director of nz - APRA

APRA is an association of composers, authors and publishers of
music in Australia, New Zealand and the South Pacific having
affiliations with similarly constituted organisations around the world.
BRANCHES:
WRITER DIRECTORS:
Arthur Baysting [New Zealand]
Eric McCusker
Richard Meale LLD AM MBE
Jenny Morris
Chris Neal
Michael Perjanik [Chairman]
PUBLISHER DIRECTORS:
Robert Aird
Universal Music Publishing Pty Ltd
John Anderson
EMI Songs Australia Pty Ltd
Ian James
Mushroom Music Pty Ltd
Adam Lang
Warner/Chappell Music Australia Pty Ltd
Fifa Riccobono
J Albert & Son
Damian Trotter
Sony/ATV Music Publishing Australia Pty Ltd
CHIEF EXECUTIVE:
Brett Cottle LLB
DIRECTOR OF ADMINISTRATION:
Nicholas Hampton FCA
DIRECTOR OF FINANCE:
Alexander Jeliba Fasa Senior
DIRECTOR OF NZ OPERATIONS:
Mike Chunn
REGISTERED OFFICE:
6-12 Atchison Street
St Leonards NSW 2065
Telephone: 02 9935 7900
Facsimile: 02 9935 7999
Email: apra@apra.com.au
Internet: www.apra.com.au
VICTORIA
3-5 Sanders Place
Richmond VIC 3121
Telephone: 03 9426 5200
Facsimile: 03 9426 5211
QUEENSLAND
168 Barry Parade
Fortitude Valley QLD 4006
Telephone: 07 3257 1007
Facsimile: 07 3257 1113
SOUTH AUSTRALIA
Unit 54, 55 Melbourne Street
North Adelaide SA 5006
Telephone: 08 8239 2222
Facsimile: 08 8239 0744
WESTERN AUSTRALIA
Suite 1, 12-20 Railway Road
Subiaco WA 6008
Telephone: 08 9382 8299
Facsimile: 08 9382 8224
NEW ZEALAND HEAD OFFICE
92 Parnell Road
Auckland, New Zealand
Telephone: 64 9 379 0638
Facsimile: 64 9 379 3205
PO Box 6315
Auckland, New Zealand
APrap EDITOR:
Debbie Kruger
March APrap CONTRIBUTORS:
Marie-Louise Ayers
Terri Janke
Rebecca Moore
APrap EMAIL:
krug@apra.com.au
The opinions expressed in articles
in APrap are not necessarily those
of the Australasian Performing
Right Association.
APrap is designed and produced
by Elastik Pty Limited.
Cover photo: Tony Mott
© 2003 Australasian Performing Right
Association Ltd, Sydney, Australia.
Print Post No:
255003/02262
ISSN: 1441-4910
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WELCOME to APrap
2003 is shaping up to be a busy year for APRA and in this issue of APrap
we outline some of the major events that we’re working on for our
members. As you can see on the opposite page, it’s time to vote for APRA
Song of the Year. The APRA Music Awards will take place in Sydney on
May 19 and, as initiated successfully last year, we will also be holding
separate awards nights for our Classical and Screen Music composers in
August and November respectively.
APRA will be going on the road in April, June and July with our annual
Member Seminar program, details of which you will find on page 4. You can
read the latest important information on member services in Sally
Howland’s Member News update on page 7. We bring you some fascinating
industry information from two experts – on page 3 Terri Janke,
Entertainment, Cultural Heritage and Media Lawyer and Consultant writes
about protocols for working with Indigenous creators of music, and on
page 16 Marie-Louise Ayres outlines the Music Australia project being
jointly developed by the National Library and ScreenSound Australia.
APrap contains two new features in this issue which will become regular
items. “What’s My Scene” (with thanks to Dave Faulkner) is a new column
where a songwriter responds on the spot to a series of questions
specifically about music. Paul Dempsey is in the hot seat this time on
page 4. And “Let’s Work Together” examines interesting collaborations
between composers who might not ordinarily join forces creatively. Peter
Sculthorpe and Tim Freedman talk about their friendship and co-writing
on pages 5-6.
We are looking to expand our Composer Profile features to include
members who work outside the commercial mainstream in pop and rock,
so this issue we talk to Flynn Gower of the Bondi-based group Cog about
their songwriting process.
As always at the beginning of the year, APRA was in attendance at the
Country Music Festival in Tamworth, and we spoke to three rising stars of
country songwriting on pages 11-13, as well as recapping on the
successful APRA workshops that we held during the festival on page 14.
This is the last time you will see my name as editor of APrap. It has been
a pleasure bringing you a quality members’ journal and I have thoroughly
enjoyed interviewing the wonderful songwriters and composers whose
profiles have graced these pages over the past eight issues. APrap will no
doubt continue to be an enjoyable and informative read under its new
editor.
Debbie Kruger
CONTENTS:
1 WELCOME
2 SONG OF THE YEAR VOTING
2 MEMBERS SURVEY
3 INDIGENOUS MUSIC PROTOCOLS
- Terri Janke
4 WHAT’S MY SCENE
- Paul Dempsey
4 APRA ROADSHOW
5 LET’S WORK TOGETHER
- Peter Sculthorpe and Tim Freedman
7 MEMBER NEWS
8 MUSIC BUSINESS PROFILE
- The deen
9 HAVE AWARD WILL TRAVEL
- PDA winner Rebecca Moore
10 COMPOSER PROFILE
- Cog
11 SONGWRITERS IN TAMWORTH
14 APRA IN TAMWORTH
15 INTERNATIONAL NOTES
15 3MBS COMPOSER COMPETITION
16 AUSTRALIAN MUSIC PROJECT
17 WHAT’S HAPPENING
- Publisher news
18 SCREENRAP
18 VALE
- Eric Jupp
19 WHAT’S HAPPENING
- Writer news
21 NATIONAL UPDATE
APRA MUSIC AWARDS
VOTE FOR APRA SONG OF THE YEAR
Alex LLoyd
Last year it was Alex Lloyd’s “Amazing” that
was considered by APRA members to be the
most memorable and well-crafted song of the
previous year.
MEMBERS SURVEY 2003
APRA aims to deliver the best in collective rights administration on behalf of our
members. The impact of technology and legislation domestically and internationally
continues to shape our business in profound ways. These influences present many
operational challenges to which we are dedicated to finding appropriate solutions.
APRA’s mandate, however, is as much about providing a satisfactory level of service to
members as it is about collecting and distributing money. In that sense we’re constantly
looking to improve our business practices and to respond to members’ needs more
effectively. Your input and opinions relating to our performance as a members
association are critical in helping us to develop appropriate services on your behalf.
APRA will be conducting a survey of members in April 2003. Designed to measure our
performance across a range of issues, we encourage all members to have a say by
completing the on-line survey. The survey will be conducted purely on-line and will be
sent to those members who have provided an email address. If you would like to
participate in the survey, please contact your nearest Writer Services office to ensure we
have your current email address.
Now it’s time for you to look back over
the songs that made an impact in 2002 to
vote again for APRA Song of the Year –
the highest honour an Australian song
can achieve.
Your choice is not restricted to one genre
of music. Enclosed in this issue of APrap
with your ballot form are comprehensive
lists of songs that featured in the pop,
rock, dance and country charts in 2002.
But these lists are only intended as a
guide to refresh your memory; if there is
a song you believe worthy of the award
that is not listed, you are encouraged to
vote for it. The only provisos are that the
song must be composed by an Australian
who is an APRA member, and it must have
been released and performed in 2002.
If you would prefer to lodge your vote
electronically, you can go to the APRA website
at www.apra.com.au and find both the voting
form and lists of eligible songs online.
Voting closes at close of business on
Monday March 31. The APRA Song of
the Year will be announced at the APRA
Music Awards on Monday May 19 in
Sydney.
If you have any queries about voting for
APRA Song of the Year or about the APRA
Music Awards in general, please contact
Sally Howland, Director Member Services
at showland@apra.com.au.
2

PROTOCOLS FOR PRODUCING
INDIGENOUS AUSTRALIAN MUSIC
Terri Janke Entertainment, Cultural Heritage and Media Lawyer and Consultant
A new set of protocols booklets for working
with Indigenous creators has been released by
the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Arts
Board of the Australia Council. ATSIAB
commissioned Terri Janke and Company to
develop a set of Indigenous cultural protocols
for working with Indigenous artists. The kit
includes New Media Cultures, Visual Cultures,
Writing Cultures (written by Terri Janke) and
Performing Cultures and Song Cultures (written
by Robynne Quiggin). Song Cultures and
Performing Cultures contain some useful advice
for people working with Aboriginal and Torres
Strait Islander music and musicians. These
booklets are important tools for the recognition
of Indigenous cultural and intellectual property
rights in the music industry.
What are protocols?
Protocols are appropriate ways of using
Indigenous music and cultural material, and
interacting with Indigenous musicians
and Indigenous communities. Protocols
encourage ethical conduct and promote
interaction based on good faith and mutual
respect. Protocols can cover issues that the
current law does not cover.
Indigenous music is often exploited due to
the shortfalls in protection under copyright
law. Indigenous songs, dances, stories and
knowledge were being appropriated and
commercialised without their consent,
knowledge and without them sharing in any
economic benefits. Many Aboriginal and
Torres Strait Islander songs are orally
transmitted and therefore will not meet the
material form requirement for copyright
protection. However, the person who records
that song is recognised as the copyright
holder of the recording. In the past
non-Indigenous ethnomusicologists recorded
many Indigenous songs. These tapes and
recordings are commercially used without
proper regard to Indigenous cultural rights.
This was the scenario in 1992 when Deep
Forest released an album that fused digital
samples of Indigenous music from Ghana and
the Solomon Islands with techno-dance
rhythms. The band got access to the digital
samples from the recordists who had worked
with these groups for recording the cultural
archive. Permission was not sought and some
of the groups were not credited initially.
Similar circumstances have occurred with
Indigenous Australian groups. Recordings of
Indigenous Australian songs have been licensed
without proper authority and consent.
Even traditional music should
be respected
Seeking consent for use of Indigenous music
is important even if the music is old and out
of copyright. Under Indigenous laws, the right
to reproduce or use certain clan songs is also
governed by a complex social system. The
songs are owned collectively and held in trust
by the particular custodian who may
determine whether these songs may be
performed, recorded or used in a particular way.
The protocols encourage respect for
Indigenous cultures by seeking the full and
informed consent of Indigenous groups for
use of their songs and music and allow for
negotiation of royalties for commercial uses
of Indigenous music.
Royalties and Indigenous music
Indigenous musicians have also complained
that record companies refuse to pay royalties
on the basis that the songs are traditional
and therefore there is no copyright interest
that they can claim. It is arguable that the
individual Indigenous musician does have an
interest as the interpreter and reviser of that
culture. They may also have a copyright
interest as he or she has interpreted the preexisting
song, and given it skill, labour and
effort to create a new work or an adaptation
of the work. This type of reasoning was used
in the Carpets Case (Milpurrurru v Indofurn)
to show copyright ownership in works that
followed pre-existing designs. Based on the
specific facts of these cases, the court
considered that there was sufficient scope
for individual artistic interpretation
notwithstanding that the Aboriginal artworks
in question followed pre-existing traditional
designs. It is possible that the same argument
could apply to songs.
Another issue is that many Indigenous
musicians and composers record their own
music. Many of these have no knowledge of
the mechanical copyright statutory licensing
scheme. The notice provisions do not reach
Indigenous composers and they miss out on
royalties for use of their songs. The protocols
booklets include information about collecting
societies such as APRA and AMCOS and
encourage wider promotion of these
societies’ services to Indigenous groups.
Attribution
Indigenous groups should be attributed for
their Indigenous songs. Songs identify
Indigenous people with a certain group or
with a certain area. This will have important
implications in terms of land ownership and
responsibility for land. For instance, in Mabo
v Queensland, dance and songs showed
evidence of the ongoing cultural connection
with the land. It is important to consult on
the form of attribution Indigenous people
want such as the proper wording and spelling
of names and clans.
