The Music Show

Kamilaroi and Tongan singer and musician Radical Son (AKA David Leha) has just released his second album, a full decade after his debut. Called Bilambiyal (The Learning) it demonstrates his growth as a songwriter with a knack for weaving personal stories alongside wider reflections on culture, community and Country. He's also a masterful collaborator, bringing in the voices of legends Frank Yamma and Emma Donovan and a crack team of producers to build out the album's lush sound.

Christopher Cerrone's Nervous Systems is an aural exploration of systems; from flesh and blood, to tides and oceans, to the brutalist architecture of Pier Luigi Nervi. With the original work barely dry on the score, Omega Ensemble have commissioned a new arrangement that brings new colour to this sonic landscape. Chris joins us on The Music Show to discuss this work, as well as mentoring, opera, and dystopian insect drones.

Radical Son's second album Bilimbiyal (The Learning) is out now, and he performs at CLANCESTRY Festival in Brisbane on 31 July.

Christopher Cerrone's new arrangement of Nervous Systems will be played as part of Omega Ensemble's Alchymia, with two shows playing at ACO Pier 2-3 in Sydney July 27. 

Music in this program:

Title: ElderArtist: Radical Son, Jida GulpililComposer: Andrew Robinson, David Bridie, David Leha, Jida Gulpilil, Marcus LongfootAlbum: Bilambiyal (The Learning)Label: Wantok Musik

Title: Dhuwan Baraay YuligiArtist: Radical SonPerformed live in the RN Breakfast studio 

Title: Yuluwirri Wandabaa (The Rainbow Dreaming)Artist: Radical Son, Emma Donovan, Frank YammaComposer: David Bridie, David Leha, Marcus LongfootAlbum:  Bilambiyal (The Learning)Label: Wantok Musik

Title:  Nervous SystemsArtist: CIM New Music Ensemble (Greg Hamilton – clarinet, Kayla Bryan – violin, Minchae Kim – violin, Tristan Wilson – viola, Annamarie Wellems – cello)Composer: Christopher CerronePerformed live on Sunday, November 12, 2023 at Mixon Hall at the Cleveland Institute of Music

Title: Scene 7: The Murdered Man, Channeled by a MediumArtist: Metropolis Ensemble and full vocal castComposer: Christopher Cerrone, Stephanie FleischmannAlbum: In a GroveLabel: Independent -- ICR028

Title:  The Insects Became MagneticArtist:  Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester BerlinComposer:  Christopher CerronePerformed live by the Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin

Technical production by Russell Stapleton and Ann-Marie Debettencor

Produced on Gadigal and Gundungurra Country

Brett Dean and Matthew Jocelyn's Hamlet (2017) has been one of the most successful operas of recent years with performances at the Glyndebourne Festival, the Adelaide Festival, New York's Metropolitan Opera and the Bavarian State Opera. Now it comes to the Sydney Opera House in its original production by Neil Armfield, with the tenor Allan Clayton, who created the role of Hamlet, perhaps singing it for the last time. Brett Dean and Allan Clayton join Andrew Ford to talk about the opera's origins and its connection to Shakespeare's play.

New York-based jazz bassist and composer Linda May Han Oh is back in Australia for a string of concerts with her husband, the Cuban American pianist Fabian Almazan, as well as the WA Youth Jazz Orchestra (a nice full circle moment for the Perth-raised musician). She speaks to Andrew Ford about switching between electric and upright bass, incorporating her voice in compositions, and the environmental themes behind her piece Ephemeral Echoes which has just earned her a nomination at the forthcoming 2024 Art Music Awards. 

Hamlet runs from 20 July - 9 August at the Sydney Opera House. 

Linda May Han Oh performs 21 July at the Sydney Opera House, and 22 July at Church St Studios in Sydney.

