Claire Edwardes is playing at Tuggeranong Arts Centre on Saturday 16 August. Get your tickets now. Photo: Claire Edwardes.
Showcasing her talents on the marimba and vibraphone, Australia’s sorceress of percussion Claire Edwardes OAM will inspire, touch and amaze you with her program of solo percussion music ranging from Bach to important Australian composers of our time.
The program features two works written for Claire’s daughters by the iconic Elena Kats-Chernin alongside the classic Marimba Dances by another Aussie icon, Ross Edwards, alongside works written in close collaboration with Claire by Ella Macens and Kate Moore.
Ella’s work reflects on the pre-pandemic east coast bushfires in a touching chorale-like work for vibraphone and the work by Dutch based Australian composer Kate Moore whirls and spins to create Joyful Melodies.
With a bit of waterphone thrown in for good measure (come and along to experience this unusual instrument up close) this unique concert by one of our countries most esteemed and in demand solo performers, promises to be an unforgettable musical experience.
“Edwardes colours everything she plays with exuberance, intelligence and sensitivity and offers us here a great percussion primer.” Limelight Magazine
About the Concert
World renowned percussionist Claire Edwards told us why she loves performing on marimba. “Despite the fact that it is hands down the most difficult percussion instrument to play well, I adore playing the marimba! My favourite thing in the world is introducing audiences to this unique and exquisite instrument which has its origins in the African balafon, through new music that has been written for me over my, now extensive, career. The marimba is both challenging to play accurately (because of the sheer distance the sticks need to travel to hit the notes) but also expressively, because we can’t play long notes, one needs to be very creative to play effective phrases, melodies and to literally make the instrument ‘sing.’“
Claire spoke about the emotion captured in the Falling Embers piece, written by Ella Macens in memory of the 2019/2020 NSW bushfires. This is one of the pieces she will perform in the concert. “Every time I perform it I well up (as do much of the audience) remembering how challenging that time was for our community. Ella’s piece really captures a sort of reflective almost other worldly quality of that time – it’s like we are looking down on the horror from above and trying to calm everyone through music. It’s a very intense experience performing it but it is also meaningful playing something that has such a deep impact on audiences. This is why performing living new music that is relevant and inspired by events of our lifetime is so important!“
Repertoire
- J.S. Bach – O Sacred Head, Sore Wounded 2’30 marimba solo
- J.S. Bach – Dances from Lute Suite in E minor (Prelude, Allemande, Courante) 7’ marimba solo
- Alice Chance – Mirroring 5′ vibraphone solo
- Ross Edwards – Marimba Dances 9’30 marimba solo
- Ella Macens – Falling Embers 7′ vibraphone solo
- Elena Kats-Chernin – Violet’s Etude 3’30 marimba solo
- Elena Kats-Chernin – Poppy’s Polka 3’ vibraphone solo
- Kate Moore – Spel 10′ vibraphone solo
- Matthew Hindson – Flash 5’ marimba solo
About the Artist
Claire Edwardes OAM is Australia’s ‘sorceress of percussion’ (City News, Canberra) and the only Australian to win the ‘APRA Art Music Luminary Award’ four times.
A charismatic percussion virtuosi, Claire leaps between her role as Ensemble Offspring’s Artistic Director (Australia’s leading new music ensemble), solo recitals and concerto performances with all of the Australian symphony orchestras including recent premieres of works by Anne Cawrse, Natalie Williams and Iain Grandage.
In 2022 Claire was awarded the Medal of the Order of Australia for her indelible contribution to Australian music and in 2023 she was the recipient of the Australian Women in Music Award for Creative Leadership.
Recently described in Limelight as a ‘unique treasure of Australia’s musical community’ and in The Age as ‘an invigorating musical life force’, Claire has hosted Play School, been an ARIA Award finalist twice and has performed as a soloist all over the world – from Vancouver to Amsterdam, the Gold Coast to Malta, and Huddersfield to Alice Springs.
Widely known for her genre-spanning solo concerts, plus commissioning and premiering hundreds of new works for marimba, vibraphone, drums and more unusual instruments such as the waterphone, she passionately advocates for gender equity and diversity in all that she undertakes. As a true trailblazer Claire breaks down barriers between art music and audiences with her famous on-stage infectious enthusiasm for bringing new music to new audiences.
The Details
What: Australia’s sorceress of percussion Claire Edwardes in concert at Tuggeranong Arts Centre
When: Saturday 16 August from 1:30 pm to 2:30 pm
Where: Tuggeranong Arts Centre
Cost: $38 / $32. Buy tickets.
