Australian Music Centre | Breaking sound barriers

Pianos played with golf balls and stubbie beer bottles, a collage of Messaien's Australian birdcalls, and a musical memorium to Peter Sculthorpe feature in the Piano Mill 2017.

In Soundscape/Landscape II Michael Hannan creates incredibly vivid sound textures using a variety of extended techniques. In this memorium to his longtime collaborator Peter Sculthorpe, 16 pianists produce stochastic rhythmic strata and menacing noise drones by plucking, strumming, striking, rubbing and scraping the pianos with a collection of implements including stubbie beer bottles, percussion mallets, and golf balls.

Colin Noble's extensive research into the music of Olivier Messaien informs Messaien's birds. His materials consist of five Australian birdcalls, once collected by Messaien, and incorporated into his epic "Canyon to the stars": the Golden Whistler, Superb Lyrebird, Prince Albert Lyrebird, Magpie, and Grey-cheeked Thrush. In Messaien's birds Noble returns them to their natural habitat in the Australian bush. His exquisitely prepared score is presented in the shape of Messaien's signature.

The Piano Mill is a steampunk tower in the forest of New South Wales purpose built to house 16 vintage upright pianos. Created by architect Bruce Wolfe, the structure is a building and fantastical musical instrument all in one. The Piano Mill has been acknowledged with a 2018 World Architecture Award (Culture - Completed Buildings) and a 2017 AMC APRA Art Music Award (Excellence in Experimental Music).