Music in this program:

Title: Act I; Scene 4, ...or not to be (Live)Composer: Brett Dean, words William Shakespeare, libretto Matthew JocelynArtist: Allan Clayton, The Metropolitan Opera Orchestra and Chorus, Nicholas CarterAlbum: Brett Dean: Hamlet (Recorded Live at the Met, June 4 2022)Label: The Metropolitan Opera (digital release)

Title: Spring Symphony, Op. 44, Part II. Waters aboveComposer: Benjamin BrittenArtist: Allan Clayton, London Symphony Orchestra, Sir Simon RattleAlbum: Britten: Spring Symphony, Sinfonia da Requiem, the Young Person's Guide To the OrchestraLabel: LSO Live LSO0830

Title: Act I; Scene 4, Get thee to a nunnery (Live)Composer: Brett Dean, words William Shakespeare, libretto Matthew JocelynArtist: Allan Clayton, The Metropolitan Opera Orchestra and Chorus, Nicholas CarterAlbum: Brett Dean: Hamlet (Recorded Live at the Met, June 4 2022)Label: The Metropolitan Opera (digital release)

Title: Wring from him the cause (from Gertrude Fragments) Composer: Brett DeanArtist: Lotte Betts-Dean, Andrey LebedevRecording supplied by Brett Dean

Title: Firefly, from Ephemeral Echoes (Live)Composer: Linda May Han OhArtist: Linda May Han Oh, Steve Richter, Iain Robbie, Genevieve Wilkins, Fabian Almazan, Ben VanderwalLive recording from Perth Festival 2023, with thanks to Finding Our Voice

Title: HatchlingComposer: Linda May Han OhArtist: Linda May Han OhAlbum: The Glass HoursLabel: Biophilia Records

Title: ArchComposer: Vijay IyerArtist: Vijay Iyer, Tyshawn Sorey, Linda May Han OhAlbum: CompassionLabel: ECM 2760

Technical production by Russell Stapleton

Produced on Gadigal and Gundungurra Country

This program contains strong language throughout. 

Before Madonna brought voguing into the limelight, the queer community had been quietly putting on balls and celebrating this form of expression since the 1970s. Far from the ballroom of waltzes and tangos, queer ballroom is an artform, a community, a form of protest and its very own genre of music. You might have seen the seminal documentary Paris is Burning, or seen ballroom referred to on RuPaul’s Drag Race, or seen the drama Pose – but even if ballroom is brand new to you, Australia’s unique queer community has created its very own style of ball – and the music you’ll hear there.

You’ll hear from US “king of vogue” Dashaun Wesley, as well as local icons Xander Khoury (overall father of the House of Silky), DJ Mirasia (overall mother of the House of Silky), and multi-hyphenate artist Jamaica Moana.

Thanks to ABC Arts for their interview with Jamaica Moana, featured in this episode.

Technical production by Simon Branthwaite

The Music Show is made on Gadigal and Gundungurra Country

Andrew Gurruwiwi leads the Andrew Gurruwiwi Band in what they call 'Yolŋu funk', a mix between reggae, heavy metal, and funk in language from across the region. Andrew tells us about his music-making, his career as a radio presenter, and explains the stories behind some of the tracks on the band's dynamic debut album, Sing Your Own Song.

"He basically invents the rules of jazz. He shows you 'this is how to play a solo, this is how to sing, this is how to phrase, this is how to tell a story, this is how to swing. Ok, this is jazz. And now I'm going to break all those rules.'" - Ricky Riccardi on Louis Armstrong

Towards the end of the 1960s Louis Armstrong's performances were hit-and-miss. Plagued by health issues and pushing 70, the veteran entertainer was determined to keep playing, singing and touring, despite calls from his doctors to slow down. But in 1968, with a burst of vitality, he performed for BBC TV with hits spanning his remarkable five decades in music. This included What A Wonderful World, a song that had made him a household name just weeks prior. The concert recording of Armstrong's "last great performance" has been rediscovered, and now released as live album Louis In London. Ricky Riccardi is Director of Research Collections at the Louis Armstrong House Museum and joins Andy to talk about the great trumpeter and why we're still talking about him over 50 years after his death.

