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HINTERLANDT: International Women’s Jazz Festival

Some years ago I introduced the ‘rule’ that at least half of Hinterlandt band members must be female, and over the last few months I’ve composed a new set that is more jazz-inspired than before. Now we’ve been invited to play at SIMA’s International Women’s Jazz Festival. In addition to this Sydney show we’ll play in Katoomba, Tomerong and Canberra to road-test the new material and to introduce violinist, Isabel Tzorbatzaki.

STILL: Soundtrack on Oxtail Records

Still is an audio-visual project based on photos of the same patch of sky I took for 100 consecutive days, at 8am every morning. At the same time I composed a soundtrack to match the meditative atmosphere of the photographic project. The collage grid was shown in Head on Photo Festival 2021, and now the soundtrack will be released on Oxtail Records with a launch show in Sydney on 27th of August 2022. The 100 photos can also be viewed individually in this online gallery. I’ll also be playing a few solo shows to support the release:

SNOB CLUB: Bremen, Berlin, Frankfurt

My instrumental high-energy trio Snob Club has a short tour coming up in Germany. These shows are always intense and cathartic. We’re very keen. It’s been a while because my co-musicians and I don’t live in the same country, and international travel to/from Australia was out of the question for more than two years. We last toured in 2019, then had more shows booked in 2020 but those had to be cancelled. Anyway, this time it’s happening.

DANCE: Research Collaboration

Sydney contemporary dance company Critical Path invited me to participate in a research residency they hosted for a choreographer and two dancers with disabilities. Together with fellow musician Trevor Brown we developed sounds and music to support the dancers in their vision.

RECALIBRATE: Name Change

Recalibrate is the new name for my trio with Alex O’Toole and Simeon Bartholomew, formerly known as No Mandate. The band is older than Covid and was named before people started shouting about vaccine and mask mandates. We’d played about 35 shows and made two albums under the name No Mandate, but felt the step was necessary to avoid being associated with this toxic debate. Some links have changed: Bandcamp | Facebook | Instagram | YouTube

STILL: Head On Photo Festival

My first visual artwork STILL has been accepted into Head On Photo Festival. It’s based on 100 photos of the same patch of sky I took at 8am in the morning for 100 consecutive days. I made this a while ago and it’s amazing to see it now gets this kind of recognition. STILL will be on display at Paddington Reservoir Gardens in Sydney from 20 until 28 November, as a projection slide, among semi-finalists. I’d like to thank the festival jury for selecting the work among all those submissions.

For info about the festival please go to the festival website.

HINTERLANDT: “The Stepping Stones of Life” Released

My first commissioned work as a composer, set to a poem by John Rantzen. It’s one long piece (17.46 minutes) describing an arch from the beginning of life to its end. Stream (free) / Download ($10) on Bandcamp, or head to one of the other usual streaming services.

Lyrics: John Rantzen | Music: Jochen Gutsch

Musicians:
Lara Goodridge – violin
Monique Mezzatesta – viola
Simeon Johnson – cello
Nicole Smede – vocals
Andy Rantzen – narrator
Keyna Wilkins – flute
Jochen Gutsch – guitar, trumpet, piano, vocals

Recorded by Richard Belkner at Free Energy Device Studios in Sydney, June 2021. Mastered by Michael Lynch at Shoehorse Sound Studio.

HINTERLANDT: “The Stepping Stones of Life” Studio Clip

HINTERLANDT: The Church at Phoenix Central Park

On 25th of July 2021, Hinterlandt will present “Seven Tales” at The Church in Sydney, a new venue by the amazing Phoenix Central Park. It will be an intimate, all-acoustic chamber-style performance. Entry is free with registration. Please note the event was booked out within a few hours but there’s a waitlist.

Note: This concert was cancelled due to the current Sydney lockdown.

Photo: Ezekiel Rodofili

RECALIBRATE: “Recalibrate” Album

The debut album by my trio with Alex O’Toole and Simeon Bartholomew is out now. Our music is energetic and progressive. The album is out on Bandcamp as well as all the other digital platforms. We also made two video clips:

Recalibrate | Nothing to Declare

Launch show: Thursday 15 April 2021 at Lazybones in Sydney.

Note: this band was called No Mandate before.