AVANT GARDENS: SONGBIRDS
Songbirds returns to Sydney by popular demand – a 30th birthday treat for our first musical garden party of 2025. Our composers have woken up with birds, hung out with them on their balconies, and documented their songs. Their scintillating and playful music captures virtuosic avian displays, Indigenous perspectives and the sounds of the bush. Nature comes to you as we literally riff with the birds.
DETAILS
Saturday 8 March 5pm, GlebeSunday 9 March 5pm, Kurraba Point
PROGRAM
FIONA LOADER Lorikeet Corroboree (2015)
BRENDA GIFFORD Mungala (Clouds) (2018)
NARDI SIMPSON Of Stars and Birds (2020)
ROBERT DAVIDSON Bird Riffs: Kookaburra Riff, Raven Riff (2024)
CAITLIN YEO A Tawny Tale (2024)*
NICK RUSSONIELLO Dawn Searching (2014)
HOLLIS TAYLOR & JON ROSE N’Dhala Gorge 2014 @ Ross River (2022)
GERARD BROPHY Beautiful Birds: Flamingos, Hummingbirds (2019)
ROBERT DAVIDSON Bird Riffs: Magpie Riff (2024)
* World Premiere & Commissioned by the Silo Collective
PERFORMERS
Claire Edwardes (Artistic Director, percussion)
Lamorna Nightingale (flutes)
Jason Noble (clarinets)
DESCRIPTION
Beguiling audiences since 2019, Songbirds has become an Ensemble Offspring crowd-favourite. Ever since, we have toured Songbirds around Australia and the world, and our home crowd have been begging us to bring it into their gardens. Now Songbirds returns as a 30th birthday treat for our first musical garden party of 2025.
In an intimate, salon setting, Nature comes to you, as a trio of flute, clarinet and percussion evokes virtuosic avian displays and the weird and wonderful sounds of the Australian bush. The musical guest list includes the pied butcherbird, magpies, a laughing kookaburra, a frenzied flock of rainbow lorikeets, even a nightingale… Everything you’ll hear was written especially for Ensemble Offspring by composers who’ve woken up with ‘Nature’s first musicians’, hung out with them on their balconies and documented their songs. Brenda Gifford and Nardi Simpson bring Indigenous perspective, turning eyes and ears to the sky. The results are musical conversations – scintillating and playful – as we literally riff with the birds.
What can you expect from an Avant Gardens concert experience?
These social salon concerts take place in the lovely private homes of generous Ensemble Offspring supporters, so we only share the exact address with concert-goers the week of the event in our pre-concert information email. When you arrive you will be warmly welcomed by the Ensemble Offspring team. Throughout the concert you’ll learn more about the music as the musicians and composers share stories and background on the works. After the concert, we invite you to join the musicians, composers and our wonderful hosts for a chat, a glass or two of Rowlee Wines Cuveé and a selection of delectables.
“Ensemble Offspring “joined the contrapuntal web, matching the avian virtuosity with their own”
“sonic and textural delights abound throughout Songbirds”
“Ensemble Offspring “capture the calls and songs of Australia’s birds and create something new: familiar, yes, but unique and engaging and exciting too”
DOWNLOAD THE PROGRAM
Accessibility Information
The Avant Gardens concerts take place in the private homes of some of Ensemble Offspring’s generous supporters. Some homes may have steps, limiting wheelchair access, but ambulant or mobility-restricted attendees can enter with extra time and assistance. If you have accessibility requirements, please reach out to the friendly Ensemble Offspring team by emailing admin@ensembleoffspring.com.