Integrity
It is also important to seek permission to
ensure that the cultural integrity of the work
is maintained. Under Indigenous law, the
traditional custodians are collectively
responsible for ensuring that important
cultural songs are not reproduced
inappropriately. The context of the
performance or recording is an important
consideration to ensure that the music is not
used in a derogatory way. Some suggestions
concerning the context in presentation of
Indigenous music include:
• Language should only be used where its
proper meaning is known or where it is used
in the proper context.
• Observe gender restrictions. For instance,
the use of the didgeridoo is generationally
thought to be restricted to men.
• Respect the authenticity of a song.
Authenticity refers to the cultural providence
or source of a music work.
The way forward
It is hoped that people working in the
industry, such as musicians, singers,
songwriters, record companies, event
managers, arts organisations and others
working with Indigenous music will apply or
adapt the protocols.
For copies contact the Australia Council’s
Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander Arts Board
PO Box 788, Strawberry Hills NSW 2012
T: 02 9215 9065 Toll free: 1800 226 912
F: 02 9215 9061 Email: atsia@ozco.gov.au
www.ozco.gov.au
WHAT’S MY SCENE?
Paul Dempsey SOMETHING FOR KATE
What are you currently working on?
Album no. 4. Can't wait to get into the studio
and roll tape.
What are you listening to?
Fiona Apple - When the pawn..., Flaming Lips
- Yoshimi battles the pink robots, Dead Man
Ray - Cago, REM, Springsteen, Dylan...
What is your favourite book about
music?
I've read lots of bios but I don't think anyone's
writing about music has ever produced the
same reaction in me as LISTENING to music.
So I can't really say that any book about music
has left an impression on me.
What is your favourite film that is
about music or is a musical?
There's more music in 2001 - A Space Odyssey
than there is dialogue so I'll go with that.
What is your favourite music
website?
www.theonion.com is a great site which often
has good interviews with different bands.
What is the best live gig you've
ever been to, whether you were on
the bill or not?
It's a tie between Fugazi at the Collingwood
Town Hall, Radiohead at Festival Hall and Jon
Brion at Largo.
APRA Roadshow
APRA’s ever popular capital city roadshow series of Members Seminars kicks off this year
in Melbourne at Chapel off Chapel on Monday April 7. The theme this year will focus on
exporting music overseas and related APRA international issues and will also cover in some
detail the various grants funding programs available through bodies such as the Australia
Council, AIR (Association of Independent Record Labels) and other government initiatives.
A panel of industry experts will be on hand to answer the most enquiring of minds.
Where and when
Melbourne April 7
Brisbane April 8
Sydney June 16
Adelaide July 7
Perth July 8
What was the quickest song you
have written and which song took
the longest to write?
Quickest was probably “Monsters”, took about
half an hour, and the longest was probably “20
Years” which I messed around with for about
six months. There are songs on our new album
that I've spent 18 months on though...
Who have been your greatest
musical influences?
I can never answer this question as I believe
that I am influenced by everything to an
indefinable degree, music I don't like as much
as music I like, ad jingles, nursery rhymes,
windscreen wipers, politicians...
What do you enjoy the most about
co-writing?
I've never written with anybody other than
Clint and Steph, we have a mutual trust and
instinct that we all get a lot of excitement
from and I like being in our exclusive little club.
Who would you most like to
collaborate with and why?
I really enjoy what our band does and how we
do it and although there are endless writers
that I admire, I prefer to do what I do and let
them do what they do. It's an intensely
personal thing for me. I can only express myself.
What is your favourite song that
you've written?
I couldn't say, it changes all the time
depending on my mood.
At the time of writing, all venues had not yet been locked in so keep your eye on the APRA
website for further updates. To register your attendance get in touch your nearest Writer
Services office. Contact details are on the back cover of this issue of APrap.
What song by another writer do you
wish you'd written and why?
I've fallen in love with millions of songs that I
didn't write, I want to fall in love with
something I DID write. That is the reward I
look for in writing in the first place.
What is a lyric that you can't get
out of your head?
Usually the most banal ones.
What is the best career advice you
were ever given?
"If you want to seize the sound, you don't
need a reservation" – “Target” by Fugazi.
If you were not a songwriter, what
might you have ended up doing?
This question always sends me into a
psychological tailspin that can take up to four or
five days to fully recover from. We'll never know...
Paul Dempsey
4

Debbie Kruger finds out how a classical music icon and a rock raconteur
found each other and made beautiful music together.
Tim Freedman’s knowledge of contemporary
Australian classical music was limited until
recently.
“I didn’t learn the piano classically. I had a
lady on the other side of the suburb who gave
lessons and she taught by giving me a
piece of music that I enjoyed playing. So
consequently I’m a black stump musician, and
it wasn’t until I did some formal classes at
high school that I became aware of Peter’s
work. The music teacher played us some of
his compositions that reflected the sounds of
the Australian bush. I think that’s generally
where Peter gets talked about at high schools.
I had only one album before I met him. And
then when I started hearing some of his work
with the ACO I bought three or four CDs so
I was aware of the Laments and “Port
Essington” and his String Quartets. So I came
to Peter late in life.”
Now Freedman has just completed a tour with
the Australian Chamber Orchestra, in a program
that featured not only new arrangements of
songs made famous by his band The Whitlams,
arranged by Richard Tognetti, Daniel Denholm
and Peter Sculthorpe, but also works by John
Adams, Nicolò Paganini and Arvo Pärt. For
someone whose only experience of a classical
concert was occasionally taking overseas
visitors to the Opera House, it’s been quite an
evolution for Freedman, and he has his
friendship with Sculthorpe to thank for it.
Prior to meeting Freedman, Sculthorpe’s only
serious forays into the world of pop and rock
music were music theatre pieces he wrote in
the 1950s for the Phillip Street Theatre in
Sydney, and an interesting collaboration with
rock group Tully in 1970, for whom he wrote
“Love 200.”
“That was for rock group and orchestra, words
by Tony Morphett,” says Sculthorpe. “We had
LSD fog and smoke in the Town Hall. And
that was really exciting because a lot of the
kids slept on the Town Hall steps the night
before to make sure they could get tickets for
the concerts.”
The vast number of works Sculthorpe has
composed and/or arranged in his lengthy
career is breathtaking, and he shows no signs
of slowing down. He is also working on a
book – on the history of music in Tasmania
encompassing classical, rock and everything
in between – and then there is his work with
Freedman. Which is much more than just
work. The legendary classical composer and
the rock songsmith have forged a relationship
that is as natural as their musical
backgrounds are diverse.
They met at the 2001 APRA Music Awards.
Sculthorpe had won Most Performed Classical
Work for his composition “Between Five
Bells”. He kept leaving the glass-framed
award lying around – under tables, behind
other people’s chairs – and Freedman took it
upon himself to salvage it and carry it and
himself along with Sculthorpe through the
night to various watering holes. So what
did Sculthorpe think of Freedman on first
meeting?
“Well, I’d probably had too much to drink and
I loved the world. I mean, I love the world
even when I’m sober. But I thought he was
great. It’s as simple as that.” Sculthorpe’s
assistant had a collection of Whitlams
albums. “I was certainly familiar with the
music. I was thrilled to meet him because I
admired his work so much. I like his tunes, his
melodies are wonderful. I tend to be a
melodist myself. And I especially like the fact
that you can hear the words and the words
are so good, too.”
“I was just surprised that this name from my
past education was at the APRA Awards,”
says Freedman of his own impressions. “So I
was thrilled to meet Peter.”
What began as a cheerful drinking
companionship inevitably turned into a
mutually inspiring working partnership.
Photo Tony Mott
“Some of the Whitlams’ songs have attempted
and sometimes managed to display an
Australian flavour,” Freedman says. “And
Peter had been doing the same thing in a
completely different world and so when he
said he would be open to a collaboration I
just thought it could be serendipitous
because we both try to do the same thing in
different ways. I think we first started
thinking about it seriously when Peter had to
do a piece of music about the ocean for that
Sun painting down in Canberra. So he rang
me and said, ‘Do you have any words?’
It was for the John Olsen painting “Sydney
Sun” and Sculthorpe had been asked to write
a piece about it for the National Gallery’s
19th birthday. “I thought it would be good if
I could do a laid-back poppy piece combined
with my own kind of music for that,”
relates Sculthorpe. “And that’s where our
collaboration began, with a real object.”
“I was half way through writing this tune
about getting back into the water,” says
Freedman, who has arrived at this interview
straight from a day’s surfing. “So I brought it
over and said, ‘This is what I’ve got at the
moment, which fits your purpose.’ And I left it
with Peter. And he went to town. He wrote a
beautiful introduction and then he wrote
about four movements in the middle of the
song, which are very sultry and different for
Peter, in fact. And so that’s where that came
from, a sort of commission he had.”
“But as it happened, I had so much other
work on I couldn’t finish the piece for the
Gallery, so they played something else
instead,” Sculthorpe admits.
“But then he finished it for the album,” says
Freedman, speaking of The Whitlams’ Torch
The Moon. The song in question was “Out the
Back.”
“I based my harmonies on Tim’s harmonies in
order to give it some kind of connection,”
Sculthorpe explains. “Tim’s first harmonic
progression is from a C major chord to a B flat
7 chord. And ‘Out The Back’ oscillates a lot
between those, so so does my piece.
Otherwise I didn’t try to relate too much to
Tim’s piece. But Tim’s piece is in there.”
The result is not so much two separate works
glued together – even though Sculthorpe and
Freedman describe it that way – but one
seamless piece that carries the listener
through a series of moods. Ironically,
Freedman says he was trying to decrease the
use of strings when he was writing for Torch
the Moon. “I was actually on this album trying
to make it a bit simpler, just the four-piece
band. But that particular song was suited to
the dreamy strings that he could have written
so well, so there are lush moments in an
otherwise bit broader record, I think.”
“Ease of the Midnight Visit,” was instantly
Sculthorpe’s favourite, so when the opportunity
came up to write orchestrations for two of
Freedman’s songs for the ACO tour, that was
an obvious choice after “Out the Back.” While
their work together is actually done separately
– Sculthorpe taking Freedman’s finished song
and embellishing it– there is plenty of dialogue
and feedback. Sculthorpe, for instance, was
discussing his intention to have the first third
of “Ease of the Midnight Visit” as a duet for
ACO artistic director and lead violinist Richard
Tognetti, and Freedman has some thoughts
about what he wanted to follow.
“I asked for some buttressing in the chorus. I
always imagined there would be a slight swell
in the chorus. So I respectfully asked Peter if
he could do a bit more work.”
“I’m really pleased about what Tim said,”
Sculthorpe responds. “I think I can really do
something beautiful there, because it’s such a
lovely chord.”
Beyond exchanging ideas for the work in
hand, Sculthorpe and Freedman have not
talked together about their individual writing
methods. “I think what it is, is that you look
up from the piano and you put your pencil in
your mouth,” says Freedman. “You can’t really
dissect that. You just imagine the sounds.
Peter has such a magnificent ear that he
probably thinks – like a good chess player –12
moves ahead. Peter is probably thinking eight
bars ahead, whereas I go two beats at a time.
I go that far and then I try and put another
brick on the melody.”
So will the two work on a larger project
together? An album of collaborations a la
Burt Bacharach and Elvis Costello, perhaps?
“We haven’t got any plans at the moment
but I’d love to develop my ear and my
writing for the knowledge that Peter has and
do some stuff in the future,” says Freedman.
“I don’t see us doing a whole album – I’d have
to move in for a year.”
Sculthorpe recoils. “Oh my god, I’m moving out.”
