Research Background

Recorded in Berlin, Brisbane and Tev Aviv, Two Step is an original recording conceptualised by Cathy Milliken, and involving collaborators from around the world – William Barton, Yael Berolsky, Soren Birke, Julian Day, Brett Dean, Karen Power, Vanessa Tomlinson, Carol Robinson, Michael Schiefel, Robyn Shulkowsky, Wu Wei. Cathy Milliken is an Australian oboist and composer currently working from Berlin. This recording is a series of improvised duets used as a starting point for creating a long musical narrative from the duet resources. The text throughout, which comes from a series of short poems from Gertrude Stein's 1914 'Tender Buttons', flows through the recording. Cathy says "Gertrude Stein was inspired by the cubist painters, layering repeating images, to create a sort of three-dimensional imagery. It has a type of mesmerising effect that goes beyond the words. I was interested in seeing whether the texts stand out or merge with the music; I feel they do both." The whole piece feels like an unfolding journey featuring a series of commentators.

Research Contribution Vanessa and Cathy have worked together for many years in a collaborative composition framework. Sharing an historical grounded in notated contemporary music performance, and a parallel investigation of improvisation and composition, this is the first time they have recorded together. Vanessa is also a supervisor of Cathy’s PhD and they share a deep understanding of each others sound process.

Research Significance Two step is a remarkable snapshot of Cathy Millikens life through the lens of duo recordings. It has been released on the nationally significant Tall Poppies label (TP261, 15.3.2020) and was funded through the Australia Council for the Arts. The CD has international distribution and has been broadcast in Australia and Germany.