Bent Notes

Melbourne based vocalist and composer Michelle Nicolle visited the Bent Notes studio upon the occaision of the release of her 11th album – THE SILENT WISH .  Michelle was about to leave Australia for a visit to America to launch the album in the country where she had recorded it with guitarist Larry Koonse . The album is a collection of 10 songs including one composed by Michelle herself. He...

Perth based Pianist and composer Austin Salisbury spoke of his musical journey to date and bringing his piano trio to the Eastern States to launch their new album – OUTLINES – at the Church St Studios in Camperdown (NSW), and The Jazzlab in Brunswick (VIC) Austin recalls his earliest musical memories which include watching the movie “The Blues Brothers” and marveling at the...

Pianist and composer Paul Grabowsky chatted about emotion in music, from composer, arranger, engineer, performer and the listener; and how vocalists have the greateast opportunity to imbue their vocal works with emotion. Paul will be accompanying American countertenor vocalist Reginald Mobley with his Gospel and Spiritual repertoire on his Australian Tour during March & April 2025.  This reper...

Andrew Harrison is a musician who composes to order.  His new EP – Time Is Truth – is a work he was commissioned to create by a gay couple wishing to celebrate 20 years of relationship committment in a very special way. A couple who love music, their chioce was a musical suite to celebrate deeper truths about love and committment, through contemporary Jazz arrangements and intimate voc...

Drummer, Composer and Educator Sonja Horbelt, the Artistic Director of the Melbourne Women’s International Jazz Festival visited the Bent Notes studio to chat about the challenges experienced by Women in Jazz and the progress for them becoming featured artist and working musicians; and the fabulous women artists performing in this year’s Melbourne Women’s International Jazz Festi...

Lee Orszaczky, co-leader of the Sydney based music collective MOSAIC , spoke with Bent Notes about his family musical upbringing, including exposure to a broad range of great music; as well as some of his experiences as a music student at the Sydney Conservatorium of music – where he has co-created the MOSAIC collective – a group with an objective to play as much original music as they...

Alastair Kerr , one of Australia’s leading exponents of Brazilian percussion and jazz drumming, visited the Bent Notes studio to chat about his love of Brasilian jazz, the wonderful music of Antonio Carlos Jobim , and his addiction to Brasilian Jazz! Alastair told us that Antonio Carlos Jobim was perhaps the most important composer of the 20th century, becoming known for his Bossa Nova music...

Saxophonist Jamie Oehlers spoke with Bent Notes about the inspiration he received from hearing and seeing the saxaphone in popular music of the 80’s; and starting his musical journey at school with a year of learning and practicing the flute before migrating to the sax.  Jamie recalls the inspiration he recevied from his instrumental teachers along the way. Jamie described pushing musical bo...

Saxophonist, Educator, Researcher and Educational Author Rob Burke visited the Bent Notes studio to chat about how the definition of Jazz has changed ove the years, and how that change has been driven in part by the different diaspora’s  around the world . Rob talks about the challenges of collaborating with the music of other cultures, maintaining the character and life of the music, whilst...

Michael Tortoni, Artistic Director of the Melbourne International Jazz Festival , visited the Bent Notes studio to talk about the team working with him to curate and activate the Melbourne International Jazz Festival, and the superb roster of artists creating music during the 2024 festival. Michael spoke about over 400 artists representing 12 countries, performing in 109 events across 34 venues in...

Serge Carnovale visited the Bent Notes studio to chat about his new role this year as the Artistic Director of the Wangaratta Festival of Jazz and Blues . Serge spoke about the range of artists appearing  across the many venues in and around Wangaratta and the venue-based ticketing system introduced this year, as the festival is re-born alongside the National Jazz Awards – this year for Saxo...

Harry Mitchell described the philosophy behind his latest album – NOON – when he spoke with David Moyle and Chelsea Wilson on Bent Notes. NOON is created as a collection of songs inspired by Harry’s observations of society’s collectively diminishing attention spans.  The inspiration said to Harry that he should create someting long-form – that can’t be consumed...

The Take Note Leader of the Melbourne International Jazz Festival for 2024 is Jazz flautist and composer Erica Tucceri .  Erica visited the Bent Notes studio to chat all things Take Note – an impportant role that addresses the underrepresentation of women and gender diverse musicians in jazz by celebrating and promoting women and gender diverse leaders on stage and in high schools across Vic...

