News of a fascinating new project from Alice Giles! Alice has been awarded an Australian Antarctic Division Arts Fellowship to travel on the Aurora ship to the Mawson Base, Antarctica, in February and March, 2011.
Camac are sponsoring on the logistical side - helping finance the shipping of harps and equipment to and from Hobart - and are also contributing towards the cost of a new work from Australian composer Martin Wesley-Smith.
Alice will be travelling with her blue harp, plus a lever harp from the Tasmanian harp maker Andrew Thom. She writes: "I will be making a recording of performance/s at the base during the 8 day stop at the base, record sounds of the (infamously strong) winds through the harp strings, and conduct a continuous blog about the trip involving interaction with composers whose works I will perform, and with school children (of all levels) who will be encouraged to follow the voyage and ask questions. The blog will obviously also be open for harpists and people interested in the Antarctic all over the world."
Alice's blog already contains extensive information about the project, the music that will be performed, and educational links about Antarctica.
It will also be a good test of how sturdy our instruments are!
"I have no idea how the harp will stand up to the temperatures. The recording equipment is also very sensitive to cold temperatures. On the ship we will have the crate in an area that is meant to be above 0, and inside the base it will be warm. I can't be sure what will happen between ship and base, but it is a risk I have to take for the extraordinary nature of the opportunity. I will use the Thom lever harp, which is also blue, and uses composite materials including aluminium and leather as well as wood, for anything I might attempt outside, and for use during the long sea voyage when I won't have access to the harp or equipment in the crate.
My grandfather Dr Cecil T. Madigan was a member of the first Australian Antarctic Expedition, and 2011 marks the centenary of the start of that voyage. I will perform a piece that uses references to his diaries, as well as other pieces written for the occasion, some pieces that would have been listened to on the original expedition, and possibly other pieces from my blue harp repertoire. As far as I can trace, this will be the first visit to the Antarctic by a professional musician for the purposes of performance (as distinct from composers)."
Recordings of Alice's musical journey will be replayed, along with further creative musical and audio-visual additions at the 24-26 June 2011 “Antarctica Music Events” weekend at the ANU School of Music. This exciting project will take place before the “Antarctica - Music, Sound and Cultural Connections” Conference to be hosted by the ANU School of Music 27 – 29 June.
Alice's blog is interactive, allowing you to ask her questions about the history of the Australasian Expedition, the project's music, or the great adventure that it is. We'll be following her journey avidly! Watch this space.
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