Freedman suggests a project in reverse could
be stimulating – if he were to take one of
Sculthorpe’s completed pieces and do
something with it. He suggests “Djilile,”
which he heard performed last December in
Canberra when Sculthorpe gave his extensive
archive of papers to the National Library.
“‘Djilile’ arranged for percussion. I think you
could easily do something with that,” the
elder composer says approvingly.
Sculthorpe is happy to acknowledge some
tangible effect of his experience of working
with Freedman. “I had to write a piece for
oboe and piano for the Cheltenham Festival
last year. And that was very influenced in
style by ‘Out the Back.’ Harmonically,
melodically and so on. It’s just a very relaxed
piece. There’s one part in the middle called ‘At
Circular Quay’ where we begin with the
sounds at night in Circular Quay and then an
aria starts drifting across the water from the
Opera House. Well, I don’t think I would ever
have written a piece like that if it hadn’t been
for Tim or just working with Tim.”
Freedman beams. “It makes me feel glad that
we’ve been able to bump each other sideways
and move along different tangents than we
may otherwise.”
So what of Sculthorpe’s effect on the rock
songwriter? “Peter’s total spectrum is much
broader than mine so I just try and digest
these strange dissonant sounds. Because
Peter’s not trying to make things palatable to
a mainstream audience he merely answers to
his own aesthetic. And that makes for very
interesting tonal flavour and colours which I
need to develop so that my writing keeps
interesting me.”
Sculthorpe then looks at his young friend
just a little sheepishly. “I don’t plan to be
unfaithful to you, Tim, but at the last APRA
Awards Bruce Rowland and I were carrying
on that we’re going to collaborate with some
country music.”
Look out Kasey Chambers.
6

MEMBER NEWS
Sally Howland, Director Member Services, APRA
THE DEEN
MUSIC BUSINESS PROFILE
Dean Ormston, Director, General Performance Licensing, APRA
On-line cue-sheet facility
The ability to submit cue-sheet information
electronically to APRA is now a reality. Developed
in-house by APRA, the on-line cue-sheet facility,
created specifically for members working in film and
television as well as broadcasters and producers of
audio visual product, is the latest on-line service
available to members via the APRA website.
The new system has twin aims:
• to provide members and music users with an
accessible and efficient system of capturing cuesheet
related data electronically by access to a
web based system, and
• to enable APRA to make significant efficiencies
in cue-sheet data management
One of the principle features of the system which
will deliver resource efficiencies is its integration
capabilities with APRA’s proprietary computer
system, CMS (Copyright Management System).
Live Performance – ALERT!
Most members will be familiar with APRA’s
LPR (Live Performance Return) system, which
relies on members’ self reporting of gigs for
distribution purposes. As such, the system is
wholly dependant upon the honesty and
accuracy of members’ claims. Sadly, it
appears that some members have been
overstating their submissions. The effect of
this is that, ultimately, the LPR distribution
pool is diminished by inaccurate claims with
lower royalty returns to members.
Because of the increasing number of
inaccurate claims, APRA has stepped up its
verification program of LPR claims to ensure
fair and equitable distributions to all
members. For the benefit of members, the
verification program will centre on the
NZ Pay TV
Whilst the web-based system quite simply provides
an alternative to the traditional paper based cuesheet
by enabling users to lodge data on-line, the
resultant administrative benefits will be realised
through much of the back-end processing
functionality, previously undertaken manually.
At the forefront of international best practice and one
of only few such applications available around
the world, features of the new system include:
• on-line search facility
• cloning functionality
• secure members/client log-on
• automatic production & works matching
• collation of multiple work entries
Members wishing to use the new system should
contact Michelle O’Donnell on 02 9935 7959 or
email modonnell@apra.com.au.
following three-point plan:
1) Gig tracking – APRA’s General Performing
Licensing Department maintains a “gig-track”
data base which records all advertised gigs
nationally.
2) Compliance Officers - will attend specified
gigs to determine;
a. The number of works performed
b. The ratio of original works to cover
versions performed
3) Venue check – Verification of actual
performances will be sought from licensees.
Information collected from the above three
sources will then be matched against claims
from members to determine accuracy. APRA
cannot accept LPRs which are inaccurate and
will not distribute on the basis of false
information. In the event of conflicting details,
members will be asked to submit a Statutory
Declaration to accompany their claims.
The importance of maintaining the integrity
of the APRA system is critical to its success.
The verification program is an important part
of the APRA system, and just because you are
asked to submit a statutory declaration does
not mean that APRA believes you have
deliberately submitted incorrect information.
As many LPRs as practical will be verified.
Please note that APRA takes a particularly strong
view against fraudulent claims and will have no
hesitation in initiating legal proceedings should
the circumstances warrant it.
APRA’s distribution analysis of New Zealand Pay TV has undergone a significant review with the result that an additional eight channels,
including two dedicated music channels J2 and Juice are now subject to a census (100%) analysis. The new scheme comes into effect from
D40A; that is the performance period commencing 1 July 2002. The New Zealand channels included for distribution are:
Cartoon Network, Discovery, Hallmark, Juice, J2, Movie Max, National Geographic, Nickelodeon, Sky 1, Sky Movie, TCM
Important: Statements covering New Zealand earnings
Trans-Tasman fiscal and governance requirements have necessitated
the incorporation by APRA of a New Zealand subsidiary company.
One important result of the change is that members' earnings will in
future be separated into Australian-sourced income, which will
appear in the normal statement, and New Zealand-sourced income,
which will appear in a second statement under the heading APRA NZ Ltd.
If any members have queries, or experience difficulties with the new
arrangements, please contact our Member Services Department.
In the November 2000 edition of APrap
we presented the research APRA had
undertaken in evaluating the use of music
to market your business. In terms of
understanding the benefits of using music
and implementing appropriate strategies
to exploit such benefits, few venues in
Australia can match the level of insight,
strategy and innovation demonstrated by
a particular Perth venue. The Aberdeen
Hotel or The deen, as it is more
commonly known in Perth, is not only
a local institution but an evolving
entertainment venue success story.
The deen does it so well that we invited
the owner, John Boucaut, and Manager,
Tim Caporn, to join us at the Australian
Hotels Association National Conference in
Melbourne in 2001, where we presented
APRA’s research to date. John starred as a
panelist, describing how his venue worked
and taking questions from the floor.
What’s unique about The deen is the
strategy behind the use of music. There
is an amazing attention to detail
designed to focus on the experience of
the visitor (punter) and which reflects
management’s understanding of their
target market. As a result they have
created a venue that generates
movement and demands investigation.
The space is divided into clearly defined
zones, each with its own characteristic
form of music, entertainment and fitout.
From the moment you enter the
venue you are drawn to its diversity.
Zone 1 is the first contact with the
venue and tends to be the busiest bar as
punters pick up their first drink to
“cruise” the venue. The artwork behind
the bar is constantly changing and
provides an added visual. From here,
punters can move between Zone 3’s live
bands and DJs, playing ‘80s & ‘90s party
classics, to the Zone 2 dance arena with
DJs spinning commercial dance tunes.
Upstairs is Zone 5 with its “transit
lounge” vibe; punters can retreat to this
area for a break, relaxing to the rotation
of DJs playing down temp lounge
grooves, French house and French hip
hop. Zone 6 is used predominantly for
functions until 10pm and then opens to
the public. Punters in this area look over
Zone 3 to bands and DJs and via
monitors can also watch what is
happening in all other Zones, including
zones which provide concept pool tables
(round, Y-shaped and L-shaped varieties),
airy balconies and the ability to bar-hop
without leaving the building.
In ensuring a memorable experience for
those inside, the venue boasts state of
the art lighting (6,000 lighting effects)
and sound and a full-time Audio-Visual
(AV) technician who oversees the $2M
AV investment. For those outside, a 6.3m
TV attached to the outside of the venue
creates huge interest and is used to
advertise weekly functions, competitions
and most importantly images of what
you’re missing out on inside.
What’s really impressive is the extent to
which The deen manages the music
performed at the venue. DJs are used to
provide context for live bands, entertain
in band breaks and most impressively
use the music to move punters between
bars to keep things busy. Bands and DJs
compare playlists on the night to ensure
that there is no cross-over and that the
same music is not played in the different
Zones of the venue.
The deen's website (www.thedeen.com.au)
reflects the interactive nature of the
venue and a desire to develop an
ongoing relationship with punters.
Margot Stafford, The deen’s Functions
and Promotions Manager, says the
website is proving to be a vital tool in
promoting the venue and has contributed
to the compounding customer loyalty
since opening the doors back in May
1998. How do they know this? They’ve
asked their target market – Perth’s 18-45
social set – who have happily handed
over their email addresses and taken part
in online surveys. And how do they know
it’s working? Prior to the current
management taking hold, the Aberdeen
Hotel had 1000 punters a week. This has
grown to and now holds at over 12,000
each week.
On the website you can join The deen's
mailing list, complete an online survey,
enter weekly competitions on the
"compzone" and view The deen's own
movie. The photo page is updated twice
a week and proves to be the most
popular area of the site. The site also
covers information on The deen's bands
(covers and originals), DJs, dancers and
an up to the minute gig guide. The intent is to create a
one stop shop for all you need to know about the venue.
The deen has a clear mission, to be market leader in
providing entertainment at the highest level. In this
it succeeds.
Thanks to John Boucaut and Margot Stafford for
providing reference material.
8

won the APRA Professional
Development Award grant for rock music
composing in 2001. Late last year she headed
overseas and reports here for APrap.
The APRA Professional Development Award changed my life greatly
because it allowed me to move further forward with music, and create
greater space for it along side motherhood. Travelling to Ireland for
music had been a goal of mine for many years. It was amazing to finally
be in the hills and in the jam sessions I had dreamed of! I spent the first
few weeks of the trip in London with the focus on networking and
following up contacts I had made in Australia before I left. Many new
doorways opened up for me while I was there. It was an awesome feeling
to be amongst so many people. I absolutely loved London! I connected
with affiliated writer societies who had branches there such as ASCAP
and BMI. I found I was well supported by them and explored contacts at
Sony, EMI, Warner Chappell and Windswept Pacific. I am looking forward
to connecting further with people there when I return, with the view to
recording and publishing deals, both in the UK and here in Australia.
Through songwriter Cathy Ogden, who I met with also in London, I
secured a booking agent named Joe Mahon for my tour of Ireland. He
and I spent several weeks organising and promoting these Ireland shows
and they seemed well received by the Irish press with newspaper articles
and a radio show in Belfast!
The Federation of Music Collectives in Dublin put me in contact with a
songwriting group and the band Rikmandu. Rikmandu are a group from
Northern Ireland organising shows with many bands, and I played two
separate nights with them. At the Belfast performance I found myself
amongst some hardcore young punk, ska and metal crew! I found this
experience pretty amusing and inspiringly daunting as I was playing
them Aussie Celtic (as they described it) Folk Rock. They turned out to
be one of the most enjoyable crowds I’ve ever played to!
The gigs in Ireland sent me all over the countryside. It was a gift to
finally just be there. I spent much time learning the Irish guitar
technique, which is a revelation for me in guitar playing. I love it. I
played in as many traditional jams as I could, as well as performing my
own sets. I visited and jammed in The Charlatans pub and in towns such
as Galway, Portlaoise, Portstewart and the musicians’ town of Doolin. I
also played at the Dublin Ruby Sessions and the Kashmir Klub in London.
Whilst in Ireland I met with producer Jerome Rimson. He is keen to send
my music to Germany where he believes there is a good market for it.
Performing live at my “welcome home” show
in Sydney at the Cat & Fiddle
The trip greatly inspired my love of art and I visited the National Gallery
in London and many pre-historic art sites and castles. I also visited
Stonehenge and Glastonbury as specific research for my writing and to
find greater understanding of the depth of our history.
