Evoking scenes and experiences in nature through a rich blend of jazz, electronic, experimental and
ambient music, Underwards is the latest project of award-winning composer and trumpeter Ellen Kirkwood. The music of Underwards was penned by Kirkwood during visits to beautiful locations in Darug, Gundungarra, Gadigal, Wiradjuri and Dharawal countries.
It features group and solo
improvisations, rich colours and textures, emphatic rhythms and enigmatic melodies. A passionate climate activist, Ellen intends for Underwardsā music to reconnect listeners with their own profound experiences and memories in nature, as a way of encouraging stronger protective tendencies towards our suffering planet.
Underwards will present a suite of new music penned by Ellen during a recent residency at Kandos in Wiradjuri country, central NSW, funded by the 2021 APRA Art Music Fund.
While there, Ellen met with two Indigenous locals who were generous enough to talk with her about their connections to country and the history of the area. These learnings, plus time spent soaking up the spectacular and unique beauty of the Capertee Valley, Ganguddy and other nearby locations, inspired a variety of pieces which are descriptive of landscapes, flora and fauna, and range in emotion from brooding to joyous.
Ellen Kirkwood is a prolific composer and in-demand trumpeter in the Sydney scene. She was the winner of the 2012 Jann Rutherford Memorial Award for young women in jazz and the 2019 winner of the APRA Art Music NSW Award for Excellence in Jazz. She was also a 2017 finalist of the Freedman Jazz Fellowships, and her groundbreaking suite [A]part, for Sirens Big Band and featured soloists, was a finalist for the 2018 APRA Jazz Work of the Year, and received glowing critical acclaim. She has released three albums of her own original music, and features on countless recordings of other successful Sydney groups. She performs regularly with popular Sydney bands Mister Ott, On The Stoop, Sirens Big Band, Pharos and SICKO, and has performed with the likes of Boy George (UK), Shubha Mudgal (IND), Ingrid Jensen (USA), Sandy Evans, Mike Nock and many more acclaimed Australian and
international musicians.
The members of Underwards hail from exceptional Sydney groups including The Buoys, Hilary Geddes Quartet, the Zela Margossian Quintet, Arcing Wires and Bike Thief.
Underwards was formed in early 2020, and due to the pandemic have not been able to perform as much as theyād like, but (COVID-willing) will be making up for it in 2022 with the July release of their debut album, and lots of gigs!
Underwards are:
Ellen Kirkwood – trumpet/vox/electronics
Hilary Geddes – guitar
Nick Henderson – bass/synths
Alex Inman-Hislop – drums/percussion
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