On Arts Wednesday 7 August 2019, Sylvia's guest was Dr Stephen Gapps, curator at the Australian National Maritime Museum, talking about the latest exhibition Bligh: Hero or Villain. You probably know most about the man from either primary school history or Hollywood, where Bligh is always the villain, undone by the loveable rogue, Fletcher Christian. The exhibition challenges this view and asks the visitor to do the same.

During the course of July/August 2019, Sylvia's guest was Dr Jacqueline Nguyen, ornithologist and palaeontologist at the Australian Museum. In a six-part series, entitles Birds and Bones, Jacqueline took us through a unique view of birds, via fossil bones. The six episodes are:

What does an ornithologist do?

Australia: the birth place of song birds

Bristlebirds

What fossils can tell us about Australia's birds

Mihirungs: Demon Ducks of Doom

Bird names

On Arts Wednesday, Sylvia's guest was Elise Edmonds, Senior Curator at the State Library of NSW, talking about Dead Central. The old Devonshire Cemetery was pulled down to make way for Central Railway in 1901 and the exhibition traces the history of the cemetery, established by Governor Macquarie to the building of the new station. In many ways, this story mirrors the development of the small convict settlement at Sydney Cove to the thriving metropolis it would become.

On Arts Wednesday 10 July 2019, Sylvia's guest was philosopher Dr Simon Longstaff, Director of the Ethics Centre. In the light of recent headline news - Israel Folau, John Setka, AFP raids on journalists - what is free speech in Australia and what should it be in a fair society?

On Arts Wednesday 19 June 2019, Sylvia's guest was curator, Nicholas Chapman, from the Art Gallery of NSW talking about The Essential Duchamp. This exhibition, comprising more than 100 works from the  Philadelphia Art Museum, is a comprehensive review of the work of this undoubtedly brilliant but enigmatic man and artist. If you only know his name through Fountain, the urinal he submitted for exhibition, be surprised at how much more there is to Marcel Duchamp!

On Arts Wednesday 12 June 2019, Sylvia played an interview she recorded with curator, Tansy Curtin, in the Bendigo Art Gallery about its truly monumental exhibition, Tudors to Windsors. It showcases not only the changing nature of portraiture, but the changing nature of beauty, might and power.

Sylvia Rosenblum, Presenter of Arts Wednesday, introduces her Podcast Channel Words on Wednesday that will feature all the conversations and interviews from her program. Subscribe to Words on Wednesday to keep up to date!   [...]

Read More... from Words on Wednesday – Preview

On 15 June 1215, King John signed Magna Carta at Runnymede and it continues to be regarded as a cornerstone of democracy. But is it really? What is it, who wrote it, why and what does it really say? Sylvia recorded this interview with historian and lawyer, Geoff Holland, back in 2015, to commemorate the [...]

Read More... from Magna Carta 15 June 1215

Part science, part philosophy, part theology: Geraint poses the question: how does our universe allow us to be? Our existence on this universe is extraordinarily precarious and we learn alternate explanations of why.

In this episode, Andy contextualises the Baroque period for us and then explains how music moves from the polyphony of the Renaissance to the monody of the Baroque. We now have a melody and this requires changes to the instruments of the day. We also see the change from modes to the major and minor scales we Know today.