One of the greatest musical highlights of the trip was meeting Martin
Russell of the Afro Celt Sound System. He heard me play in London and
invited me to his studio. I was so happy to be back in a studio again! A
familiar place in the mad London world! I was awed to find out that this
studio in another form had been the recording place of the Pink Floyd
album The Wall! Some real English rock history! It was an honour to
meet Martin and hear the Afro Celts music again. The Celts have worked
with amazing people like Peter Gabriel of Real World Records, Sinead
O’Connor, Robert Plant and many others. I gained so much from my time
there and it was good to experience the professional sounds and
production of such amazing music. Martin has put forward my recent
CD for consideration in the WOMAD touring program and I can see this
as a great place for me to play and meet people.
I was also happy to have the chance to co-write with Brian Nash, or
Nasher (of Frankie Goes to Hollywood) in his London studio. This was a
fun and inspiring experience.
I spent my final evening in London at the Dominion Theatre in
Tottenham Court Rd. I was hypnotised into seeing the rock musical We
Will Rock You (written by Queen and Ben Elton) by their giant billboard
advertising which had the word ROCK about four metres high!!!
This Professional Development Award has provided me with many great
opportunities. The chance to take a short break from motherhood has
allowed me to stay in touch with what I want to achieve in my life and
through music. Thanks to this award I was also able to finance the
recording and production of my recent EP titled Butterfly Catcher, for
which I also did the cover artwork. I am so grateful to APRA, The Push
Victoria and all those involved, for their support of my work. It has been
an amazing and rewarding experience and I am looking forward to the
next step of establishing a band and management in Sydney this year
and continuing to write.
Winning my PDA grant in Sydney 2001
Cover artwork
for Butterfly Catcher
COMPOSER PROFILE
COG
Debbie Kruger talks to Flynn
Gower of Bondi’s award-winning
nu-metal band and discovers
these songwriters are not a cog
in any conventional wheel.
Flynn Gower works a day job as a
construction worker. His co-writer Lucius
Borich supplements his income working in a
café. It’s no easy route to success for these
musical voyagers as they steadfastly remain
outside the square while keeping their sights
firmly fixed on long-term success.
Named Best Emerging Live NSW Band at the
Australian Live Music Awards last December,
Cog has a major following on the east coast
and appearances at recent Big Day Out
concerts continued their assault on the ears
and minds of enthusiasts who seek
something challenging in their music.
“I felt what I was hearing on the radio was
predominantly a load of crap and I thought it
was totally uninspiring and I thought, I can
do better than that,” says Gower, the 30-year
old guitarist and lead vocalist, about his
impetus. “What was coming to my ears was
lacking, it was sloppy, it was lazy, apathetic.
I thought there was a lot of music that was
like they deliberately didn’t take it seriously
because they were afraid of truly trying.”
The music that most inspired Gower as a
teenager was 1970s hard rock and pulsating
pop, from AC/DC and Led Zeppelin to the
Saturday Night Fever and The War of The
Worlds soundtracks. And Ram Jam. “’Black
Betty’ used to get played a lot, that was a big
favourite,” Gower recalls. Later, when
songwriting became an occupation, Jeff
Buckley became an instructive force. A late
Photo Karen Blackall
bloomer musically, Gower started playing guitar
at 21 and a year later started writing music with
friend Rohan Mellick, with whom he went on to
form The Hanging Tree with Lucius Borich,
Daniel Parkinson and Emmy Walters.
“Back then if you called a song a song you
were being a dickhead. You didn’t want to
take it too seriously. If anyone started
calling things verses and choruses… It was
just about writing music and riffs and
sections that were just going to make people
lose it and go crazy in a good way.”
While writing music was a collaborative
effort, lyric writing was always the domain
of the lead singer, in that case Walters.
When The Hanging Tree dissolved and Gower
teamed up again down the track with Borich
to form Cog, the same practice held.
Between them they had accumulated a
wealth of riffs and parts of songs which
combined became the works that make up
their two EPs Just Visiting Part 1 and Part 2.
Because neither saw himself as a singer,
their writing was limited to the music. They
believed adding lyrics at that stage would
have been presumptuous.
“We were conscious of which parts we were
considering verses and middle-eights and
choruses and whatever else. But we were
thinking that we don’t want to tread on
anyone’s toes and give them ideas and prevent
them from exploring the music themselves
and perhaps coming up with something else
that we wouldn’t have come up with.”
When Gower finally decided to take on the
vocal duties himself, the lyrics came. Essentially,
the words were borne from the music.
“I didn’t care if it made sense or not. What I
was primarily concerned with was the
melody, the phrasing especially and the
phonetics. I used to make stuff up that
wasn’t words at all, it was just funny sounds
and stuff, and the start of ‘Bondi’ for
instance is ‘I ain’t got a head on ahead.’ It
doesn’t make any sense and I don’t care, it
doesn’t bother me in the slightest.”
The songs were given titles before lyrics were
added, and even if the content had nothing to
do with the title, the title always stuck.
“’Bondi’ has got nothing to do with Bondi. We
just wanted to call one of our songs ‘Bondi’
because that’s where we came from. And the
funny thing is we’d name a song ‘Stretch’ or
‘Paris, Texas’ – two songs off Part II. We called
‘Paris, Texas’ after the movie Paris Texas,
which blew us away, we thought it was an
unbelievable film, we just loved the story and
the ideas. But what happened there was we
were hoping to write a song along those lines,
expressing the same thoughts and ideas. But
that ended up being ‘Stretch’. And ‘Paris,
Texas’ became something totally different. It
didn’t matter. ‘Stretch’ is about ‘Paris, Texas.’
But we didn’t care.”
The song “Moschiach” was named because
Gower and Borich had seen many signs on
cars and in windows of homes around Bondi
referring to the cult Jewish messiah figure,
but the song ended up being about
Aborigines and Reconciliation. “1010011010”
was titled because of Gower’s fascination
with binary codes. “I thought, that’s really
interesting, imagine if you wrote a song
with just two notes, one representing the
one and the other representing the zero. So
I wrote a riff which is exactly like that, it
was two notes.”
Gower’s younger brother Luke plays bass, and
the trio are focusing on writing after a twoyear
period of playing live and working day
jobs to sustain themselves. Eschewing the
mainstream is their key to retaining creative
control. “For the entire duration of our
existence as Cog it’s been an extremely
pragmatic journey, and as much as we’ve
planned and wished and surmised about
certain things in the future, what we’ve
always done is do what we can do at any one
point in time. Whether that be to go into a
rehearsal room and put a demo down or
whether it means that we borrow $200 off my
old man and go to Melbourne to do a gig
down there, it’s whatever we could do we
would do. It’s very hard to be so certain about
anything in the future. We want to retain
control but we don’t want to rule out
everything.
“We’re just experiencing things on a very
small scale and if we were to become an
international act and play to people around
the world and release product around the
world then I think it could be a completely
different ball game.”
10

The Country Music Festival in
Tamworth is becoming more and more an
Australian songwriting festival, according
to Debbie Kruger, who spoke to three of
Australian country music’s songwriting
stars about how they started writing, their
inspirations, co-writing, the lure of Nashville,
and their most successful songs to date.
Catherine Britt
People often tell Catherine Britt that she has an
old soul. The 18-year old takes that as a great
compliment, showing off the tattoo on her right
hip which bears one word: Hank. “I’m a huge fan
of Hank Williams – he’s my all time favourite
singer-songwriter.”
She grew up in Newcastle with an obsession for traditional American
country music. “I was a huge fan of Dolly Parton and Loretta Lynn,”
says Britt. Her parents’ love of music brought classical, rock and blues
influences into the home, but country was the family passion, from
Hank Williams and Merle Haggard to the Louvin Brothers. She was
singing from an early age and at 12 she met Bill Chambers, who took
her under his wing.
“When I first met Bill I hadn’t really written too much; I was really just
doing all his songs and Kasey’s songs, and Dolly and Loretta, that sort
of stuff. I didn’t really have too much of a drive to write. It wasn’t like,
‘Oh, I’ve got to write songs or I’m not going to make it!’ But I just
remember writing songs. I just did it. I started writing, I guess, because
everyone else did, the people I looked up to.”
As artless as her songwriting vocation was, so too is the process of crafting
her songs of heartbreak and despair. “The way I write songs is a bit strange,”
she says. “I just sit down and it’ll be five minutes, and the song will just
come out on paper, and then I’ll have to look back on it and go, ‘Right, does
this make sense?’” I hardly ever change my words, ever, I always just write
them down and that’s it. That real five minute rush, I guess.”
The title track from her album Dusty Smiles and Heartbreak Cures was
written when she was only 15, a tender age to be writing a line like
“Dusty smiles and heartbreak cures / cannot fix what you endure.”. “I
actually thought of the title the day before and once again it just came
to me, and I really didn’t even know what it meant. And that happens
a lot of the time for me, I have to go to Mum and Dad and say, ‘Does
this make sense?’ And every time it does. But I mean – ‘endure’ – I
didn’t even know what that meant, to be honest, I had no idea.”
“46 Miles From Alice,” the first single from the album, was written on
a road trip to the Katherine Country Music Muster, again when Britt
was 15. She was camping in the Northern Territory with her parents
and her boyfriend Ben. They were fighting, and Britt was homesick for
her friends in Newcastle.
“We were actually at a place called Mataranka, approximately 200
miles from Alice. We were sitting around the campfire and I was
talking to Ben about this film about the [Granville] train crash, The Day
of the Roses, and he hadn’t seen it or heard of it. So I explained what
it was about. And he said, ‘The Day of the Roses – that doesn’t sound
like a train wreck. It should be called 46 Miles from Texas.’ And I
thought, hang on a minute, ‘46 Miles from Texas.’ And I went to the
car and wrote this song, and of course we’d been fighting, so I guess
just using that title – and I changed it to Alice of course – and the
story about that song is basically what happened out there.”
Britt’s songs have attracted a fan base that famously includes Elton
John, who will record a duet with her on her next album. “I’ve never
really had my heart broken, where somebody’s really cheated on me or
done anything really horrible like that,” Britt admits. “I can feel
heartbroken when I’m writing a song and I can cry and do anything,
without it actually happening to me. Some of the best songwriters in
the world have written songs from a different perspective.”
Last year Britt went to Nashville on the obligatory co-writing trip and
was the youngest ever Australian to perform on stage at the Grand Ole
Oprey. Co-writing was initially an alien concept to the teenage
songwriter who prefers to write in isolation.
“I hated co-writing at first, I really did not like it. I tried to avoid it,
even called in sick a few times. Ever since I was 12 all I’d done was on
my own. And if I was to co-write with someone, the only person was
Kasey because we were such great friends, and we knew each other
and we knew we both were coming from the same place when it came
to music. But there were a few songs I got out of Nashville that I’m
really happy with. It was a good experience; you’ve got to do that
stuff. I learned so much from it, too. I now concentrate a little bit more
on my words and they’re a lot more grown-up. But I probably wouldn’t
want to do it all the time.”
Because Britt lives and breathes the traditional country music she
writes and plays, there is an authenticity to her work that is
compelling. She is aware, however, of a resistance to what she does in
Australia. “A lot of people here are really against it,” she says. “They’re
really into their bush ballads and traditional Australian country. But
I’m going at it from a different approach. I’m where my roots are.”
Melinda Schneider pays homage to her roots –
the “policeman dad and yodelling mum” in her
autobiographical hit song “The Story of My Life”.
It’s a song so open and honest that people
constantly comment on how brave she is to
perform it. For Schneider, it has been a journey of
discovery to reach this point of being completely
herself in her music.
She was on stage at the age of three with her mother Mary and Aunt Rita
– the famous singing and yodelling Schneider Sisters. Singing and looking
cute came naturally, but from early on she sought more depth in her artistry.