You can hear the Louis In London album in full on ABC Jazz program Jazztrack Live this Saturday 20 July at 4pm.

Music heard in the program:

Title: A Kiss To Build A Dream OnComposer: Bert Kalmar, Harry Ruby and Oscar Hammerstein IIArtist: Louis ArmstrongAlbum: Louis In London Label: Verve 602465686128

Title: Bare Necessities Composer: Bruce Reitherman and Phil HarrisArtist: Louis ArmstrongAlbum: Louis In London Label: Verve 602465686128

Title: When It's Sleepy Time Down SouthComposer: Clarence Muse, Leon René and Otis RenéArtist: Louis ArmstrongAlbum: Louis In London Label: Verve 602465686128

Title: Gatjumak (Dance Battle), Go To Sleep (The Legend of Ŋamini Baŋ Baŋ), Wata MäwiComposer: Andrew GurruwiwiArtist: Andrew Gurruwiwi BandAlbum: Sing Your Own SongLabel: Gaga Music

Technical production by Simon Branthwaite

The Music Show is made on Gadigal and Gundungurra Country

First Nations listeners are advised that this program contains the names and voices of people who have died.

At the start of NAIDOC Week, The Music Show explores the legacy of the late Ruby Hunter – short in stature, a giant in music, and a mentor and parental figure to so many First Nations musicians in subsequent generations. We’ll hear Ruby from the archives, and catch up with Emily Wurramara and Dan Sultan, both of whom have sung a tribute to Ruby Hunter alongside their fantastic new albums.

Dan Sultan reunites with the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra  to perform 12 & 13 July, before playing Yabaardu in Ceduna SA on 19 July.

Emily Wurramara is performing at Live in the Gardens on 13 November.

Music in this program

Title: Kurongk Boy, Kurongk GirlArtist: Ruby HunterAlbum: Thoughts WithinLabel: Mushroom – MUSH32309.2

Title: Proud, Proud WomenArtist: Ruby HunterAlbum: Thoughts WithinLabel: Mushroom – MUSH32309.2

Title: Midnight BluesArtist: Emily WurramaraComposer: Bed Edgar, Caiti Baker, Emily Blinter (Wurramara), James MangohigAlbum: NARALabel: ABC Music

Title: Lordy LordyArtist:  Emily Wurramara, Tasman KeithComposer: Emily Blinter (Wurramara)Album: NARALabel: ABC Music

Title: It’s OkayArtist:  Ruby HunterAlbum: Feeling GoodLabel: Mushroom – MUSH332672 

Title: True LoversArtist:  Ruby HunterAlbum: Feeling GoodLabel: Mushroom – MUSH332672 

Title: Nobody Knows Artist:  Dan SultanAlbum: BlackbirdLabel: Liberation Music – LMCD0238

Title: Ringing in My Ears Artist:  Dan SultanComposer: Chris Collins, Dan Sultan, Joel QuartermainAlbum: Dan SultanLabel: Liberation Music – LRCD0040

Title: Chance to Lose Control Artist:  Dan SultanComposer: Dan Sultan, Joel QuartermainAlbum: Dan SultanLabel: Liberation Music – LRCD0040

Title: Sister YappaArtist: Ruby HunterRecorded live at WOMADelaide 1995

Technical production by Russell Stapleton

Produced on Gadigal, Wurundjeri Woi-Wurrung and Gundungurra Country

Russian-American conductor Lidiya Yankovskaya comes to Opera Australia to conduct Puccini’s Il trittico, a rare triptych of operas which span tragedy, farce, and religious fervour. Lidiya is at home with the operatic canon but she’s also conducted a swathe of new opera world premieres. She joins Andy to talk about finding the same passion for the music through new and old works.

