a really fantastic performance that lingered long after the last note was played.

The piece was recorded by the ABC, and will be published by Wirripang soon.