“I knew that writing my own material was the way I was going to find
myself. Because growing up in a showbiz family, I was so into going
on stage and performing and the pizzaziness of it all. Even though my
mum and my aunty have always been into writing original stuff, too,
I used to just sing covers in Mum’s act. And I could sing anything. I
could sing a big ballad, a country song, a musical theatre song. I was
very versatile. And that actually was going to go against me, because
where was I going to go, what was my direction? Who was I? So I
knew deep down that I had to work on my writing to find myself, to
find who I was, and not just who Mary’s daughter was or Melinda the
singer/dancer/club performer or whatever I was then. I knew that that
was the secret to finding me.”
Schneider and friend Michael Carr teamed up for a prolific
songwriting partnership in the early 1990s. “The first song that we’d
written was inspired by my first broken heart, called ‘Not Worth a
Tear’, and it was a real big ballad Celine Dion/country song.”
With a wide range of musical influences – from her mother to Stevie
Wonder, from Ricky Scaggs to Whitney Houston and Nancy Wilson –
Schneider’s writing developed tentatively. “It was fairly instinctive,”
she says. “I used to just go with my gut. I’d come up with things and
not quite know how to finish them, or even lyrics that I didn’t know
what they meant. It was in a very raw state and it was only going to
get better with practice and just keep writing, keep writing, keep
writing. And polish it. The more you do it the more polished it gets.
But I wasn’t an analytical person in my writing.”
After a foray into the fashion design business – a lonely existence, she
says, confessing, “I’d sit there for hours sewing late into the night,
listening to Celine Dion and Michael Bolton” – she had her first taste
of musical success co-writing and yodelling on the Audio Murphy
dance hit “Tighten Up Your Pants.” Then she started making trips to
Nashville to write. She recorded her first album there, but admits that
while she is proud of those songs, she hadn’t yet reached the level of
maturity that her second album, Happy Tears, clearly exudes. “The Story
of My Life” was co-written with the successful songwriting team of
Paul Begaud and Vanessa Corish in an emotionally draining, creatively
inspiring three-hour session. Schneider had the opening lines about her
birth in 1971 to the policeman and the yodeller, Begaud and Corish
drew out of her the other key events of her life such as her
grandmother’s death and her wedding day, and the song took form.
“When I left, I felt like they thought I was an absolute nutcase because
I’d been so honest, like visiting my therapist. I thought ‘God, they are
going to think I am a freak, I’ve just told them every little piece about
my life, and so honestly and didn’t hold anything back.’ But I knew that
I had something special.”
From there the album was bound to have a personal thrust
throughout. Her collaboration with Billy Thorpe, “When the Last Child
Leaves Home,” was initiated by Schneider and instantly struck a chord
with Thorpe, who told her that he and his wife had felt empty when
their daughters grew up and moved out. “We wrote a real traditional
country song like a George Jones type thing.”
The most exuberant song on her album, “Can You Hear Me Down the
Hillside,” was written with Nashville-based Jim Lauderdale, who came
to Tamworth in 2002. The song features some very spirited yodelling.
“I love the Dixie Chicks and bluegrass music so it was easy for me to
write a song like that. But the decision was do I want to put a yodel
in it or not. And I was ready to. All my life I’ve been compared to my
mother. It was a very big decision for me to come to, I guess. And I
thought, well, why not? I can do it in my own way, I’m not the same
as my mother, I’m me.”
Schneider’s confidence is at an all-time high right now. A song she
wrote with Bachelor Girl’s James Roche, “Eternally” was recorded by
John Farhnam on his The Last Time album and she has just won the
Golden Guitar for Female Vocalist of the Year.
She loves to collaborate with writers both in Australia and the US.
“Probably the only difference is Nashville songwriters are a lot quicker.
They’re quick because they do it full-time, nine to five. And the more
you do it, the better you get at doing it. But a songwriter is a songwriter
no matter where they are, really, anywhere in the world. And as long as
you connect with them you’re going to get a good song.”
Melinda Schneider
Continued over...
12

Family influence is at the heart
of Michael Carr’s songwriting
impetus. His father, Warren Carr,
was an established figure in
country and rock and roll (he
played piano on the TV show Six
O’Clock Rock) as well as being
musical director at Sydney’s St
George Leagues Club for 32
years before his death in 1993.
His son, Michael, was “thrashing
around” on the piano from an
early age.
“When I was growing up in the ‘70s country
music was pop music so I was singing and
playing whatever I liked. I don’t think I was
ever particularly into one performer or one
songwriter. I just think the biggest influence
on my music was my father. He got me
interested in all sorts of music and basically
taught me everything.”
Michael Carr
Carr started putting his own songs together
from the age of seven and the notion of a
career as a songwriter came quite early. “I
saw Simon Gallaher on the Mike Walsh Show.
He had a song called ‘Australia Be Proud.’ I
really got into songs after I saw that. Because
I found out that he was a songwriter and he’d
written songs for other people, too. And I was
always really into Burt Bacharach songs. I had
more respect for the guys writing the songs
than those actually performing them.”
Like his early songwriting partner, Melinda
Schneider, Carr has a preference for big lush
ballads. He also has two strong themes
working through his writing, which are not
mutually exclusive – Australian national pride
and unabashed sentiment, often linked to his
family. His self-titled debut album is laden
with such songs, but his two most successful
works so far were in fact recorded by Adam
Brand last year. One, “The Anzac,” won Best
Heritage Song at the Golden Guitar Awards in
January.
“All of my relatives live in Newcastle and the
Cessnock area, and I spent a lot of time
growing up there and they’re all mad footy
supporters, mad pie eaters, mad Australians.
And my Dad was a real down to earth Aussie
bloke. I’ve spent a lot of time in RSL clubs in
my life and I’ve spoken to many diggers. Just
being in the entertainment industry you get
to meet all these guys. And I’ve played twoup
with the best of them on Anzac Day. Dawn
service, we used to go into Martin Place as
kids. I think it’s important to keep that alive,
keep it going through the generations.” Carr
laboured over the song for around six months.
Brand then augmented it before recording it,
as he did with another Carr composition,
“New England Highway,” a song about going
to Tamworth for the Country Music Festival.
“I had the melody and the song and the song
was [originally] about something else,” says
Carr. “It was called ‘It Ain’t Over ‘Til We’re
Done’ or something. It was really corny.” On
the drive up to Tamworth in 2001 the lyrics
suddenly came to him and by the time he
played his shows up there – an unknown
playing to “two men and a dog,” he says –
that song and “The Anzac” were good enough
to attract the attention of Brand’s manager
Graham Thompson.
Carr is more than happy for his two biggest
songs so far to have been recorded by an
artist of Brand’s prominence. “Most of the
time I get more pleasure out of hearing other
people singing my songs than me doing them.
There are some songs which there’d be no
way I’d let anyone else have them because
they’re too personal.”
Those that he keeps are often about his
family. Usually they are so close to his heart
that they write themselves. “When I wrote
‘The Greatest Man’ about my father, that was
it. I wrote that very quickly. It’s like ‘Wearing
White’ – I wrote that very fast, too. I didn’t
even pick up the guitar or sit at the piano to
write those.”
Yet sometimes the most personal songs need
an outsider’s contribution. Finishing “Up On
His Shoulders,” about his grandfather, was
proving too difficult, so reliable collaborator
Colin Buchanan was called in.
While he partakes in the co-writing
experience regularly, here and in Nashville, he
finds it an often difficult process. “You can
get two really good songwriters together that
are really talented in their own right but it
doesn’t work together for all different
reasons. I’ve written with lots of people over
the last 12 months but there are only a
handful of those people that we jelled and
got something good. I could write every day
with Melinda, because she’s a brilliant
songwriter, she’s got so much talent.”
He writes so much he can’t even keep track of
his work. He certainly doesn’t remember the first
song he wrote. “I suppose most people do but I
don’t remember some songs I wrote last week.”
In Nashville he has met some of his heroes –
Jeffrey Steele, Craig Wiseman, Bill Luther –
and hopes to write with them in the future.
Carr also hopes for a career that extends to
the United States and beyond. He is
ambitious and optimistic. But one of his
greatest wishes is to be as revered as one of
Australia’s greatest country songwriters. Ask
him if he’d like to be Australia’s Burt
Bacharach and he replies “I’d rather be
Australia’s next Graeme Connors.”
APRA held five workshops again this year on Wednesday
22 and Thursday 23 January at The Quality Hotel
Powerhouse.
These workshops were open to all
songwriters, members and nonmembers,
allowing songwriters the
opportunity to meet with well known
Australian artists Tamara Stewart,
Adam Brand, Melinda Schneider and
Nash Chambers.
Fred Eaglesmith
In conjunction with CCMC
(Contemporary Country Music
Coalition), APRA was given the
opportunity to present Steve
Wilkinson, Jason McCoy and Fred
Eaglesmith from Canada for two of
these workshops. Melinda Schneider
joined the workshop with Fred
Eaglesmith and this is what she had to
say about the experience:
“When Milly Petriella approached me
to speak at the APRA workshops in
Tamworth, I jumped at the chance. It
was a real pleasure to be able to share
my songwriting and music business
experiences with other writers. I was
enlightened, too; sharing the stage
with Fred Eaglesmith and hearing his
take on everything was just awesome.
If this great new initiative introduced
L-R: Lyn Connors, Graeme Connors, Meryl Gross
by APRA can help to make any
songwriter’s journey in this business a
little easier, I'm all for it.”
As an added bonus for the group
attending Fred and Melinda’s
workshop, Publisher Adam Lang
(Warner Chappell) joined the workshop
and gave some great advice and
general publishing information.
Everyone agreed that the workshops
were fantastic and here is some of the
feedback we received from attendees:
Just a note to thank you and your
team for the Cocktail Party and the
seminars you arranged at the
Powerhouse. Once again you
brought together the movers and
shakers of the industry and the
unknowns and up and comers. All
benefited from the networking
and the social interaction. I look
forward to being with you again
next year. – John Couzens
Garth Porter and Bruce Rowland
Thanks so much for facilitating the
workshops at Tamworth. I really
enjoyed being there and gained
some valuable insights. – Zia
Moreauic
Thank you for those workshops you
held in Tamworth. Fantastic and so
informative! – Janine Le Clair
The APRA-CCMC cocktail party held on
January 23 was also a great success,
with a full house of songwriters and
music industry players.
Tamara Stewart
L-R: Rob Potts-Allied Artists, Sally Howland - APRA, Ray
Stark - Canadian Country Music Association
Sandra Nori - Minister for Small Buisness, Tourism and
Women and Melinda Schneider
We had a great time and we look
forward to doing it all again. We will
return in 2004 with more workshops
and with new and exciting
songwriters. Please put these dates in
your diaries: Wednesday 21 and
Thursday 22 January.
If you would like to register your
interest in participating in these
sessions please email Milly Petriella
milly@apra.com.au
Congratulations to Troy Cassar-Daley for winning APRA Song of the Year at this
year’s Golden Guitar Awards with his song “Born to Survive”. For a list of all the
winners head over to the CMAA website at www.country.com.au.
Milly Petriella, Manager Writer Services General, APRA
14

INTERNATIONAL NOTES
Scot Morris, Director International Relations, APRA
Cooperation in the Asia Pacific Region.
The international body coordinating the activities of authors and
composers societies, CISAC, has a number of regional committees,
including one in the Asia Pacific. APRA is an active member and we
assist in many of its developmental activities.
In 1980 there were only six authors' societies throughout the region.
At the end of 2000 this number has reached twenty. More
significantly, the gross revenues of societies grew from some US$500
million in 1990 to reach more than US$900 million in 2000.
Traditionally, the lion's share of collections is contributed by Japan.
However, the growth of gross revenues of the other Asian societies
was significantly higher. Excluding Japan, Hong Kong and Australia,
the income of the other Asian authors' societies rose from
approximately US$9 million to almost US$40 million, a percentage
increase of over 340% over the last decade.
Copyright law in many of these territories has been slow to develop.
