Posted Sat at 3:33am
The flute-like chirps of an
iconic Australian songbird has inspired one of the nation's most prestigious orchestras.
The pied butcherbird, found in
many backyards around the nation but best heard in the Australian outback, will
perform — in a way — as part of the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra on Saturday
night.
"It's such a spectacular
singer, perhaps the world's finest songbird," said Hollis Taylor, a
violinist and composer.
"It was my first trip to
Australia and I found myself in the middle of three birds singing a trio; it
was absolutely glorious, I had no idea that birds sang in trios.
"It changed my life, it was
an epiphany."
For more than a decade, Ms Taylor
has studied the melodies of the pied butcherbird, turning those songs into
pieces of music.
This year, she has spent months
travelling the MacDonnell Ranges near Alice Springs and Far North Queensland, creating
a unique piece for the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra which incorporates her field
recordings.
"I really tried to celebrate
the birdsong rather than improve on it, and so almost always the instruments
are playing the direct transcriptions," Ms Taylor said.
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