Melbourne International Arts Festival’s 2018 contemporary music program covers off a world of musical greatness across only a handful of shows. With post-punk legends, the team behind the stunning soundtrack for The Revenant and more confirmed for this October’s program, here are five reasons Melbourne International Arts Festival is a must-attend event this year.
The The
UK post-punk royalty The The will perform two very special shows as part of Melbourne International Arts Festival, marking their first time in the country in almost 30 years.
The The vocalist Matt Johnson said he wanted to “strip down many of the songs and actually reduce the sonic palette” during the band’s 2018 shows.
“We won’t be using any samplers, click-tracks, sequencers or synthesisers,” he said. “It’s just five musicians, performing reinterpretations of my back catalogue."
When & Where: 4 & 5 Oct, Arts Centre Melbourne, State Theatre
Ana Moura
Internationally renowned Portuguese performer Ana Moura will make her way to Australia with a full band after collaborating with the likes of Prince, The Rolling Stones and more. The artist has won a dedicated following through her powerful and unique Fado voice, which has been described as “rich with verdant emption”.
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“Ana Moura is one the greatest Fado singers alive,” Melbourne International Arts Festival Artistic Director Jonathan Holloway said. “She has transformed Fado and brought to it a rock aesthetic, bringing it to a modern-day audience.”
When & where: 7 Oct, Melbourne Recital Centre, Elisabeth Murdoch Hall
16 Lovers Lane
Original members of iconic Aussie outfit The Go-Betweens will join forces with special guests Paul & Dan Kelly, Romy Vager, Laura Jean and Jen Cloher for an epic 30th anniversary celebration of 16 Lovers Lane in an exclusive, one-off show.
“The great thing about coming to Australia from Europe is you actually have to learn everything there is to know about Australiana and 16 Lovers Lane was just one of those defining moments in my education,” Holloway said.
“To hear it recreated by original Go-Betweens members and some of Melbourne’s greatest musicians of today will be something you won’t want to miss.”
You can read up on the iconic album here and check out our review of the Brisbane 16 Lovers Lane event here.
When & Where: 6 Oct, Arts Centre Melbourne, State Theatre
Nils Frahm
Celebrated Berlin composer and pianist Nils Frahm returns to Australia this October off the back of his new record, All Melody. Upon the release of All Melody, The Music said the record “demonstrates that Frahm still comfortably resides at the centre of his own perfect sonic world, taking his time to explore its corners and (re)define its edges”.
“Nils Frahm is an artist who defies all categorisation, equally as comfortable filling a recital hall as a dancefloor,” Holloway said. “We are thrilled to have him perform as part of our 2018 program, and anyone who has caught Frahm live knows that this will be a wall-shaking, roof-raising affair.”
When & Where: 12 & 13 Oct, Arts Centre Melbourne, Hamer Hall
Alva Noto & Ryuichi Sakamoto
Two musical geniuses come together for a captivating night of thought-provoking and experimental music.
A synth-pop pioneer, Ryuichi Sakamoto has been dubbed an experimental minimalist and lauded film composer, working alongside Brian Wilson, Iggy Pop and more throughout his career. Teaming up with German glitch maestro Alva Noto, they produced the acclaimed soundtrack to The Revenant, before releasing live improvised album Glass earlier this year.
“You can take any era of Sakamoto and it changed anything from pop music to film soundtracks to classical music to chamber music,” Holloway said. “He is Japan’s master of both classical music and electronica. To bring Sakamoto alongside Alva Noto, back to Melbourne for the Festival is just thrilling.”
When & where: 19 Oct, Arts Centre Melbourne, Hamer Hall
Head over to the Melbourne International Arts Festival for all the details.
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