China's recent accession to WTO is now a primary focus of the
Committee. Many Asian countries, for example Pakistan, Bangladesh
and Brunei, do not yet have a society. In a number of other countries
authors' societies do exist, but it is a huge battle to change the
mindset of music users to get them to pay!
APRA is the oldest society in the region and we put our experience to
good use in hosting many regional training workshops and visits. In
particular our CMS documentation and distribution system is a world
leader. In March we will be training two officers from the Music
Copyright Society of China. JASRAC in Japan also is very active in
supporting developing societies in the region and is sharing some of
its IT and on-line licensing initiatives through the DAWN-ACT project.
The committee has facilitated many useful cooperation projects,
including the development of MIS@Asia by COMPASS in Singapore
for the societies in Singapore, Malaysia (MACP), India (IPRS), Thailand
(MCT), Philippines (FILSCAP), Indonesia (KCI) and the new society
created by CISAC in Taiwan MÜST. There is also a cooperative project
between CASH in Hong Kong and MCSC in China to create a Chinese
musical works database, known as “DIVA”. The Committee is also
assisting KOMCA in Korea in updating its distribution systems.
The AP Committee also organises exchange of information on
important issues such as regional satellite broadcasting, ringtone
licensing, harmonising tariff parameters in general licensing (there
was a meeting this month in Bali) and documentation and distribution
issues. It also assists societies in its negotiations or litigation with
large users, such as television broadcasters in the Philippines.
The work of the Committee is driven by our Regional Director, Mr K T
Ang, based in Singapore, who has unflagging energy and boundless
regional knowledge. Much of the work involves meetings with trade and
IP government officials in the countries as well as dealings with the
societies. We also work closely with the World Intellectual Property
Organisation (WIPO – part of the UN) in its developmental activities. The
current Chair of the AP Committee is Mr Edmund Lam of COMPASS,
with Mr Mamoru Kato the MD of JASRAC and myself as Vice Chairs.
It is certainly a dynamic cooperation, aimed at strengthening the
protection of creators in this part of the world in the “Pacific Century”.
Get the High Score 3MBS Readings National Composer Award
3MBS FM offers you a chance to receive $6000 and the chance to
have your music heard. Melbourne’s premier classical music radio
station invites composers from around the country to send in
orchestral scores for the 3MBS Readings National Composer Award.
The unique award has been developed by 3MBS in association with
Orchestra Victoria and Readings Books to promote and develop
Australian composers and showcase their orchestral works.
Starting as a Victorian-based competition in 2000, the Award is
now a national event, and has so far received over 150
composition entries during its first three years.
Entries are now being accepted for the 2003 Award, and event
organiser Adrian Basso is anticipating an enthusiastic response
from APRA members. “3MBS is dedicated to supporting emerging
artists, and we are delighted to offer our talented composers the
opportunity to have their music performed by a large professional
CISAC Asia-Pacific Committee meet up for the first time in Mumbai last year
orchestra in a large concert venue to an appreciative audience.
What could be better?”
Entry is open to Australian residents of all ages and the judges are
looking for scores not previously performed in public.
3MBS FM calls upon the talents of accomplished industry
professionals to judge the entries. Previous judges have included
conductor Richard Divall, and composer Richard Mills.
The winning piece is performed in a spectacular concert
presentation by Orchestra Victoria on Thursday 25 September 2003
at the Melbourne Concert Hall. The concert is recorded by 3MBS
FM and later broadcast.
Closing date for entries in the 2003 3MBS Readings National
Composer Award is Friday July 25.
For further information contact Adrian Basso at 3MBS FM on 03 9816 9355 or email business@3mbs.org.au.
Entry forms and competition conditions are at www.3mbs.org.au
MUSIC AUSTRALIA
Marie-Louise Ayres Project Manager, MusicAustralia
MusicAustralia is a new service being jointly
developed by the National Library and
ScreenSound Australia, National Screen and
Sound Archive, and a number of content
partners including state and university
libraries and specialist music archives.
MusicAustralia aims to provide users with a
rich online experience of Australia’s music
heritage – wherever and in whatever format
it is held.
MusicAustralia will first develop a federated
resource discovery service, based on the very
successful PictureAustralia model. The free
resource discovery service will allow users to
locate and use contemporary and heritage
digital music and music related resources in a
variety of formats and from a range of
institutions and sectors, via a single web
interface.
While users will enjoy viewing and listening
to music resources through the central
MusicAustralia interface, these resources will
continue to be collected, described, stored,
managed and delivered by the contributing
organisations. Each organisation will also
have responsibility for the selection, rights
management and permission clearances for
content. For example, digitised audio
recordings may be delivered for online
listening: for works without copyright
restrictions; where rights owners have
declared their works available for free use (eg.
Open Audio Licence); or where rights owners
have granted specific permission for a
particular form of dissemination of their
works by custodial organisations. This might
include delivery of “samples” backed up by
audio e-business services, or delivery
involving collecting agencies such as APRA.
A pilot service is now available, with the
production service due to commence in the
second half of 2003. The pilot content base is
small – just 170 items from four institutions–
and was carefully selected to test
requirements for delivering music related
items in a wide range of formats and to
explore and demonstrate the rich
relationships between printed and performed
music materials held by different institutions.
The MusicAustralia pilot allows users to
discover digitised printed music, digitised
audio recordings, “born digital” scores and
pdf derivatives, text, pictures and manuscript
items. Users can:
• simultaneously view a piece of digitised
sheet music being delivered from the
National Library’s web server, while
listening to one or more digitised sound
recordings of the same work being
delivered from the ScreenSound web server,
or from the National Library’s website. For
example, users can compare the original
manuscript version of “Waltzing Matilda”
with four different print editions, two
folklore recordings, and three audio
recordings (a formal version featuring
baritone Peter Dawson and full orchestra in
1938, the first known jazz recording
featuring Don Burrows in 1945, and a
recording of the Franklin B. Paverty Bush
Band at the official opening of the new
Parliament House in 1988);
• navigate between related music
materials, including multiple printed
editions and versions of musical works. For
example, users can experience various
interpretations by different performers of
the same musical score. Other historical
relationships are also exposed, such as the
relationship between a 1970 folklore
recording in which Alex Hood interviews
and records elderly bushman Tim
McMahon singing “Farewell to Greta”
(attributed to Ned Kelly), and Alex Hood’s
own recording of this song in April 2002;
• use and manipulate contemporary “born
digital” scores, which are produced by
composers using the music notation
softwares Finale and Sibelius. Users can
simultaneously view the digital score and
listen to the integrated MIDI file of Ann
Carr-Boyd’s “Moonbeams kiss the sea” or
simultaneously view the digital score and
listen to a performance recording, or
interact with a score by changing the
tempo or the key signature for practice and
performance purposes;
• print high quality copies of out of
copyright or copyright cleared sheet music
for research or personal use;
• enjoy a small sample of music
multimedia presentations, where digital
print music and related digitised audio
recordings are ‘synchronised’ to allow even
non music-literate users to “follow” the
sheet music and audio.
Information on system requirements
– including the need for an audio player to
play sound recordings and special plug-ins to
experience born digital scores – is available
through the MusicAustralia help page.
Alongside work on the resource discovery
service, the MusicAustralia team is also
modelling directory and interactive services
for future development. MusicAustralia users
will ultimately be able to access and navigate
a rich store of information on Australian
music, musicians, organisations and services
from a single access point.
More information at:
www.musicaustralia.org
www.pictureaustralia.org
Email: musaust@nla.gov.au
16

Michelle O’Donnell, Manager Writer Services – Film & TV, APRA
J ALBERT & SON
Monday March 10 is the date for the
Rock and Roll Hall of Fame ceremony in
New York and J Albert & Son Chief
Executive Fifa Riccobono will be on hand
to witness the induction of AC/DC
members ANGUS YOUNG, MALCOLM
YOUNG, BON SCOTT (posthumously),
Brian Johnson, Cliff Williams and Phil
Rudd. AC/DC is the only Australian band
to receive this honour – the highest in
American rock music – and will be
inducted alongside The Clash, The Police,
Elvis Costello and the Righteous Brothers.
According to RIAA the legendary
Australian band currently reigns as the
fifth highest certified band in American
music history with actual sales in excess
of 85 million albums in the United States.
Their historic recording career consists of
one of the best selling catalogues in
music history and in January 2001 they
saw a further 15 titles awarded gold,
platinum, and multi-platinum certification
by the RIAA. In 1999 the band also
received the rare and prestigious RIAA
Diamond Award for sales in excess of 10
million copies of Back In Black which has
been recently certified at 19 million
copies in the USA and is recognised as the
sixth highest certified album of all time.
AC/DC
RHYTHMSCAPE PUBLISHING
Australia's largest specialist percussion
publisher, Brisbane-based Rhythmscape
Publishing, is proud to announce recent
distribution deals with Alfonce
Production (France), Herbert Brandt
(Germany) and P'hil Publications (France).
These deals come on the back of a
very successful year that saw the
Rhythmscape catalogue grow to more
than 35 titles for percussion from the
output of more than a dozen Australian
composers. 2003 will see a CD of current
works produced, continued development
of Australia/New Zealand and overseas
distribution networks and the release of
at least six new titles. For more information
see www.rhythmscape.com.au or email
info@rhythmscape.com.au
L-R: Byron Tart, Phil Burton and Kieran Tart
(Song Shed) with Peter Hebbes
HEBBES MUSIC GROUP
In the two years since the Hebbes Music
Group was established, it has built a
respectable reputation both domestically
and overseas as one of Australia’s newest
and most active independent music
publishers and to date has signed over
25 international catalogues for
sub-publishing. Now Hebbes Music
Group has entered into an exclusive
agreement with Song Shed Australia
to administer their music publishing
interests worldwide. Song Shed’s
directors are Byron Tart, Kieran Tart and
Phil Burton (from Human Nature). They
represent a number of Australian writers
and producers including MICHAEL
D’ARCY, VIC MAURO and KATE AKHURST
and have had songs recorded by Bardot
and The Robertson Brothers.
Hebbes Music Group has also announced
the signing of a long term subagreement
with the publishing arm of
Trevor Horn’s record company ZTT (SPZ
Holdings) – Perfect Songs Ltd and
Unforgettable Songs Ltd. The catalogue
includes classic songs by writers such as
Seal (“Kiss from a Rose” and “Crazy”),
Gabrielle (“Dreams” and “Out of Reach”),
Art of Noise (“Moments in Love” and
Return of the Mack”) and Frankie
Goes to Hollywood (“Relax,” “Two
Tribes” and “Power of Love”), as well as
songs by Shane McGowan of the Pogues,
Rhianna, Marsha Ambrosius, Donal Lunny
and Sharon Shannon. The Perfect and
Unforgettable Songs catalogues are two
of the most commercial, active and
successful catalogues in the world of
music publishing today.
WARNER/CHAPPELL
MUSIC AUSTRALIA
Warner/Chappell Music Australia has
signed Paul "DC" Di Giacomo for a World
Wide Publishing Deal. DC has co-written
with BMG artist Duncan James (EP Love
Is A Dog From Hell and debut album),
Tiffany Wood (ex-Bardot) and Adel
Dahdal (Tom Bone Music Sweden
writer/producer). DC has also co-written
and produced on Rob Hirst's latest
Ghostwriters project.
Adam Lang (Managing Director, Warner /Chappell Music
Australia) and Paul “DC” Di Giacomo
UNIVERSAL MUSIC PUBLISHING
Universal Music Publishing Group
Australia and Alsi Music New Zealand
have entered into a global, long-term
joint publishing deal. Alsi is the
publishing arm of Joy Records (Sony), the
label owned by Simon Grigg, and ALAN
JANSSON, the co-writer and producer of
(among others) the multi-million selling
OMC single “How Bizarre.” Jansson is
currently co-writing and producing new
Joy Records/Alsi signings 3 The Hard Way,
whose single, “Hip Hop Holiday” was an
Australian Top 5 and New Zealand
number 1 hit, and R&B artist, Bobbie Joe
White. Both artists will have releases in
the first half of 2003.