Three of India's most revered instrumentalists have formed trio Triveni. Tabla maestro Zakir Hussain (who's played with everyone from Herbie Hancock to Béla Fleck) joins Kala Ramnath's singing violin and Jayanthi Kumaresh's Saraswathi veena. The musicians drop by the studio in the midst of a whirlwind Australian tour to talk about their shared language of improvisation and how they seamlessly blend North (Hindustani) and South (Carnatic) Indian musical traditions.

Il trittico is on at the Sydney Opera House until 19 July. 

Triveni perform in Melbourne on Friday 5 July and Sydney on Sunday 7 July.

Music in this program:

Live concert recording: Chowdiah Memorial Hall, Bangalore, India 2022Artist: Zakir Hussain - tabla, Jayanthi Kumaresh - veena, Kala Ramnath - violin

Title: O Mio Babbino Caro (from Gianni Schicchi)Composer: Giacomo PucciniArtist: Victoria De Los Angeles, Orchestra Del Teatro Dell'Opera Di Roma, conducted by Gabriele SantiniAlbum: The Very Best Of Victoria De Los AngelesLabel: EMI Classics 5 75888 2

Title: Now, at the BeginningComposer: Ricky Ian Gordon, libretto Frank BidartArtist: Jennifer Zetlan, Nathan Gunn, Aeolus Quartet, Evan Premo, conducted by Lidiya Yankovskaya Album: Ellen WestLabel: Shiny Bright Things

Title: Forty Days and Forty NightsComposer: Kamala Sankaram, libretto Jerry DyeArtist: Chicago Opera Theater, conducted by Lidiya YankovskayaAlbum: Taking Up SerpentsLabel: Chicago Opera Theater digital release

Live concert recording: Chowdiah Memorial Hall, Bangalore, India 2022Artist: Zakir Hussain - tabla, Jayanthi Kumaresh - veena, Kala Ramnath - violin

Technical production by Russell Stapleton and Richard Girvan

Produced on Gadigal, Wurundjeri Woi-Wurrung and Gundungurra Country

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander listeners are advised that this program contains the names and voices of people who have died.

Neal Peres Da Costa’s most recent recordings include a Mozart piano concerto and a Robert Schumann song cycle, each using a model of piano its composer would have recognised. But as he explains on today’s show, there’s much more to this music than getting the instrument right – there’s also the matter of historical style. Mozart would have expected his soloists to embellish their music and Schumann’s singers would have been more melodramatic than their modern counterparts. Can modern ears adjust to this? 

And... Croeso i Rhaglen Cerddoriaeth! Jenny M Thomas might be best known to Music Show audiences for her band Bush Gothic, but this time she’s back with The Côr of the Matter, a Welsh language choir based in Naarm/Melbourne. Jenny joins Andy to delve into the complex and contradictory darkness and warmth of Cymru/Wales and its culture.

The late Ruby Hunter first performed in public at Bondi Pavilion in 1988, and an array of great artists are now coming together to that same venue to play tribute to her in a concert called Proud, Proud Woman. Emily Wurramara and Dan Sultan are part of it and talk about her legacy. 

Neal Peres Da Costa plays with the Australian Brandenburg Orchestra for a Night in Versailles, 5 – 14 July in Sydney and Melbourne.

The Côr of the Matter performs at Melbourne Welsh Church on 6 July

Bush Gothic performs at Selby Folk Club on 5 July and at Port Lounge 23 August

Music heard in the show:

Title: MyfanwyComposer: Joseph ParryArtist: Rhos Male Voice ChoirAlbum: Music from the Welsh Mines, Songs of Peace & GoodwillLabel: Moochin’ About 

Title: Piano Concerto No. 23 in A major, K488; II. AdagioComposer: Wolfgang Amadeus MozartArtist: Neal Peres Da Costa, Australian Romantic & Classical Orchestra/Rachael BeesleyAlbum: Heavenly MozartLabel: ABC Classics 197190404852

