Passing the baton is an ANAM exclusive series featuring some of ANAM's 2021 alumni and new first year musicians.
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Words by:
Alex Meagher (percussion 2021) and Aditya Bhat (percussion VIC)
Prior to the year commencing, we invited a number of incoming ANAM musicians to seek wisdom from a few most recent alum. Here, ANAM alumnus and recipient of the ANAM Directors' Prize in 2021, Alex Meagher (percussion 2021) answers some of Aditya Bhat's (percussion VIC) burning questions about life at ANAM.
Alex training from home during the 2020 Melbourne lockdown
Zoom photo shoot credit to Pia Johnson
Aditya: How much time do you find you end up with, say each week, to do things not related to ANAM?
Alex: It varies from week to week. Some weeks you’ll have several days off, others you might only have an hour between rehearsals all day. You can usually always make time to do life things like groceries or admin or spend time with friends or relax. There’ll be weeks when you’re able do gigs outside of ANAM although it helps to have a diary to see when those weeks are.
Aditya: How did you go about learning all the ‘unusual’ percussion instruments that I hear you have become an expert at?! Was it difficult to find teachers/resources for learning them?
Alex: Extensive YouTube research and listening was always a good starting point. Although Melbourne is a good location in that there’s such a variety of music-making going on, there’s always been someone who could point me in the right direction. It was helpful to have pieces or projects that incorporated those instruments to have a goal to work towards and build up the technique. Having to work online during the pandemic meant it was easy to have Zoom lessons with people overseas who knew what they were doing and could answer questions or make corrections to my technique.
Aditya: What has been the most interesting thing you have done/ opportunity you have had at ANAM that you hadn’t experienced before?
Alex: Being part of a staged performance of “The Soldier’s Tale” was pretty cool. Plus I got to work with a ceramicist in making some instruments for my final recital- I can’t remember having done anything like that. But really, getting to do a bunch of mixed-ensemble chamber repertoire has been amazing (the piano/percussion programs have all been highlights). I never really did much of that at Uni and you learn so much from the other instruments.
Aditya Bhat (percussion VIC)
Aditya: What are the opportunities like for initiating your own projects with other musicians?
Alex: Things like the Chamber Music Competition are good if you’ve got something you’re keen to do, plus putting together lunchtime Soundbite concerts and the collaborations with NGV are all good for getting others involved in pieces you want to play. Even if there’s just something you want to play in your recital people are generally receptive and keen to be involved, even if you just want to jam or read through something you found.
Aditya: What would you say is the most pleasant spot, e.g., café, to hang out near the Convent?
Alex: Personally, I enjoyed getting something from a cafe like Mavis or the Convent Bakery and finding a quiet spot next to the Yarra. With the music going on it was nice to find somewhere to give my ears a rest and just watch the river.
Aditya: How busy does it get, say, on average, each week, with ANAM activities? (How many hours would you spend each day preparing for various projects? E.g., individually/in a group.)
Alex: Like the first question it varies from week to week, and different amounts of preparation away from the instruments compared to in the practice room. If, for example, you’ve got a couple of consecutive busy weeks you might need more time preparing for them (and for things after those weeks) in advance, since during those busy weeks you won’t have a lot of time to do other preparations.
Alex Meagher performs with fellow ANAM percussionist Nathan Gatenby (percussion QLD) to give musical interpretations to artworks from the Ian Potter Centre: NGV Australia in We Change the World on 26 February 2022. Admission is FREE! Visit the NGV website for more information.