Presented by Tura New Music and PICA as part of Tura New Music’s 2015 Scale Variable Series.
Gesture is a collection of works for two percussionists that examine physicality and gesture in the context of contemporary percussion music. A diverse and surprising array of sounds ranging from drums and gongs to AM radios and sheets of metal and paper is explored using movement inspired by conducting patterns, drawing methods and spatialised instrumentation. Gesture will include premieres of three new works composed for The Sound Collectors by Australian composers Rob Davidson, Cat Hope and Lindsay Vickery, alongside works by Holly Harrison, Thierry de Mey and Mark Applebaum.
The Sound Collectors are Louise Devenish (WA) and Leah Scholes (VIC). Formed in 2012 to create a platform to explore a shared interest in percussion theatre, The Sound Collectors delight in music that explores the use of text, gesture and human physicality with percussion. These explorations have resulted in a collaboration with Melbourne fashion designer New Model Beauty Queen, residencies at Perth Institute of Contemporary Arts and commissions from international composers including Mark Applebaum, Cat Hope, Lachlan Skipworth, Michael Askill, Elise Reitze and Robert Davidson. The Sound Collectors are champions of Australian music, and every performance features new works by local colleagues.
Gesture is the only Sound Collectors performance in Perth this year.