ANU composer wins indigenous composer grant

Composer Dr Christopher Sainsbury from The Australian National University (ANU) has won an inaugural national grant to help promote the work of Indigenous composers in Australia. Dr Sainsbury, from the ANU School of Music, has been awarded an Australasian Performing Rights Association (APRA) grant as part of the inaugural Indigenous Composers Initiative. The initiative gives emerging Indigenous composers the chance to be mentored by established composers, to craft original pieces, and to have the music showcased. Dr Sainsbury said the idea was sparked by a need he identified from his years working at Eora College in Redfern, Sydney. "In that setting, I realised there were a lot of Aboriginal musicians who could potentially be composers in a broader sense," he said. "Many were sort of skirting around the edge, or actually engaged in new music through the music they were doing for film and theatre." Dr Sainsbury and his partners in the project recognised that many Indigenous musicians needed some kind of support to help them emerge as composers. He cited cultural and family obligations and other unique situations they may face.