This month we decided to program a playlist theme we'd been thinking about for a while. Long Waves gives the listener a chance to savour some of the broader, single-movement works that composers have put forward to Making Waves.  We really enjoy how this set of works visit contemplative or evocative themes, some via solo instrument, others for ensemble, with or without voice.  With thanks to Making Waves Intern, Angus Baxter, for his thoughtful curatorial input on the playlist.

Long Waves - August 2016

'One Word Full of Meaning' is a composition for six voices and a percussionist composed for the Sydney based Song Company in 2007. It is a musical setting of a number of Theravada Buddhist texts in the Pali language used for daily chanting by the monks- the texts focus on themes of transience of life and beauty, reflections of death, impermanence etc. and also includes the beautiful metta sutta ('may all beings be well and happy ....').

One Word Full of Meaning

Performed by Michael Kieran Harvey on the Stuart and Sons piano at the Conservatorium of Music November 19, 2015. Recorded by ABC Classic FM. This piece won the 2014 University of Newcastle Jean Bogan Prize

Piano Sonata No.2 (A Universal History Of Infamy)


Springtime Dances, Winter Weeps


When confronted with the need for more music to fill a rapidly approaching concert program, I contacted flutist Brijette Tubb to see if she would be willing to learn something on short notice. She very kindly agreed - and I very frantically got to composing, as the music had not yet been written.

Four days later 'Springtime Dance, Winter Weeps' was affixed with a double bar line and sent to Brijette for her appraisal. Along with the music I sent her a profuse apology about the difficulty of the music, as much of my music ends up far more virtuosic in nature than I intend when starting out - and this piece was no exception.

To my great delight, excitement and amazement she was completely and utterly undeterred. The performance, just two weeks later, was a tremendous success.
 Springtime Dances, Winter Weeps is a work of contracts with two starkly different musical feels; it captures the bleakness of winter and the feverish play of spring. It is a virtuosic work that is a great contribution to the flute’s solo repertoire, and one which can be at home in a wide variety of concert programs.

Performed by Brijette Tubb (Flute)
Recorded by Chris Healey

Springtime Dances, Winter Weeps

For large chamber ensemble, NJO conducted by Hans Leenders.

Perpetual Inertia

Making Waves is a monthly series of curated playlists streaming one hour of quality, new composed music.  Founded in 2015, Making Waves shines a spotlight on the music of Australian composers. Fresh playlists are released on the first day of each month and older playlists are made available all year round via our archives; perfect for those with just a few minutes to explore one track or for hours perusing a myriad of diverse sound-worlds.


The project offers wider exposure to emerging composers, their music and the talented performers who champion it. We also provide an easy-to-access platform for listeners to sit back and enjoy a curated hour of exciting new music or explore our living composers more actively.  The playlist themes (and media through which they’re shared eg. Soundcloud, YouTube) evolve each month depending on the content received directly from our talented composers.

At its core Making Waves is a curated listening space. In 2016 we branched into producing our own content through a special project, Making Conversation, thanks to a successful crowdfunding campaign. Making Conversation: Australian Composers Project is a series of podcasts and vodcasts presenting the human side of living Australian composers, released on popular audiovisual and social platforms mid-2017.
Composers Lisa Cheney (Melbourne) and Peggy Polias (Sydney) are curating this project.

 Listeners, we encourage you to explore current and past playlists and discover more about our featured composers. 

Composers, we encourage you to send us links to your streamable audio via our website. Visit: www.makingwavesnewmusic.com for more information.

Long Waves - August 2016

Making Waves New Music