Submissions for the next Publisher
News should be made by May 30
to showland@apra.com.au
Photo courtesy The Examiner Launceston
BRIAN MAY SCHOLARSHIP
The Trustees of the BRIAN MAY Trust have announced the inaugural
Brian May Scholarship to provide a study opportunity for promising
Australian film composers at the University of Southern California. The
Scholarship is valued at $80,000 and the course commences at the
University of Southern California (USC) in August 2003.The Brian May
Scholarship will contribute up to $80,000 every two years towards travel,
tuition and accommodation costs for a promising Australian film
composer to attend a Film Scoring Certificate course at the Thornton
School of Music. Brian May passed away in 1997 and is generally
considered to be one of Australia’s finest film composers. He rose from
leader of the highly successful ABC Melbourne Show band to compose the
score for many films both locally and overseas including Mad Max 1 and
2 and Gallipoli.
This is an opportunity to receive tuition at a leading music school in
the heart of America’s film industry. The course not only provides
first-class skills but also contact with present and future film
industry luminaries. The scholarship is open to applicants who are
ordinarily resident in Australia and who satisfy the entrance
requirements at USC. For the application form and more details go
to www.brianmayscholarship.org or contact Mr. Robert Ffrench,
Trustee for the Brian May Trust. Phone: 07 55917 555 Fax: 07 55917
450 email rffrench@ffcomlaw.com.au
A FUTURE FILM AND TV INDUSTRY
FOR THE NORTHERN TERRITORY
Members of the Film, Television and New Media industries are being
called on to help the Government develop future opportunities to
sell the Northern Territory as the place to make and produce films
and television. Already the world has seen the Territory’s talents and
landscapes in films such as Yolngu Boy, Priscilla Queen of the Desert
and Crocodile Dundee. Developing film and television productions
will also help to boost the NT tourism industry by featuring some of
the Territory’s most picturesque locations. They are calling for
written responses to the Discussion Paper, which is available at their
website address www.dbird.nt.gov.au
VALE
ERIC JUPP, most famous for his music for the
Michelle O’Donnell
television series Skippy The Bush Kangaroo, has
died in Launceston at the age of 80.
British born Eric started his musical career at
the age of 14 in a nightclub band called the
Dark Town Strutters in his hometown of
Brighton. After the Second World War he began
writing arrangements for top orchestras such as
Stanley Black and Ted Heath and in 1951 he
formed his own orchestra at the request of the
BBC and began doing regular broadcasts.
ON THE COUCH
The AGSC series of “On the Couch”
interviews hosted by composer GUY GROSS
at his Sydney home just keeps getting better
with two well known overseas composers
taking the chair late last year. First was
CHARLIE MOLE who has composed the
scores for such films as An Ideal Husband,
Othello, High Heels and Low Lifes and his
latest, The Importance of Being Earnest. The
second composer, while strictly speaking not
film and television was HAL DAVID, the
legendary co-writer of BURT BACHARACH.
Hal gave an interesting insight into some of
his experiences working on the film Butch
Cassidy and the Sundance Kid and the
unusual placement of their song “Raindrops
Keep Falling on my Head.”
WHO IS DOING WHAT?
COLIN BAYLEY is starting work on the new
series of Hot Auctions and Hot Properties…
MURRAY BURNS is continuing with the
new series of All Saints… CLIVE HARRISON
is working on the children’s series The Fairy
Tale Police… CLIFF GUY has just finished
writing and recording the new theme for
Escape with ET… BRENTON WHITE has
completed two pilot shows for Southern
Star Endemol… ROSS MCLENNAN has
composed the score for an Asian short film
Death and the Fisherman and is still working
on ANDREW GOODE’s animated film Love
Tricycle… MARTIN ARMIGER, composer and
head of Screen Composition at AFTRS has
been re elected to the board of the audiovisual
copyright society Screenrights.
VALE ERIC JUPP 1922-2003
Hal David with APRA Chairman
Mike Perjanik
Hal David with APRA member
Guy Gross
Cliff Guy
Eric worked with some of the biggest names in
the business including Frank Sinatra, Shirley
Bassey and Vera Lynn. He also released
numerous vinyl recordings including The
Romantic Magic, No Strings Attached and The
Modern Magic.
As well as the Skippy series, which is still
broadcast in numerous countries around the
world, Eric also composed the score for the film
Tim (one of Mel Gibson’s first roles), The
Intruders and the music for the Australian
television series This is Your Life.
Eric moved to Australia in 1961 at the invitation
of the ABC as its musical advisor and led the
ABC series The Magic of Music which ran from
1961 to 1975.
Eric was a true gentleman, a pleasure to work
with and he will be missed. Our thoughts are
with his wife Anita and their family.
18

Compiled by Milly Petriella and Alana Ganderton, Writer Services, APRA
milly@apra.com.au
From The Ocean is the new release from Australian singer
songwriter JOHN WIBBERLEY. The album was produced by
Mark Punch, and contains a collection of 11 deeply personal
songs that will take you on a journey through the composer’s
mind. For more information visit www.johnwibberley.com or
call LSP Management 0418 733 526.
The new single for Melbourne based band THINMAN is
“American Lapdog.” The song is a short, punchy rock tune that
comes straight to the point outlining a frustration with those
that hold power in this country and who refuse to listen to the
voices of the people that they claim to represent. The group is
comprised of four accomplished musicians, who are currently
in the process of recording their debut album which is to be
released around mid 2003. The band is currently playing live
around Melbourne. Visit www.ThinMan.info for more detailed
information.
ARCHITECTURE IN HELSINKI released their four track debut
single Like a Call in December 2002. This song is available as a
CD single or on limited edition 10” vinyl. The title track was
mixed by Tony Espie, whose mixing credits include THE
AVALANCHES and Robert Palmer, and this EP gives insight
into how the band straddle a number of genres, touching on
indie, electronica and pop, and all often within the one song.
Contact Trifekta Records for details, Email
trifekta@bigpond.com or phone 03 9489 7711.
Country/Folk act ROUGH RED decided that they would help
the Red Cross Farmhand appeal in the best way they could -
“…our rainmaking skills aren’t all that flash, so we thought the
only way we can help Australia’s farmers was to sing a few
songs instead.” The four tracks featured on the CD Four The
Farmers are heartfelt expressions of the connection the band
feels with their brothers and sisters on the land and the band
has been supported by Australia’s largest credit union, Credit
Union Australia, who will be selling the CD for only $10
through their extensive network of branches. All the money
raised will be donated directly to the Red Cross Farmhand
appeal.
“Woomera” is lifted from the yet to be titled debut release by
NOKTURNL. The work is described as a “militaristic marching
rhythm,” with “crunching guitars and layered textures,”
and has already hit the airwaves around Australia. The
album is to be released in March with a tour to follow.
www.nokturnl.com
THE BEAUTIFUL FEW have just released their third album
entitled Metal For Melbourne and Other Stories on Adelaide
label Big Rig Records. Produced by AUGIE MARCH guitarist
Adam Donovan, the album is a wildly eclectic excursion of
driving pop to country-metal. The band will be touring
interstate soon after. Further information can be obtained at
www.bigrigrecords.net or 03 9553 6887
Congratulations to singer/songwriter NATTASHA CRESTANI
who won the 2002 Best Country Artist at the Music Oz
National Music Competition, held late last year. Crestani has
just released her new single “Look My Way Cowboy” with a full
length album to follow.
THE RHYMES have always been called Murphy’s Law, however
due to ongoing confusion the band are now releasing albums
under The Rhymes. The new album, The Universe Conspires
features 15 new songs, and is available from the gigs and
through selected outlets in Perth. For behind the scenes
footage and more visit www.murphyslore.com
SHEVA's smooth, quirky
style has come alive in
their debut EP release Still
Moving. Formed at the
Academy of Performing
Arts (WAAPA) in Western
Austalia, SHEVA have
Sheva
drawn on their varied
influences to make what Paul Bevan, presenter at ABC
Newcastle, described as "complex music – well produced, well
sung and well played; its got all the ingredients". The EP features
the strong songwriting and vocal skills of Sharon Bailey and
sisters, Georgina and Victoria van der Kuil, and will be
officially launched in Perth in early March. For more
details, email shevamusic@yahoo.co.uk or phone 0409 371 314.
www.shevamusic.iinet.net.au
SEAN SENNETT’s EP Lost
and Found was released
last year to many glowing
reviews. Revolver stated
the song to be “one of
the finest pieces of pop
songwriting heard this
year,” and local songwriter
DAVID BRIDIE says it is “a
Sean Sennett signs with ABC Music
fantastic song reminiscent
of Stephen Cummings and Lloyd Cole.” Sean has just signed a
deal with ABC Music for the Lost and Found album to be
released on March 29. The first single, “My Love is a Kite,”
features george’s KATIE NOONAN on guest vocals. To see and
hear what all the fuss is about visit www.seansennett.com.au
GERSEY have released their second single from the album
Storms Dressed as Stars, the sparkling pop anthem “Baby,
You’re a Strange Girl.” The album has had an amazing response
in Australia, with Triple J announcing it feature album in
December, and the Courier Mail, Drum Media and Beat
Magazine all made it their “album of the week.” The band
recently toured North America and had sell out shows in
Los Angeles and New York, and supported Mercury Rev
and Preston School of Industry when they were back in
Australia. A national tour is planned for April. Email
trifekta@bigpond.com or visit www.gersey.com
Kingpin
KINGPIN is a four-piece rock band
whose influences range from The
Beatles, The Stones, AC/DC, KISS
and The Ramones, which ensures
that the rock quotient is readily
present but not at the expense of a
strong melody. The band pride
themselves on having a high
impact live rock show, and they toured the UK featuring as
the only unsigned act on the inaugural Fierce Festival in
London, alongside other major Australian artists. They
recently played alongside their heroes The Foo Fighters and
Queens of The Stone Age at the Perth Big Day Out this year.
www.kingpinband.com
FROST was formed in 1997. Since then they have recorded
songs with PETER “REGGIE” BOWMAN (Southern Sons),
JERRY SPEISER (Men At Work) and have had material
recorded by the Brian Canham (Pseudo Echo) and Darren
Danielson (Chocolate Starfish) band BRILL, on their selftitled
debut album. Frost recently recorded material for
SBS-New Media, who have just finished an animation clip
to one of their songs. Frost will be performing at the
Federation Square in March 2003. For more details email
cheryl@bigpond.net.au
Australian indie rock act BROTHER landed a theme song on
an episode of the network TV show, Twilight Zone, which aired
across the US last October. The show’s Executive Producer, Ira
Behr, says the Australian band’s unusual instrumentation
proved a perfect fit for the boundary pushing show. The song
titled “Bitch (inside of me)” was featured throughout the 30
minute episode. For more information contact Tona Broad at
tina@brothermusic.com
JOHN SIMMONS is a composer,
musician and technology zealot
who has worked in music, film and
television in London, California,
Tokyo, Sydney and Paris. John
was the winner of the Best
Instrumental category in the 2002
John Simmons
Johnny Dennis Awards, and the
track for which he won is now being used in the
soundtrack of new Australian film Moneyshot. Other
projects coming up include a commission to do an hour of
music for the Russian Tai Chi Shool INBI World.
ANDY CLOCKWISE launched his EP Song Exhibition in
Sydney last January. The songwriter, who admits he
“cannot be tied down to one style,” has released a record
full of brassy funk works, highway ballads and hands in the
air rock songs. At 22, Andy is one of the most popular
young songwriters and performers on the independent
inner city scene, and has regularly packed theatres, pubs
and university halls with his wildly energetic live
performances. www.andyclockwise.live.com.au
Whisper My Name is a superb collection of finely
crafted, award-winning R&B from one of Australia’s
most versatile and energetic performers, LOUISE
PERRYMAN. The album combines Louise’s pure vocals
with Australia’s finest musicians. For those that have
not seen Perryman live, this recording captures her
vibrant essence and electrifying stage presence.