Violin player, artist, songwriter and entertainer Xani Kolac described her path to become a professional violin player and entertainer when she was guest on Bent Note recently. Xani reminisces about causing her violin teacher to cry from the beautiful interpretation she gave of Dvorak’s Humoresque, and auditioning for the VCA with her sister playing the bass. Xani spoke about the focus on im...

Australian born musicians Jody Sternberg (Voice, Sax) and David Lewis (Trumpet, Piano) have lived in France for some years and spoke with David Moyle and Chelsea Wilson on Bent Notes when they visited the JOY 94.9 studios recently as they commenced their 2024 Aussie tour. Jody Sternberg & David Lewis in-studio at JOY 94.9 Jody recalled her journey from Australia where she played sax in her pri...

When trumpeter and band leader Travis Woods and sousaphone player Jay Scarlett from The Horns Of Leroy visited the Bent Notes Studio they spoke about the way they as a band are inspired by the music and the musicians of New Orleans .  They recalled the immense energy they picked up from watching, listening, jamming and performing with these bands and how this changed their outlook and musical crea...

Michelle Nicolle visited the Bent Notes studio to chat with David Moyle and Chelsea Wilson about her brand new album – 10 Live At The Jazzlab . The album was recorded at the Jazzlab by the ABC during the 2023 Melbourne International Jazz Festival and has now been released to the world. Michelle talks about the thrill of performing in ALL RISE with the Lincoln Centre Jazz Orchestra led by Wyn...

Melbourne Drummer, Composer and Artistic Director of the Melbourne Women’s International Jazz Festival , Sonja Horbelt visited the Bent Notes studio to chat all things 2023 Festival with David Moyle and Paul Gardner.  The festival runs from December 3-10, 2023 with most events schedueld at The Jazzlab . Sonja spoke about the legacy and the memory of the late Lynnette Irwin , for many years t...

Cheryl Durongpisitikul Cheryl Durongpisitkul spoke with David Moyle on Bent Notes about the work involved in preparing for the debut of her new suite for 12-piece improvising ensemble that channels her own personal experiences of loss, grief  and healing. As the Take Note leader for 2023 for the Melbourne International Jazz Festival , Cheryl was commissioned to compose this work as well as visit s...

Zac Hurren, Katie Noonan, Ben Hauptmann Katie  Noonan ‘s ELIXIR project kicked off in 1997, with their goal to explore the relationship between text and sound and celebrate great Australian poetry. The current line-up for the trio is National Jazz Award, ARIA Award winning and Freedman Jazz Fellowship finalist saxophonist/composer Zac Hurren , Freedman Jazz
Fellowship winning and National Ja...

Emma Pask Emma Pask was discovered at a school concert gig by multi-instrumentalist and entertainer James Morrison – a week later Emma was invited to tour with the James Morrison Big Band – and the rest is history! Hear Emma talk about that amazing experience and much more in this podcast from Bent Notes, including Trombone player, arranger and band leader Ed Wilson , the necessity to...

Vanessa Perica. Photo: Pia Johnson Award winning composer Vanessa Perica is launching her 2nd Jazz Orchestra album as part of the lineup for this year’s Melbourne International Jazz Festival . The 1st album, Love Is A Temporary Madness , was named one of the best Australian albums of 2020 by The Guardian, winner of the Best Jazz Album at the Music Victoria Awards, ‘Work of the Year’ at the A...

Australian composer and pianist Paul Grabowksy AO and Chinese-Australian composer, performer and pioneer of modern guzheng music Mindy Meng Wang chatted about the empathy, cultural awareness and conversation necessary to create new music crossing boundaries between different muscial cultures. Mindy plays the Guzheng – a chinese instrument similar in look and sound to a Zither , and has colla...

Ruth Rogers-Wright Ruth Rogers-Wright began her career in London where she was one of the leading artists in the “New British Jazz” movement, before migrating to  Australia.  Her band in London included two Aussie ex-pats – pianist Mark Fitzgibbon and vocalist Nichaud Fitzgibbon. Ruth was introduced to the music of Nina Simone while in London and saw her perform live a number of...

Monique diMattina Stella Miiles Franklin was an Australian author, activist and feminist, leaving an endowment behind celebrating Australian Literature in the form of the annual  Miles Franklin Award .  However, Stella was much more than an author! Inspired by the dramatic and exciting life story of Stella Miles Franklin, Melbourne based composer, vocalist and pianist Monique diMattina has written...