BY STEPHANIE ESLAKE
You don’t have to play a woodwind instrument to be part of the Adelaide Clarinet & Saxophone Festival. You only need a love of music — and locally composed music, in particular. The festival will host the premiere of a new piece from Elder Conservatorium composition student Belle Smibert, and you can hear a massed ensemble of clarinetists and saxophonists bring it to life.
But if you do play clarinet or saxophone, you could perform in that particular event. You’ll also have access to an entire program of educational opportunities across the two-day festival. Hosted by South Australian Clarinets and Saxophones, the festival features masterclasses, chamber performances, workshops and concerts.
It doesn’t matter where you are in your musical journey, and if you’re still learning or performing professionally, because everyone’s invited.
We sat down with SACS’ Kate Flint (pictured above) and Sarah Byron (below) to learn more about this substantial opportunity for wind players in Australia. They even shed light on some of the special guest artists who will be heading along.
Thanks for the chat, Sarah and Kate! First up, I’d love to know why you think SA needs a dedicated sax and clari festival.
SARAH: Kate and I noticed that the other instruments have really active societies that run events — we were particularly inspired by the Adelaide Horn Jam — and felt it was time for Adelaide to provide similar opportunities to our local players.
We believe that connection is vital for building the community, developing players’ abilities, and fostering an appreciation for the overall arts scene. There’s also so much momentum and appetite for quality performance experiences, which can be seen in the participation rates at Generations in Jazz, ABODA Band Festival, JazzSA Superbands, and Adelaide Youth Orchestras, which have become really competitive for clarinet and saxophone players.
I was fortunate enough to work at the Royal Northern College of Music Saxophone Day during my postgraduate studies, and experienced the power of an event where 200 players of all ages and abilities were able to learn and perform together.
We hope that giving the players the chance to connect will help to energise the community, and give all students and their families a chance to engage with their local ensembles and support live music.
The festival is designed to bring together an entire community of arts students and workers, with different skill levels and areas of interest, from education to performance. How do you feel that exposure to this broader community is beneficial for everyone involved as they join you from across their different disciplines?
KATE: One of the things we were most excited about when planning the festival was creating opportunities for people who might not otherwise cross paths to get to play music together.
It doesn’t really matter whether you’re a student, a community band member, a private teacher, or a professional performer — there’s always something to learn from the people sitting beside you. Everyone brings different experiences, musical backgrounds, and perspectives, and that’s incredibly valuable at every stage of your musical journey.
We also wanted to break down some of the barriers that can exist between different parts of the music community. Festivals create a space where young players can meet and learn directly from professional performers and educators, teachers can connect with one another, and community musicians can build relationships that continue long after the weekend is over. This is particularly true for the massed ensemble. When you’re sitting in an ensemble, you’re all working towards the same artistic goal and all have something to contribute.
Ultimately, we hope people leave not only having learnt something new, but having made new connections, discovered new opportunities, and feeling like they’re part of a much larger and more connected clarinet and saxophone community.
What will be some of the focus points for students and others who are looking to engage in workshops and masterclasses?
S: The opportunity to learn from some of the best players and educators in Australia is so valuable for aspiring musicians.
Our chosen guests have a broad range of knowledge and experience performing internationally. There’s something for everyone — from our amateur participants who want to improve their breathing and learn the basics of jazz improvisation, to those advanced players curious about a music career.
Kate and I have both had the opportunity to travel for our professional development, and helping our players gain new perspectives on all aspects of playing without leaving the state is so rewarding.
A highlight of the festival will also be performing Nick Russoniello’s (pictured below) looping pieces for massed ensemble, and players will have the chance to meet new friends and sit amongst professionals from the ASO, SA Police Band, Adelaide University and the state’s most passionate teachers.
You’re commissioning a piece from Belle Smibert; why was it important for you to use this festival to create and present new Australian music for these instruments, in addition to strengthening the community through shared knowledge and performance opportunities?
K: One of the things Sarah and I are both passionate about is new Australian music, and we thought that the festival would be an ideal opportunity to share that.
