New centre enlivens the creative and performing arts

Pen and music: The new J.M.Coetzee Centre for Creative Practice draws on music and creative writing.
Full Image (188.49K)

Monday, 5 March 2012

Nobel laureate for Literature J.M. Coetzee will this week launch a University of Adelaide research centre which draws on the strengths of music and creative writing.

The J.M. Coetzee Centre for Creative Practice has been established to explore the collaborative processes behind traditional and cutting-edge art forms, including music, opera, film, dance, ballet, and sound installations.

The official launch in Adelaide this Thursday 8 March will demonstrate the focus of the new Centre with a world premiere of Graeme Koehne and Peter Goldsworthy's complete Ring Tone Cycle, a mini-operetta that tells the story of a love affair in a text message age.

"The Centre launch is a perfect example of what can happen when consummate artists from different disciplines pool their talents to produce outstanding works of art," says Centre Co-Director Professor Mark Carroll.

"Graeme Koehne is one of Australia's leading composers and Peter Goldsworthy an award-winning author, whose novels have sold over 400,000 copies in Australia alone. Together they have created an amazing operetta," Professor Carroll says. "The music will be performed by the Seraphim Trio, with soprano Lisa Harper-Brown."

The J.M. Coetzee Centre for Creative Practice is unique in Australia in that it aims to produce not just conventional research outputs such as books and articles, but also multidisciplinary works of art.

The two disciplines involved at the University of Adelaide - Creative Writing and Music - are both rated above world standard by the Federal Government's official research measure ERA (Excellence in Research for Australia).

"Given Adelaide's well-deserved reputation as a cultural powerhouse, the establishment of the Centre is timely," says Professor Carroll.

"This Centre is a perfect fit for the State, situated on the cultural precinct of North Terrace and showcasing the strengths of the Elder Conservatorium and the Creating Writing discipline.

"The Elder Conservatorium is the oldest and one of the most distinguished music institutions in Australia and is home to many world-renowned musicians and researchers of international repute.

"Its sister discipline in this research centre - Creative Writing - is chaired by award-winning novelist Professor Brian Castro, a past winner of a number of state and national prizes, including The Australian/Vogel literary award, The Age Fiction Prize and the National Book Council Prize for Fiction." Professor Castro is also a co-director of the Centre.

Nobel laureate J.M. Coetzee is a Professor of Literature at the University of Adelaide, and involved in the new Centre alongside Dr Peter Goldsworthy, Adjunct Professor, and Dr Eva Hornung, Visiting Fellow, both household names in the literary scene.

Professor Carroll says the J.M. Coetzee Centre for Creative Practice will have a tremendous impact on South Australia's cultural scene and will also attract national attention.

"There will be some really innovative research and creative works coming out of the Centre. It will be a place where curiosity, inspiration, and innovation come together," he says.

Contact Details