Elder Conservatorium's Mad March

The Elder Conservatorium of Music's students and staff played an enormous role in this year’s Mad March, through performances at the iconic events Adelaide Festival, Adelaide Fringe, and WOMADelaide.

Head of Jazz Mark Ferguson was Musical Director/pianist/arranger/backing vocalist for 'Love on the Left Bank', winner of an Adelaide Fringe Weekly for Cabaret. Mark was also one of the featured pianists for ‘House of Blues’ at The Gov, and songwriter for 'You are a Doughnut' at Gluttony, which won the ‘Science at the Fringe’ award.

Classical Performance staff Konstantin Shamray, Amanda Grigg, Steve King and the Australian String Quartet featured as part of the Adelaide Festival’s acclaimed Chamber Landscapes program at UKARIA over the long weekend, with Konstantin described by The Advertiser of giving a ‘commanding performance of Charles Ives' titanic, volcanic and altogether epic Piano Sonata.’ Earlier in the week, the ASQ appeared as part of the sold-out World Premiere of Ngapa William Cooper at Adelaide Festival.

Head of Classical Performance Elizabeth Layton was concertmaster of the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra for the Adelaide Festival’s Requiem and Fantastical Journeys, alongside numerous other members of our sessional staff.

Current CASM students Elisha Umuhuri and Jontae Lawrie (Dem Mob) performed at WOMADelaide on March 11. CASM Alumni Electric Fields composed the Electric Skies drone performance for the Adelaide Fringe.  As part of these performances Nathan May performed solo before and after the drone show to very large audiences.

Ricardo Da Silva (Pop graduate), Oscar Ellery (Sonic Arts student), Eddie Hannemann (Sonic Art graduate), Hannah Yates (Pop graduate/M.Phil candidate)  performed with their band Sons of Zöku at WOMADelaide. Alex Flood, percussionist and Jazz graduate also gave a solo performance at WOMADelaide.

Classical guitar graduates Caleb Lavery-Brook, Renae Attenborough, Dylan Boller, Emanuel Auciello together with current students James Rawley and Megan Robson were praised for their sold-out performance at the Fringe on Hi Fi Way: ‘For the second year, and second performance of the year, five of the finest graduates from the esteemed Elder Conservatorium of Music treated a packed house to a sensational feast of classical guitar concert last Saturday.’

Jazz students Danica Lammertsma and Millie Currie performed ‘Love, ELLA - Love, Danica & Millie’ at The Jade for the Fringe; Tiffany Gaze performed ‘Jazz Can Happen to You’ at Ayers House, and Leticia Lee and former student Ben Waller performed ‘A Swing Through Time with Frank and Ella’.

Our Music Theatre students were a dynamic and award-winning presence at the Fringe, including Mim Sarre, Weekly Award Winner for ‘Opinionated’; Gregory Mitchell, Weekly Award Winner for ‘Cocktail Creative’; Phoebe Surman in ‘Out of the Toybox’; Mat Monti, Sally Harrop and Sophie Tzioumis in ‘Musical Mania’; Dhuruva Padmanabhan in ‘Men Who Dance’; and Ava-Rose Askew in ‘Bimbo’.

Words from Professor Anna Goldsworthy, Director of the Elder Conservatorium of Music.