Earth, leaves, uglies

My last MOSSO performance, given a need for a break before a choral recording that evening.  Sadly I missed two final MOSSO concerts and they looking interesting but there are limits.  This was Ensemble Contrechamps performing four works by indigenous composers against the biggest TV screen of decent resolution that I've seen.  Compositions by Nardi Simpson, Nicole Smede, Aaron Wyatt and Davin Ojala touched on deeply unpleasant through to more positive portrayals of people in the land.  Much sounded with sparse movements as of earth and leaves, one had supremely ugly quotes from known persons in recent history, another moved with a lovely effective bass line, so considerable diversity from four composers.  All moved with background visuals, some more obviously aligned.  One spot had me stunned with a sax solo that displayed jazz chops, but mostly sax played tones; similarly one had a lovely moving bass part, and again mostly played more abstract parts.    

Ensemble Contrechamps comprised Thierry Debons (percussion), Pierre-Stephane Meuge (sax), Maximilian Haft (violin), Hans Egidi (viola), Martina Brodbeck (cello), Noelle Reymond Ruegg (bass), Susanna Peters (flute), Laurent Bruttin (clarinet) and Antoine Francoise (keyboard).  They performed music of Nardi Simpson, Nicole Smede, Aaron Wyatt and Davin Ojala at NFSA for MOSSO during CIMF2026.

Portraits

Between the two short sets of Lyrebird brass was a performance in the ARC Cinema of music of Fiona Hill, CIMF2026 composer-in-residence.  Why portraits?  Because the music accompanied visuals including a stunning dance work featuring ~14 performers from the Sydney Dance Company PPY (Pre-Professional Year), a sweeping drone footage of cliffs, seas, beaches, nature, and a final (live?) visual work with solo sax accompaniment.  Musicians included several of the several visiting featured groups and some local musicians making up the rank, in smaller and larger ensembles and that solo sax, as I remember all pitches, baritone, tenor, alto, soprano.

Music of Fiona Hill was performed by Ensemble Contrechamps and Australian String Quartet with Joshua Hyde (solo sax), Tim Wickham (violin), Samuel Payne (cello), Kyle Ramsey-Daniel (bass), Eugene Ughetti (percussion) and Fausto Brusamolino (artist).  The performed works were Circumstance, Sunyata and UnderOnBelow.  They performed in the ARC Cinema at NFSA for MOSSO during CIMF2026.

Bells of brass

Then music in the courtyard with Lyrebird Brass playing from the balcony above.  Again not optimal for recording or viewing and the chatter was constant but the sound was glorious - rounded, billowing, insistent - and the music was more melodic with lovely harmonies that sat so fat and satisfyingly.  They played six pieces over two shorter sets, I think all by Australian composers, including one world premiere.  I guess they come with the territory.  The feel was bellowing and confident and melodic and easy to love.  One of my faves.

Lyrebird Brass are Joel Brennan and Rosie Turner (trumpet), Carla Blackwood (horn), Dan Immel (trombone) and Alex Jeantou (tuba).  LB performed at NFSA for MOSSO during CIMF2026.

Movings

Recording the experimental can be a challenge, especially with a few minutes to peruse and setup.  But it's fascinating and fun and my stereo mic is decent so it works well enough.  This was a viola, centrally located, turning for movements played on various percussion instruments played in various locations in the space, with electronics on viola and perc driving other percussion.  Thus the performers in the gig included a named audio engineer.  All interesting and unusual...  But some simple viola lines, effective percussion at low volume and sometime explosive, rattling sheets of metal and more and viola echoes.  Quite fascinating and occasionally quite noisy.

Aaron Wyatt (viola, composition) and Eugene Ughetti (percussion, CIMF Artistic director) were effected by Rohan Goldsmith (audio engineer) at NFSA for MOSSO during CIMF2026.

Fest or Fringe

Then MOSSO, a festival within a festival, one full day of hourly music-making in various spaces at the National Film and Sound Archive (NFSA), quite experimental or alternative, at least different, often with video accompaniment, perhaps more the fringe to the festival.  First up was Nat Bartsch with accompanying electronics, seemingly of her control at the grand piano written for neurodivergent sensory needs.  I'd warmed to see Nat earlier with her son at other concerts.  She spoke of her music,  her recordings and compositions for those varying sensory needs and uneasinesses.  I loved the play of acoustic and electronic, live and sampled, melody simple and inevitable.  Quite lovely.

Nat Bartsch (piano, electronics) performed at NFSA for MOSSO during CIMF2026.