Title: Dichterliebe, Op. 48; No. 1, Im wunderschönen Monat MaiComposer: Robert SchumannArtist: Koen van Stade, Neal Peres Da CostaAlbum: Schumann: DichterliebeLabel: Deux-Elles DXL1193

Title: Concerto for Four Keyboards in A minor (after Vivaldi), BWV1065 - II. LargoComposer: Johann Sebastian BachArtists: Kenneth Gilbert (harpsichord), Lars Ulrik Mortensen (harpsichord), Nicholas Kraemer (harpsichord), The English Concert/Trevor Pinnock (director/harpsichord)Album: JS Bach: The Concertos for 3 and 4 HarpsichordsLabel: DG Archiv 4000412

Title: MyfanwyComposer: Joseph ParryArtist: Jenny M Thomas, The Côr of the MatterCourtesy of Jenny M Thomas

Title: Si hwi hwiComposer: Trad.Artist: Jenny M Thomas, The Côr of the MatterRehearsal recording courtesy of Jenny M Thomas

Title: Proud, Proud WomanArtist: Ruby HunterAlbum: Thoughts WithinLabel: White – MUSH32309.2

Title: It’s OkayArtist: Ruby HunterAlbum: Feeling GoodLabel: Mushroom Records - MUSH332672

Technical production by John Jacobs and Michelle Barry

The Music Show is made on Gadigal and Gundungurra Country

British singer songwriter Grace Petrie has an EP called “There’s No Such Thing As A Protest Singer” – but if there was such a thing she would definitely be one of the preeminent ones. Her musical career started in the early years of the UK Conservative Party’s now 15 years in government, and she’s railed against injustice throughout those years. She’s on The Music Show to talk about hope, activism, and cynicism and to play live in studio.

Unsound is a Polish festival with an adventurous spirit. Co-director Mat Schulz has made Adelaide Unsound's Australian home for the past ten years, and he joins us on The Music Show to talk about the genesis of the festival, the similarities between jazz and grimy electronica, and why he was accused of Satanism.

Unsound Adelaide runs from 19 - 20 July at Dom Polski Centre, Adelaide SA.

Grace Petrie tours Australia from 25 September to 4 October playing Perth, Adelaide, Hobart, Brisbane, Melbourne, Canberra and Sydney. More details here. 

Music heard in the show:

Title: Pandemonium InstituteComposer: Lee GambleArtist: Lee GambleAlbum: Diversions 1994-1996 Label: Independent

Title: King & Country Composer: Grace PetrieArtist: Grace PetriePerformed Live in The Music Show studio

Title: Fixer UpperComposer: Grace PetrieArtist: Grace PetrieAlbum: Build Something BetterLabel: The Robots Needs Home Collective TRNHC013

Title: Black Tie Composer: Grace PetrieArtist: Grace PetriePerformed Live in The Music Show studio

Title: Our Good Deeds Will Lead to a Better Life for the Next GenerationComposer: TraditionalArtist: Yeshi, Bhutan BalladeersAlbum: Your Face Is Like the Moon, Your Eyes Are StarsLabel: Independent

Title: CruisingComposer: Bendik GiskeArtist: Bendik GiskeAlbum: CracksLabel: Smalltown Supersound STS381

Title: Yuangan (Dugong)Composer: Fred Leone, Sam PankhurstArtist: YirindaAlbum: YirindaLabel: Chapter Music CH187LP

Title: Concerto for Four Keyboards in A minor (after Vivaldi), BWV1065 - II. LargoComposer: Johann Sebastian BachArtists: Kenneth Gilbert (harpsichord), Lars Ulrik Mortensen (harpsichord), Nicholas Kraemer (harpsichord), The English Concert/Trevor Pinnock (director/harpsichord)Album: JS Bach: The Concertos for 3 and 4 HarpsichordsLabel: DG Archiv 4000412

Technical production by John Jacobs and Michelle Barry

The Music Show is made on Gadigal and Gundungurra Land

Sixty years ago The Fab Four toured Australia for the first and last time. Greg Armstrong is the co-author of When We Was Fab - Inside The Beatles' Australasian Tour 1964. He takes us behind the scenes of the tour— the promoters who lucked out by signing the band up before the height of their fame, the late inclusion of the Adelaide shows, the band's unprecedented reception in the streets, and how Australia's music scene was left permanently changed when it was all over. 

