Gary McKie

Ceridwen Suiter

‘Shelf Life’ and ‘For a Fine and Dear Friend’ : music for Flute alone.

Shelf Life and For a Fine and Dear Friend are two independent short pieces for Solo Flute composed on separate occasions some years ago. However, as they complement each other, together these short pieces make a notable contribution to the Melbourne Composer’s League Elbow Room Spring Concert. Johanna Selleck, a remarkable Melbourne-based composer and flute-player, has kindly agreed to perform my music in this concert.


Shelf Life was inspired by a poem by Sandra Powley written in 2010.
In this poem Sandra recalls weekly childhood excursions to the local library with her father.
Warm memories of the shared experience are revealed alongside her excited anticipation of
being transported to other worlds by the books yet to be borrowed and read.

For a Fine and Dear Friend was written for a long-time partner who wanted her guests to be the entertainment for her 50th birthday celebration.
I took the opportunity to write this music in respect of some-one who clearly supported and encouraged my passion for participating in music-making, and to follow my long-abiding and continuing interest in understanding the means by which music is so connected with emotion.
Every piece of music I compose and most of my academic work, beyond the initial BMus study I undertook as a result of her enthusiasm, continues to investigate this linkage. Here is yet another example.

Concert Details: Saturday 15 October 2022

St Stephen’s Church

360 Church St, Richmond, Victoria.

Tickets available at the door : $20 full/$15 Concession

Wendy (Ceridwen) Suiter

Progress??

Theatre for the Listening Mind, and the Thoughtful Listener.

Progress?? is a quick piece of narrative Audio Art is made from a selection of the Found Sounds around Whittlesea, Victoria supplied by composer colleague, Gary McKie, during a residency he calls The Whittlesea Sound Project.

Whittlesea, Australia, has been swallowed up by the growing outskirts of Melbourne, Victoria. Gary’s Found Sounds were recorded both in the natural environment, a major shopping shopping centre, and the ordinary daily sounds heard in a typical Aussie suburban backyard.

the project’s creative brief

“The Whittlesea Sound Project is about discovering, or reconnecting to, the diverse sounds around us, as COVID-19 restrictions continue to ease, and we venture back into our communities throughout the City of Whittlesea and beyond.

Consider how being aware of the sounds around you effects your connection to place and ask yourself, “is there anything in my environment that could be changed to improve the quality of sounds and the way we are living?”

This project is supported by the Whittlesea Creative Community Fund.

Progress??