Eltham-based pianist/composer Nat Bartsch performs her ARIA-nominated ABC Classic album Hope, joined by Lucy Warren (violin) and Charlotte Jacke (cello).
Image: Brett Scapin.
Hope is an album for piano, strings and electronics built around Nat’s distinctive blend of gentle melodic improvisation, jazz harmony and cinematic neoclassical composition. The suite was composed in 2020, first with the smell of bushfire smoke in her home from the Black Summer fires, and later during Melbourne’s long covid lockdowns. Hence the title is an abbreviation of hopefulness and hopelessness, and music exploring the space between. The intention is for the listener to immerse themselves in the music, reflecting and acknowledging all we have endured in the past few years, but ultimately, by the final piece, be looking to the future with a sense of hope. The album reached #1 on the iTunes Classical Australia charts and #3 on the ARIA classical charts. A jazz/post-rock re-interpretation, Hope Renewed, was released in March of this year.
Image: Suzie Blake.
Wednesday 20th September 2023
7pm – 8.30pm (incl. interval)
Barn Gallery
Adult $40
Concession $35
Child (17 years and under) $35
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Nat Bartsch is a critically-acclaimed, multi-award-winning pianist and composer. She deftly walks across a genre spectrum from jazz to classical. She has released eight albums of original music including several releases for ABC Classic and Jazz. This year she established her own record label, Amica Records. Nat has toured Australia, Japan and Europe and performed at several festivals. She has composed commissions for many leading classical artists including Grigoryan Brothers, Plexus Collective, Inventi Ensemble, Matt Withers, Sally Whitwell and Muses Trio; and has performed or collaborated with artists including Luke Howard, Matt Corby and thndo. She is one of a small handful of artists to be nominated in both jazz and classical ARIA categories, as well as receiving AIR, Music Victoria and Bell Award nominations; she also received the prestigious 2021 Merlyn Myer Commission 2010 Melbourne Prize for Music Development Award. She holds an Honours degree in jazz improvisation from the VCA and a Masters degree in classical composition from Melbourne Conservatorium of Music. She is proudly neurodivergent.
Facebook - natbartschpiano
Instagram - @natbartsch
Website - natbartsch.com
Banner image: Brett Scapin.