Our thanks to all of the listeners who got in touch with us about their memories of the 1964 Australian tour. In this episode we hear from Gillian, Maggie, Jane, Paul, Robert, Geoff, Geraldine, Dianne, Pauline and Chris.

Music heard in the show:

Title: It Won't Be LongArtist: The BeatlesComposer: Lennon-McCartneyAlbum: With The BeatlesLabel: Parlophone PMCO 1206

Title: I Want To Hold Your HandArtist: The BeatlesComposer: Lennon-McCartneyAlbum: (Single)Label: Parlophone A8103

Title: MiseryArtist: The BeatlesComposer: Lennon-McCartneyAlbum: Please Please MeLabel: Parlophone PMCO 1202

Title: Roll Over BeethovenArtist: The BeatlesComposer: Chuck BerryAlbum: With The BeatlesLabel: Parlophone PMCO 1206

Title: Can't Buy Me Love (Live in Melbourne 1964)Artist: The BeatlesComposer: Lennon-McCartneyABC Recording

Title: (Let's Have A) PartyArtist: Johnny ChesterComposer: Jessie Mae RobinsonAlbum: Rocker 1961-1966Label: ScreenSound Australia CD/SSA/3C0026

Title: Long Tall SallyArtist: The BeatlesComposer: Enotris Johnson, Robert Blackwell, Richard PennimanAlbum: (Single)Label: Parlophone GEP 8913

Title: She Loves YouArtist: The BeatlesComposer: Lennon-McCartneyAlbum: (Single)Label: Parlophone A8093

Title: LotusArtist: The TwilightsComposer: Terry BrittenAlbum: The Way They PlayedLabel: Raven Records RVCD-364

Title: Twist And Shout (Live in Melbourne 1964)Artist: The BeatlesComposer: Bert Berns, Phil MedleyABC Recording

The Music Show is made on Gadigal and Gundungurra Country.

Technical production by Simon Branthwaite

American composer Caroline Shaw’s latest album, a collaboration with Sō Percussion, is called Rectangles and Circumstance. It’s a collection of ten songs run through with words by Emily Dickinson, Emily Bronte, William Blake and Christina Rossetti, as well as Caroline herself. She joins Andy from her home in the US to talk about her collaborators and her co-poets.

German cellist Nicolas Altstaedt takes the role of guest director, soloist, and conductor in his first tour with the Australian Chamber Orchestra. Nestling Haydn’s jubilant Cello Concerto in C major amongst works by significantly more angular composers like Kurtag, Veress and Xenakis, he joins Andy on The Music Show to map out his versatile and prolific life on the concert platform and beyond.

Music heard in the show: 

Title: Partita for 8 Voices i. AllemandeComposer: Caroline ShawArtist: Roomful of TeethAlbum: Partita for 8 VoicesLabel: New Amsterdam

Title: Sing On, And So, The Parting Glass, and To MusicComposer: Caroline Shaw, Sō PercussionArtist: Caroline Shaw, Sō PercussionAlbum: Rectangles and CircumstanceLabel: Nonesuch

Title: Cello Concerto in C Major; iii. FinaleComposer: Joseph HaydnArtist: Nicolas Altstaedt, Australian Chamber OrchestraCourtesy of the ACO

Title: Atlas; iii. Perpetuum Mobile – Ladon the DragonComposer: Helena WinkelmanArtist: Nicolas Altstaedt, Lockenhaus ArtistsAlbum: CreationLabel: Alpha ALPHA861

Technical production by Simon Branthwaite

The Music Show is made on Gadigal and Gundungurra Land.