The 'Frida Kahlo Portraits' was premiered by the Australian String Quartet at the National Composers Forum (Adelaide) in 2010. The work is comprised of 5 miniatures, each based on a self-portrait by Mexican surrealist painter Frida Kahlo. The collection musically emulates the forlorn autobiographical themes that Kahlo explores throughout her artistic oeuvre. 

'Frida Kahlo Portraits' for String Quartet (2010)

Mark Holdsworth [BMus, BA (Hons), MMus] is an Australian composer and researcher currently based in Perth, Western Australia. Holdsworth is a graduate of the University of Western Australia's Conservatorium of Music; he received first class honours for his Bachelor of Arts (2015) and was awarded the coveted Rupert Thackray Prize for Music Education,  he was also the recipient of a full Australian Postgraduate Award for his Master of Music (2018). Holdsworth studied primarily under renowned Australian composers James Ledger and Dr. Christopher Tonkin.

Holdsworth's current projects include four new commissions for the Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra as part of the 2018-19 Australian Composers School, and 2 new commissions for the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra as part of Holdsworth's appointment as the MSO Young Composer in Residence for 2019.

... Holdsworth's works have been premiered by some of Australia's most prestigious musicians. In 2010, he was selected for the National Composers Forum (Adelaide) where he received tutelage under composer Carl Vine. The event culminated in the premiere of his Frida Kahlo Portraits by the Australian String Quartet. In 2014, he was selected for the West Australian Symphony Orchestra's Young & Emerging Artists: Composition Project, culminating in the premiere of his Chamber Symphony: A Broken Vow (further information and podcasts may be accessed through the official ABC and Australian Music Centre websites). Holdsworth was subsequently commissioned by Ted Snell and the Lawrence Wilson Art Gallery to compose Primrose for the 2014 Momento Mori Exhibition. In 2015, Holdsworth was selected to attend the Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra's Composer's School culminating in a performance of Odyssey, Holdsworth's symphonic overture, for which he was awarded the Dorothy Ellen Ransom Prize in the previous year. His relationship with the TSO has since led to the collaborative education project Songbook. Holdsworth has also worked on various film projects including the FTI WA short film Outline directed by Cody Cameron-Brown, which premiered at the Festival de Cannes Short Film Corner in 2016. The short was nominated for 5 Western Australian Screen Awards including Best Original Music. In 2016, he was commissioned by Andrew Foote and the School of Music at the University of Western Australia to compose Komm Du a work for solo soprano, mixed choir and wind symphony. Komm Du was premiered by Gemma McNamee, the UWA Symphony Chorus and Wind Orchestra. Holdsworth was accepted into the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland's 2016 Composition Summer School where he received tutelage under Sir James MacMillan, Gordon McPherson, Oliver Searle, Rory Boyle and David Fennessey. His work for sextet, The Ashes of Time was performed and recorded by the RCS's ensemble in residence, Musiclab. Following his involvement at the RCS, cellist Krista Low gave the world premiere of Holdsworth's latest solo cello work The Crucible at Academie Voix Nouvelles, Royaumont Abbey, north of Paris, France. In 2017, Holdsworth was among four composers selected nationwide to attend the Australian Youth Orchestra's National Music Camp where his second chamber symphony, A Fool's Prayer, was premiered by an ensemble comprising tutors of the AYO NMC. Holdsworth was subsequently commissioned by the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra to compose a new work for the 2017 Cybec Composition Program. L'appel du vide was premiered by a subset of the MSO in February 2018. Holdsworth was consequently appointed the MSO Cybec Young Composer in Residence for 2019. Holdsworth has also been chosen to return to the Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra's Composer's School for their new two-year reformatted program involving the commission of four new works across 2018-19.

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.