New Music skirmishes
Andrew Kettle
Small Black Box is an upcoming monthly experimental music and sound art performance space at Metro Arts, Brisbane, set up to foster a community of both artists and audience.
With access to all areas of the Metro Arts building, artists have a variety of spaces to propose performances or installations, from traditional theatre or studio settings to carriageways, stairwells and foyers. The opportunity for local and interstate artists to create experimental music performances and sound art installations is the inspiration for Small Black Box in which artists are freed to concentrate on their work and have it scheduled into a rapidly evolving year-long program to attract Brisbane audiences. The event aims to develop, refine and widen the tastes of the audience.
With support from ticket sales and volunteers, the budget is modest; an emphasis will be on abducting interstate artists for performances in a cultural exchange of ideas with local talent. Promotion is approached innovatively by replacing flyers and posters with emails and newsgroups (aus_noise-subscribe@yahoogroups.com), enhancing the word of mouth support that drives the awareness of new music performances in Brisbane.
Small Black Box as a performance space will be a pivotal location for new music in Brisbane. Associated with the events will be a regular stall of recorded works by artists.
First up is a dark ambient electroacoustic night featuring endoPHONIC in May. endoPHONIC is Greg Jenkins and Richard Wilding. Both are graduates of the Queensland Conservatorium of Music and have worked together on various film soundtracks and as part of the composers collective Trojan Theatre. For this performance they will be joined by classical cellist Jane Elliott.The rest of the year is building at an exciting pace with a melee of interstate and local talent.
Small Black Box, Metro Arts, 109 Edward St, Brisbane, commences May 27, $7, audience limit: 50
RealTime issue #42 April-May 2001 pg. 38
