Stepping Out
for solo clarinet
Composed for Georgia White
Commissioned by the Australian National Academy of Music (ANAM) as part The ANAM Set 2025 and written for Georgia White, with its world premiere during ANAM’s 2025 recital season at the Abbotsford Convent, Melbourne.
This ANAM Set commission was generously supported by the Anthony and Sharon Lee Foundation
Program note:
The rather mesmerising behaviour exhibited by small birds such as the Australian Willie Wagtail and its Scandinavian cousin, the Sädesärla – otherwise known as a White/Pied Wagtail – fascinates me every time. Especially their rapid vocalisations and fleeting darting swoops which, beyond the joyfulness of such features, parallels in many ways contemporary mannerisms of interaction. Furthermore, their penchant for teasing curiosity is reminiscent of the human creative spirit: eager to engage, learn and interpret.
The developmental processes of talented young musicians – learning from others with more nuanced skillsets – is thus for me synonymous with the hatchling which must learn to sense, interact, then fly and fend for itself. Leaving the Australian National Academy of Music (ANAM) is akin to leaving the nest, equipped with the requisite skills to enable an enriched and creative interaction with the world. Bon voyage indeed, wherever that leads.
About the composer:
Since 2013, Peter has written 50 newly-composed works, with recent performances of his music by BBC National Orchestra Wales, Gidon Kremer/Kremerata, Nikolaj Znaider amongst others. Recent works include String Quartet nr. 2, premiered in January 2023 at the Royal National Library, Copenhagen and a piano trio to be premiered in Finland in 2024. His music has been performed in front of the (then) Crown Prince of Denmark. He is a member of the peer-assessed Danish Composer’s Association and has previously received support through KodaKultur, Denmark.
Peter's interest is in focusing compositionally around issues of contemporary resonance, for example Covid-19, authoritarian violence, environment and mental health concerns. He has focused his own ensemble in that direction, under the name RelevanzEnsemble. His solo album I Thought I Saw Your Face presents mostly Australian works around the theme of depression and mental health.
In 2000 he served as board member for the New Music Network in Australia. He co-founded and ran Ensemble 24 in Australia for 7 years, touring nationally/internationally for Musica Viva and recording for Naxos. Peter is a permanent member of the Danish National Symphony Orchestra and plays regularly with the Australian World Orchestra.
Peter has lectured and given performance masterclasses at major music academies in Australia and around the EU. In 2022 he was guest speaker on gender diversity issues at Denmark’s largest annual political/ arts conference, held on Bornholm. He has also worked internationally with young musicians and teenagers from less affluent parts of society on education-development projects. In his spare time he writes poetry and is much focused on environmental issues — in this regard as co-lead spokesperson/lobbyist for Stop Ecocide Denmark between 2019-2023. He has also been active as consultant for the pan-European political party Volt Denmark and similarly with entertainment planning for Statens Museum for Kunst, Denmark.