BY STEPHANIE ESLAKE
It’s endlessly cool that as a publication, we have some of the country’s leading musical talent in our ranks. Enter Emma Sullivan.
She’s been writing with us for close to a year. But when she’s not putting pen to paper, she’s putting bow to string on her double bass.
It doesn’t stop there. Emma is also welcoming female-identifying musicians into the spotlight this month as she has worked to establish her very own Women in Bass project.
Women in Bass celebrates talented musicians from Australia and New Zealand, and showcases these instrumentalists in a series of performances, from solo to small group, all the way through to massed double bass ensemble (how wicked would that sound?!).
Just some of the musicians involved include the Queensland Symphony Orchestra’s principal double bass Phoebe Alvis Russell, New Zealand Symphony Orchestra past associate principal Vicki Jones, Chloe Ann Williamson and Marian Heckenberg from Camerata – Queensland’s Chamber Orchestra, and a wealth of student and professional players you’ll also get to hear on the day, too.
So before Women in Bass all comes together this 17 March at the Melbourne Girls Grammar School, we chat with Emma to learn what it’s all about.
Emma, why did you decide to launch Women in Bass?
When I came up with the concept of Women in Bass, I was driven by two main incentives. Firstly, I wanted my students – and all young bass players – to have the opportunity to see more female representation in solo bass playing.
There are so many fantastic bass ladies playing in orchestras and in other genres across Australia and on the world stage, but a lot of formal double bass events still predominantly feature male performers. It is so inspiring for young players to see great musicians perform live, and it is even more powerful when they can recognise themselves in those people.
The other reason I created Women in Bass is that I wanted to do my part in building more of a community for female bass players, where we can learn from and support each other.
Why did you decide to bring in musicians from Australia and New Zealand, and structure such a big collection of performances?
To be honest, I never envisaged that it would become so big! I simply reached out to as many female bass players as I could, and invited them to take part. I am completely overwhelmed by the response – we have 23 women performing, and 10 of them are flying in from Queensland, New South Wales, and even New Zealand! And it is such a diverse group – from undergraduate students to women nearer to the end of their careers.
The program is incredibly diverse and represents many different styles of music. I think the concert will be a real testament to the talent, imagination and versatility of the female bass community, and I am really humbled by the way everyone has embraced and supported the event.
The concert will be held at the Melbourne Girls Grammar School. What attitude would you like to see adopted by young student bass players before they grow up and enter their professional careers?
I think it is important for all young musicians to know that there isn’t just one way to have an enriching career in music and that, as difficult as it is, there is very little to gain from comparing yourself to others. I would also encourage them to never lose sight of what a privilege it is to be a musician – even when it feels like very hard work!
I am so grateful to Melbourne Girls Grammar School for supporting this event so wholeheartedly. It is a very apt venue, as it is a school that does so much to empower and educate the young women who study there.
Will you be performing, too? What do you hope to take away from the event?
I am performing at the event – I am playing the slow movement of Bottesini’s double bass duo Passione Amorosa with Esther Toh, and I am also playing in a bass quartet with Esther, Kylie Davies, and Vivian Qu. We all regularly work together in Melbourne Symphony Orchestra and Orchestra Victoria, and it is really nice to have the opportunity to perform together in a completely different context where we each can play with a more individual voice.
Whilst I always relish opportunities to perform chamber music (and I have a real soft spot for double bass quartets!), I think the most important things I will take away from this experience are the relationships I have formed with all of these fantastic bass ladies. Some I already knew quite well, but there are many women involved in Sunday’s concert I am yet to meet in person.
I am really looking forward to getting to know everyone, learning a little about their life in music, and hearing their performances.
Emma captured by Agatha Yim.
