Adelaide’s home of original music

Many individuals affiliate cities like Melbourne or Sydney with a vibrant music scene, however Adelaide can also be lucky to have a thriving music group with common gigs and alternatives for upcoming authentic artists. In any case, it’s a UNESCO Metropolis of Music – Australia’s solely metropolis to be designated so.

Artistic Unique Music Adelaide (COMA) is one in every of Adelaide’s long-standing efficiency and growth organisations that works in direction of supporting upcoming musicians and offering them with alternatives for efficiency, recording and mentorship. As a volunteer-run, not-for-profit organisation supported by Arts SA, it’s pushed by the dedication and fervour of these concerned, most of whom are artists and musicians themselves and perceive the worth of the platform.

Since 2005, COMA has held common Monday night time performances by jazz, new classical, improvised music and digital artists at Thebarton’s Wheatsheaf Lodge. It goals to current two units of contrasting music at every occasion, with the goal of introducing new artists and genres.

“That’s all the time been a very core a part of the best way we function,” says funding director and long-time COMA committee member Emily Tulloch.

She says the crossing of genres has enabled the organisation to “construct a group who’re actually open to various things and who’re receptive and supportive of artists coming in and making an attempt what is commonly new work”.

“It was about taking modern jazz, modern classical, sonic arts or experimental digital music into an environment the place we might encourage audiences to expertise one thing new in a very relaxed and protected atmosphere.”

Angus Mason and Lyndon Grey carry out within the COMA Committee Ensemble. Photograph provided

Alongside providing common efficiency alternatives over the previous 18 years, COMA has additionally created a number of awards and packages for musicians, composers/writers and sound engineers to develop Adelaide’s musical expertise.

Amongst these is the Rising Jazz Author’s Award, which goals to rejoice and help a feminine, non-binary or gender-diverse jazz artist of their profession. On the shut of the inaugural Adelaide Jazz Pageant this previous weekend, COMA introduced bassist Enne Rignanese because the third recipient of the award. This achieved composer, arranger and musician from Mount Gambier will obtain two days of recording at Adelaide’s Wizard Tone Studios, mentorship alternatives with main Australian jazz artists, a paid efficiency with COMA as a part of its common collection, a one-year membership with the organisation, and a paid fee to be featured in its end-of-year live performance.

Tulloch says jazz was chosen as a spotlight for this award as a result of there weren’t many initiatives in South Australia that work to counter a traditionally entrenched gender imbalance that exists in jazz music.

“We’re actually happy with this recognition of the truth that girls and, much more so, non-binary or gender-non-conforming folks have been… considerably under-represented,” says Tulloch.

“It was partly, additionally, the popularity of jazz composition, which maybe isn’t as recognised as a compositional artwork as classical composition.”

A wall of gig posters celebrating COMA’s sixteenth birthday. Photograph provided

Final 12 months’s winner of the Rising Jazz Author’s Award, trombonist Jasmine Ferguson, says that the jazz scene nonetheless tends to be a “boys’ membership”.

“Typically, as a feminine or non-binary particular person, you possibly can really feel a little bit bit on the sting, as a result of there aren’t as many [of us],” she says.

Her frequent expertise of being the one lady on the bandstand has been uncomfortable for her as a younger musician.

“Just a few years in the past, I used to be doing extra large band gigs with completely different folks, and I used to be the one lady for lots of it. It was all simply older males.

“The best way I bought talked to, I used to be very, very a lot by myself as ‘the gorgeous girl within the nook’.”

With COMA’s help, Ferguson was capable of foster her personal musical atmosphere and acquire confidence as a musician and chief. The award supported her to put in writing and document an album for her ensemble, minnie little large band, known as falling into your eyes. Because of COMA, she says, she was capable of develop as an artist and push herself additional.

“What I’d finished earlier than was lyrics-based and heading all the way down to extra of a pop route, however this helped me come again to the jazz facet of stuff. It bought me to work with wonderful musicians that I wouldn’t be capable of work with usually. Twenty actually cool musicians on the similar time.”

Like many Adelaide musicians, Ferguson’s relationship with COMA began whereas she was a highschool scholar going to the Monday night time gigs and it continued as she was finding out jazz on the Elder Conservatorium of Music. Her curiosity within the organisation grew to the purpose the place she just lately grew to become a member of COMA’s committee.

“It was actually encouraging seeing a number of completely different folks being there from uni and watching that and seeing that is what we’re finding out, and that is what we will do,” she says.

COMA’s partnership with the Wheatsheaf Lodge has been key to its success because the starting. Tulloch says COMA was all the time envisaged to be on the Wheaty, and that the reciprocal relationship between the organisation and the pub is “completely basic”.

The truth that multi-instrumentalist Adam Web page and lots of different seasoned members of Adelaide’s music scene hold returning to carry out and hearken to COMA gigs demonstrates the worth the group sees within the organisation, Tulloch provides.

“It’s this beautiful, interconnected group across the committee, the pub, the artists, and the audiences that come. That’s why all of us do it. It’s very particular.”

Learn extra about COMA and see its autumn line-up of occasions right here.

Shannon Pearce is the third recipient of the Helpmann Academy InReview Mentorship. She is working with skilled writers Graham Strahle and Samela Harris to put in writing a collection of articles for publication in InReview.