Both South Australian Clarinets and Saxophones and the Adelaide Wind Orchestra have a strong history of commissioning and premiering new works, particularly from emerging Australian composers. Writing for a massed ensemble — requiring flexibility in instrumentation, catering to a wide range of abilities, and scoring for the sheer volume of players — is a really challenging brief as well, and there isn’t a lot of music available to draw from. Belle was a natural choice, despite being a string player, but we won’t hold that against her! She’s an incredibly talented emerging composer based in Adelaide, and we were really drawn to her style of storytelling through music.
This commission also gives all our festival attendees the opportunity to be involved in bringing a piece to life for the very first time, which isn’t something that everyone gets to experience in their musical journey.
Looking ahead, we’d love commissioning a new Australian work to become an annual feature of the festival. Over time, we hope to build a body of repertoire written specifically for our clarinet and saxophone community, and also provide opportunities for emerging Australian composers to have their work performed.
Clarinet and saxophone are still very distinct instruments. What was behind the decision to bring these two specific instruments together — especially when they traditionally have such different relationships to chamber and orchestral music?
K: That’s a really interesting question, because while clarinet and saxophone often occupy different spaces in the musical world, there’s a lot of overlap within the communities that play them.
In both professional and community music settings, doubling between the two instruments is quite common. Many saxophonists started on clarinet, many clarinetists also play saxophone, and it’s not unusual for musicians to move between the instruments when performing in orchestras, concert bands, jazz ensembles, pit orchestras, and chamber groups. From that perspective, bringing the two instruments together felt very natural.
We also wanted to create an event that reflected the reality of music-making in South Australia. Adelaide is fortunate to have a vibrant musical community, but we’re a smaller city than Melbourne or Sydney. Rather than dividing people into separate events, we saw an opportunity to bring together as many single-reed players as possible, to grow connections across our community.
I think the differences between the instruments have allowed us to have a really diverse range of offerings at the festival. We have guest artists presenting workshops on generalist topics, such as breathing, tackling performance anxiety, and careers in music, and also specialist topics, such as jazz improvisation, looping, and advanced classical techniques.
In addition, we will get to hear a really broad range of repertoire through performance opportunities at the festival such as our masterclasses and chamber feature concert, where we have woodwind quintets signed up to perform alongside saxophone quartets!
The aim is that the festival reflects and caters to the diverse group of musicians making up our community. We’ll have professional and amateur players from orchestras, concert bands, jazz ensembles, schools, universities, and community groups all sharing the same space, and sitting alongside each other in our massed ensemble.
How did you select the guest artists, and how do you feel they’ll enrich the festival?
S: Diana Tolmie (pictured below) has been on our wish list for years! I first met her at the World Saxophone Congress in Croatia in 2018, and we’re in awe of her doubling skills and work as an academic. She brings an interesting perspective to our festival, and so much wisdom for the next generation of musicians curious about the realities of pursuing a career in music.
Nick Russoniello is such an inspiring and versatile guest as he’s a world-class saxophonist, educator, composer, and now specialises in looping, which will be a huge drawcard for our participants. He won the 2011 ABC Symphony Young Performer of the Year Award, and it feels like the perfect time for him to headline the festival as there are three saxophonists in this year’s semi-finals. He’s premiering the wind band version of his Concerto with the Adelaide Wind Orchestra, and we just want to showcase how versatile and exciting these instruments can be.
What would you say to encourage people outside these instruments to attend the performance?
K: I’d encourage people not to think of this as an event just for clarinetists and saxophonists. At its heart, it’s a celebration of great music and the incredible musicians of all ages, levels, and backgrounds that we have here in South Australia.
We’re bringing outstanding interstate guest artists Diana and Nick to Adelaide, but we’re also excited to showcase a wealth of local talent. Our two concerts will feature a huge variety of repertoire and performance styles, from chamber music through to large ensemble works, so there really is something for everyone.
Also, there’s the spectacle of the massed ensemble. It’s not every day you get to see 100+ clarinetists and saxophonists performing together on the Elder Hall stage, plus the premiere of a brand-new Australian work commissioned especially for the festival. That’s a pretty unique experience.
Ultimately, we hope people will come along because they love music and want to support local arts and culture. We made this festival for our amazing community of musicians, and we just want to share that with as many people as possible.
The Adelaide Clarinet & Saxophone Festival takes place at Elder Hall, University of Adelaide from 15-16 August. Click here for the full program and artist line-up.
Images supplied. Above: Diana Tolmie.
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