Australian Music Centre | Breaking sound barriers

The works I wrote for the series New Gold Mountain are 'hybrid works'. These are a mixture of live recorded instruments, and sampled sounds. I recorded the strings, percussion, Pipa, Guqin and piano parts in the studio, and performed a number of the elements myself (such as all the dizi, low whistle and flute parts). These elements I performed myself are mostly not notated. These works also include a number of manipulated and sampled sounds, which I have created myself and also not on the scores. These scores are created for music production in a film and TV recording setting, where the interpretation of the phrasing, shape and rhythms in the scores are further enhanced through the recording and production process with the players. This means that any study or analysis of the scores should be done in conjunction with the audio and visuals (film), as the score is only part of the music - Caitlin Yeo.

My approach for scoring New Gold Mountain was to find a sound world that explored the clash of cultures amidst the gold rush in the town of Ballarat in 1857 from a Chinese perspective. The music needed to imbue an off-kilter twist to this revisionist western whilst adding a sense of mystery to the show. I used Chinese instruments such as Dizi, Pipa and Guqin for the western characters, and western colonial instruments such as steel string guitars, low Irish whistles, and fiddles for the Chinese. The other key sound for the music of the series is a gold pan! Shortly after reading the scripts, I realised that there is one unifying drive for all the characters in the show: their search for gold. So, I nervously asked Kylie du Fresne (producer) to bring me back a gold pan from the set to see if there were any sounds that it could bring to the series. As it happened, it became a key element for the percussion in the series, a real gold mine of timbres and tones!

Whilst scoring New Gold Mountain, I discovered a deep personal connection to the story, the characters, their world, and their experiences. Being mixed Australian/Singaporean-Chinese, the process of working on the show was profoundly moving and transformational, as I found myself continuously reflecting on my own experiences as a Asian growing up in Australia. Working on this show taught me more about myself and my heritage, and gave me the permission to embrace and accept the Chinese part of who I am.

To ensure this symphonic orchestral suite was suitable for a standard orchestra, I had to remove all the traditional Chinese instruments, guitars, whistles, accordions, and gold pan from score. To retain the ethnic origins of the work (both eastern and western), I transferred these parts to various sections of the orchestra, and included an electronic keyboard (that triggers sampled sounds) and a larger, active percussion section. This is a fun and bold work for an orchestra to perform as it requires a modern performance approach to imbue it with swagger, grit and drama.

This score has been one of my most successful to date and received the following accolades.

2021 AACTA Award - Best Original Score in Television

2022 APRA AGSC Screen Music Award - Best Music for a Miniseries.

2022 APRA AGSC Screen Music Award - Best Television Theme

I. Main theme -- II. Annie -- III. They're Here -- IV. I'll be back in an hour -- V. Eighteen plus one -- VI. There's nothing here -- VII. Remind me to teach you poker someday.