Contact Trilby Productions on 0419 622 251 or email
trilby@ozemail.com.au
SOPHIE SERAFINO has released a
debut album independently, an
unusual combination of pop,
opera and violin including remakes
of Madam Butterfly, Casta Diva,
and a collection of her own
compositions. Influenced by her
upbringing in a family of classical
musicians, Ravel and Adriano
Sophie Serafino
Celentano are her favourite
inspirations. Available from Red Eye Records, Reachin'
Records, and www.sophieserafino.com
AUDREY AULD has released her second album
Losing Faith after receiving critical acclaim for her
ARIA-nominated debut in 2000 The Fallen. There
are 13 tracks on this deeply personal album by Auld
and it features duets with three of the biggest
names in alternative country – Fred Eaglesmith,
Mary Gauthier and Kieran Kane. For a copy of the
album or to find out more about Audrey Auld
phone 0418 972 019, email mail@recklessrecords.com
or visit www.audreyauld.com
Australian singer/songwriter KAREN JACOBSEN is a
recipient of the Abe Olman Award for Excellence in
Songwriting, a US$1200 grant given to one artist from
each United States performing rights organization, BMI,
ASCAP and SESAC. A member of APRA since 1991, Karen is
administered by SESAC in the U.S. The award will be
presented at the Songwriters Hall of Fame Induction
Ceremonies on June 12, when Phil Collins, Queen, Van
Morrison and Little Richard are inducted at the Marriott
Marquis Hotel in New York City. Subsequently, Karen has
been selected to perform at the SHOF Showcase in New
York City this March. Living in New York since 2000, Karen
has performed live all over Manhattan, been featured on
US Network television, and was also the winner of the
Dallas Songwriting Contest in the singer/songwriter
category. For more information on
Karen's inroads in the US go to
www.karenjacobsen.com
Audrey Auld
Karen Jacobsen
20

NATIONAL UPDATE NATIONAL UPDATE
NSW
Alana Ganderton - apra@apra.com.au
351 Camp is three days, five elements, one
camp. APRA member and songwriter DOMINIC
KELSALL took the risky plunge which turned
into a roaring success, running a three day
camp for young upcoming songwriters from
the inner city area. The camp was held over the
Australia Day long weekend at a venue in
Silverwater. The program included live
recording sessions; a talk with Mark Pollard,
creator of Stealth magazine, on self promotion
and misconceptions in the music industry; a
talk by local APRA representatives on royalties
and copyright; evening concerts showcasing
the raw talents of the participants and many
other activities. Aim of the camp is to help train
the young
Dominic Kelsall
songwriters of
tomorrow today, to provide encouragement
and help to build self-esteem, as well as
providing access to networks and connections
within the music industry. The songwriting
elements of the camp are focused on local
issues within the songwriters’ communities,
encouraging the writers to look at what is
happening directly around them rather than
popular overseas cultures. Dominic has been a
songwriter for over nine years with success in
songwriting competitions including being
runner-up in the Smash Hits Search for a Star
2000 for his co-written work “Rain.” He hopes
to see his camp expand and excel in creating
new and distinguished songwriters in Australia,
as well as helping young people turn to their
songwriting gifts instead of to crime, drugs and
other negative avenues. For more information
visit www.triligy.com, and for news on the
people and music label behind Triligy, visit
www.true-l.com or phone 02 4739 8590.
Milly Petriella and Alana Ganderton from
Writer Services, NSW presented an award at
the MusicOz 2002 Awards night, which was
held at the Illawarra Performing Arts Centre in
Wollongong last November. The APRA
Songwriters Award was won by up and
coming band, IKEY MO. There were 20
categories, and other winners on the night
included; FREYJA, FORTIUS, VISNJA, ULTRA
VIVID CURVE, TJ BLANCH, HELEN MOTTEE,
NATTASHA CRESTANI, JENNE, LUCID, US
NOT THEM, PLATFORM SIX, BENT,
ELEVENLIVE and THE BEATFIENDS. All the
details are at www.musicoz.org.
QLD
Sean O’Sullivan - qld@apra.com.au
After returning from an almost completely
sold-out Post Christmas/Falls Festival tour in
Victoria, THE BUTTERFLY EFFECT is back in
the rehearsal and recording studio laying
more tracks for the greatly anticipated debut
album due for release later in 2003.
Congratulations to Brisbane band GEORGE
who recently had two songs feature in Triple J’s
Hot 100 for “Release” and “Breaking it
Slowly.” george are off to the UK in April for
shows in Glasgow, Dublin and London. The
band tested the water late last year and return
in support of their debut album Polyserena,
released across Europe in late March.
The Rapid Festival 2003 is set to kick off on
Saturday June 28. The Rapid Festival is an all
ages, drug and alcohol free event that is held
in Pine Rivers, Strathpine, Queensland. The
annual event is organised by a group of young
people aged between 16 and 21 with
organisational support from Catalyst Youth
Arts. Rapid is supported by the State
Government through Arts Queensland and
Queensland Health and other valuable
sponsors. In 2002, headlining acts RHUBARB
and THE BUTTERFLY EFFECT assisted in the
growing popularity of the Rapid Festival. In
addition, there was great support at all three
stages for the 33 local Queensland bands,
with crowd numbers surging to an estimated
4500 throughout the day. To participate in
the 2003 Rapid Festival, all applications
can be downloaded from the website
www.rapidfestival.com. For further info email
info@rapidfestival.com or phone 07 3864 4712.
The Metro Arts Complex in Brisbane is working
in conjunction with Demo Pro to present a
monthly showcase of new music talent. LIVE
AT THE METRO will run Thursday evenings. If
you would like to perform please call Alan
Buchan on 0438 386 237 or send your demos
to PO Box 3623, South Brisbane Q 4101.
The Summer Fret Fest will be held on Saturday
March 22 at the Vinery. Songwriters are
welcome to partake in the annual event and
should email demopro@optusnet.com.au for
any further information.
SA/NT
Paula Rosenbauer - sa@apra.com.au
NT members – start getting all your live
performance information together because I
will be visiting Darwin and Alice Springs
around June/July this year to help you submit
your Live Performance Returns on line. I hope
to hold meetings in local internet cafes so we
can have access to a number of computers
and teach you the ins and outs of the APRA
website. So, start collecting all the
information about your live gigs from July 1
2002 – June 30 2003, including dates of
performances, venue names and addresses
and what songs you sang at each gig. Keep
your eye on the Membership Calendar of
Events on our website for further info about
exact dates for these meetings or keep in
touch with your local MIDI office who will be
co-hosting the meetings with me. Don’t miss
out on live performance royalties this year just
because it sounds a little too hard or too
much work – I’ll make it easier for you!
MIDI is thrilled to announce that it has
received funding to operate in Alice Springs
for another year and will be writing a business
plan to properly address issues concerning
musicians and industry groups. A public forum
is being held mid-March as an opportunity for
local interested persons to express any issues
or concerns they may have that need to be
addressed. To attend the forum or find out
more information, contact Rosie Dwyer at
MIDI Alice Springs on 08 8953 6111 or email
midialice@octa4.net.au.
SA contemporary musicians have only a short
time to submit their applications to Arts SA
for the next round of Recording Assistance
Grants. Grants of up to $7500 are allocated to
assist musicians in either Early Recording
Assistance, CD For Release or CD Marketing
and Distribution. The deadline is March 21. For
further info contact Paul Rees on 08 8463 5447
or rees.paul@sau.sa.gov.au. There are various
other grants also available and these can be
found at www.arts.sa.gov.au.
Congratulations to 17-year old KRISTY COX
who has won a few awards recently,
including $20,000 in the Nescafe Big Break
Competition. Kristy intends putting some of
her winnings towards a recording of her own
original songs. Kristy was also recently named
SA Champion of Champions for 2002. She also
won the SA Junior Champion of Champions in
2000 and is the only person ever to have won
both awards. The prize for this award was a
Professional Development package to assist
her in her musical career.
More wins for country music performers with
GRAEME HUGO winning the Industry Award
for services to Country Music at the SA
Council of Country Music Showcase Well
done also to TRAVIS LIST who won the Rocky
Page Memorial Award of two weeks at the
CMAA College of Country Music in Tamworth
during January. Fellow performer ANDREW
SELLARS also attended the College and we
hope both of them enjoyed their time in
Tamworth.
VIC/TAS
Helen Aldridge - victas@apra.com.au
The APRA Peoples Stage at the Falls Festival in
Lorne was a big success in its second year. The
initiative of the APRA Peoples Stage is to
provide festival punters with a forum to perform
their music to a potential crowd of 13,000, as
well as to make these young musicians aware
that APRA exists and what we can do for them.
The stage was situated at the bus drop-off
point, therefore the attendees queuing to get
into the main arena were treated to a variety of
entertainment; solo artists, metal bands and
country through to MCs and rappers. Of the 19
acts that performed, highlights included THE
TALL POPPIES, KRISTI BENNETT, SAM
NARDO and T-B (Travis Banko). Con Kalamaris
from the Melbourne APRA office did a fantastic
job of pulling the whole thing together. Look
out for your chance to play the APRA Peoples
Stage in 2003.
Writer Services Representatives from APRA
will once again be attending the annual Port
Fairy Folk Festival March 7-10. We will be
Tall Poppies at the Falls Festival
there to collect set lists from performers as
well as meet our many members who perform
at the festival each year. Watch out for
further information. Don’t be a stranger, come
and say hello.
In response to the needs of the Victorian
Music Scene, VicMUSIC has been formed as a
non-profit representative membership based
organization. The VicMUSIC vision is to
promote the growth and development of
Victorian original music across all genres. Get
involved! Visit www.vicmusic.com.
There seems to be a lot happening in the
world of jazz in Tasmania at the moment,
including the Sounds of Tasmania concert
being held in the Launceston City Park on
March 23. For more information visit
www.tased.edu.au/tasonline/tasjazz.
On another note regarding Tasmania, don't
forget that there are resources for all
musicians on the island. Tasmusic is a great
way of keeping up to date with what is
happening www.tasmusic.com.au, as is
the The Naked Dwarf Newsletter
www.nakeddwarf.com.au.
Kool Skools is a national recording and
multimedia project, which has been running
annually for six years. Kool Skools is a great
way for secondary school students to be
involved in the album making process – from
writing and recording songs to developing
artwork and video clips. For further
information visit www.koolskools.com.au.
WA
Tenille Elkins - wa@apra.com.au
For those of you who weren’t already aware,
the Perth APRA office relocated over the
Christmas period. After a little chaos we are
now very much settled in to our new premises
which are still in Subiaco. Our contact
numbers remain the same and you’ll find our
new address on the back cover of APrap.
Please feel free to drop by and check out the
new premises when you’re next in the area.
WAM are once again looking to all those
grassroots West Australian songwriters with
their WAM Song of the Year contest. With
over $30,000 in cash and prizes, a stack of
new categories and past winners who include
LASH (then known as Exteria), BEAVERLOOP,
CARTMAN, IVAN ZAR and HALOGEN there’s
no reason to delay getting those entries in.
The competition closes March 14 with
winners announced in April. To find out more
contact WAM on 08 9227 7962, email
songoftheyear@wam.asn.au or check out
their website www.wam.asn.au.
Local bands have been busy over the summer
playing at the Perth Big Day Out, releasing
new music and winning WA comps. YUNYU
was one of WA’s recent Triple J unearthed
winners along with AMBER SUITE and THE
FUZZ.
JOSIVAC are continuing their success after
they took out last years Next Big Thing
competition title. They recently supported PJ
Harvey at the Concert Hall and as well as
playing the Perth Big Day Out. The end of
February saw them travel up to Broome to
support THE CRUEL SEA.
22