Kindly Supported by
WHERE
The tide-tossed reveries of Percy
Grainger’s obsessive, unconventional
mind are made manifest in this multiscreen installation film by acclaimed
director Amiel Courtin-Wilson.
Ian Potter Museum of Art
University of Melbourne
800 Swanston Street
Melbourne
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TIMES
Tue-Fri
Sat & Sun
Sat 15
BREAKING
WAVES
10am-5pm
12-5pm
12-9pm
From the childhood moment in which he
observed waves lapping against a boat’s
side, pure and gliding tones exerted a pull
on Grainger’s psyche. His obsession was
such that for the rest of his life he would
rail against the “tyrannical rhythmic pulse”
and “moral harmony” of Western music.
Breaking Waves incorporates archival
instruments, score fragments and
the recent remaking of three of the
composer’s original instruments to form
an immersive portrait of this lifelong
crusade to free music of conventional
constraints. An immersive psychological
portrait employing high speed, close up
cinematography, it is an impressionistic
gateway into the motivations that drove a
singular artist.
CREDITS
Ian Potter Museum of Art support
Jacqueline Doughty and Samantha Comte
Amiel Courtin-Wilson is one of Australia’s
most striking filmmakers. He released
his debut feature documentary Chasing
Buddha at only 19 years of age, while
his debut fiction feature Hail premiered
internationally at the 2011 Venice Film
Festival. Other acclaimed works include
the documentary Bastardy and the Venice
Special Jury Prize-winning Ruin. Amiel’s
films have also screened at Sundance,
Cannes and more recently the Whitney
Museum.
Image: Percy Grainger’s Free Tone Tool Music Machine. Courtesy of the Grainger Museum collection.
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