The Mavericks is the third and final episode of Rock and the New, a series tracing the experimental in rock from the '60s and '70s. Producer Cathy Peters begins with the American musical mavericks - the echoes of outsider composer Harry Partch in the rock voices of Tom Waits and Bob Dylan, the impact of the Velvet Underground and the influence of Edgar Varese and Gyorgy Ligeti on the compositions of Frank Zappa - and also pursues the ties between rock and the minimalists, including Steve Reich's social commentary through tape manipulations and David Bowie's connections with Brian Eno and Philip Glass.

The program also touches on the impact experimental movements in rock had on developments in film music, the way the repetitions of minimalism were embraced by the remix and dance music culture, and how post-rock bands such as Radiohead, Sigur Ros and Muse are carrying forward the spirit of experimentation.

The Mavericks features expert commentary from classical pianist Michael Kieran Harvey, composer and bassist Dr Robert Davidson, music writer Alex Ross and prog rock aficionados and musicians Stephen Rae and Kris Gale, as well as remarks from Brian Eno and Dweezil Zappa.

Written and narrated by Cathy Peters 
Produced by Cathy Peters and Mark Don 
Sound engineer Mark Don

Rock and the New  - Program  3 - The Mavericks

When John Coltrane wrote 'Alabama' in 1963, his music decried the white supremacist terror attack in Alabama that year and his saxophone solo echoed the patterns of Martin Luther's funeral oration. This piece was but one of many jazz compositions that were expressions of the politics of the day and, in this program, musicologist Ingrid Monson discusses how jazz has always been linked to thea civil rights struggle in the USA and traces how some of the great jazz musicians of the 20th century contributed to this struggle.
Produced and presented for ABC RN in by Cathy Peters with Russell Stapleton, co-producer and sound engineer.

Music and Insurrection  - Jazz Freedom and Civil Rights

Radiophonic documentary based on the experiences of Louis Christopides who resisted the draft and refused to register to be conscripted to fight in the Vietnam War in 1970s. 

To be a conscientious objector in Australia during the Vietnam War was to face imprisonment and unemployment. This feature traces the experiences of of Louis whose life was changed radically when he made his decision not to register as a youth of 18 years old, at a time when he was unable to vote but asked to kill. 
The program highlights his personal testimony and uses archival recordings of the times evoking a sense of the strong anti-war movement but also the individual confusion and isolation faced by those who put themselves directly at odds with the system.
Louis was jailed for this refusal. He was interviewed by Cathy Peters in 2001 for this feature which was broadcast on ABC FM in the Listening Room in July 2002. Engineer - Roi Huberman. 
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