Music producer Mark Opitz honored with ANU Coombs Fellowship

The Australian National University has honoured multi-award winning record producer Mark Opitz with the prestigious HC Coombs Creative Arts Fellowship for 2018. Mr Opitz, known for creating the sound behind Australia's greatest bands like INXS, The Divinyls, Cold Chisel, The Angels and AC/DC, has an ambitious program for his fellowship, including the production of a body of new musical works with a distinctive Australian sound. In an innovative research project, entitled 'Performance in the Studio' , the public will be invited to watch the recording and production of new pieces of classical, jazz, contemporary and Indigenous music composed initially by staff and students of the ANU School of Music. Mr Opitz, who will also be the subject of a special open public event to talk about his career, said he wanted his fellowship to honour HC Coombs' beliefs about inclusivity. "I'm at the point in my career where I've learnt a lot and I have a lot to pass on and the Coombs Fellowship is an amazing vehicle for this," he said. "I have plans for a performance piece of about 25 minutes long which I want to be very inclusive of all Australians and to have a large Indigenous element to it. "My idea for an ANU-branded music recording techniques app is already underway with a few musical instruments, but I want to expand it to include classical and Indigenous instruments as well, and involve students the whole way.