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Hannover days
Putting our best foot forward
11 July is not a date we normally associate with things Australian, but this year it will see the Aussie flag flying high over German soil. No it's not a takeover, but it does mark Australia's National Day at World Expo 2000 in Hannover, which began on 1 June and continues through til 31 October.
Almost 170 performers on site (with some new to European audiences)
will present an eclectic program, showcasing Indigenous artists and many of
our most contemporary 'new music' performers.
Robyn Archer has been engaged as Artistic Adviser for the day. Soprano Deborah Cheetham will be host, as well as performing with the Queensland Youth Symphony at the official ceremony. The afternoon will be marked by a street spectacle with outdoor installations and performances around the Australian pavilion precinct. Once the sun sets, visitors will enjoy a concert featuring the Australian Art Orchestra and a mixture of our contemporary, classical, rock and Indigenous artists. Afterwards, Australian films will be screened in a 2 500 seat outdoor cinema.
Of course this day is just the highlight of a much longer promotion of Australian culture. It's a five-month showcase for Australia's cultural prowess-from the headline grabbers to performers not so well known.
While our successful film industry and tourism campaigns have made a big impact in promoting a more realistic image of Australian culture-not just beer and BBQs-we still have some way to go. Australia will be taking part in Expo with three main objectives in mind-to project an updated image of Australia, boost tourism and to promote trade and investment opportunities.
Australian artists will have the opportunity to shine at many special occasions as part of the broader Expo program, including the opening celebrations, the Theatreformen Festival, WOMAD, and site theme days.
And the statistics are impressive-there are more than 40 million anticipated visitors: 60 to 70 per cent from Germany; 20 to 30 per cent from other European Union countries; and 5 to 10 per cent international.
The last 'universal' World Expo held in Seville, Spain in 1992, attracted 110 participants and 41.8 million visitors. Some 195 countries and international organisations will be participating in World Expo 2000.
The Commonwealth Government, through the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT), is managing Australia's presence and is meeting the greater part of the estimated cost of about $8.5 million. Other contributing states and territories include Queensland, the Australian Capital Territory, South Australia, the Northern Territory, Tasmania and Victoria.
The Department of Communications, Information Technology and the Arts has provided $50 000 to the entertainment and arts program.
Performers have been chosen where their work will be appropriate for the exhibition crowds and the outdoor performance area. Performances at the Australian pavilion will include jazz, rock, world music, new music, hip hop, outdoor theatre, performance art, physical theatre, contemporary and traditional Indigenous performance.
Dance, theatre, new media art, music, short films and documentaries will feature on a large outdoor screen at the front of the pavilion. Other performers and information about national festivals and performance events will be on show inside the pavilion within audio visual and multimedia environments.
With a wealth of creativity and innovation for Expo visitors to see and experience, Australia's pavilion should prove a popular attraction.
Contact
For more information about Australia's participation in World Expo, visit www.expo2000.caribiner.com.au . For general details about Expo visit: www.expo2000.de
Expo players: the Australian Art Orchestra
The Australian Art Orchestra (AAO) is a fully professional ensemble of 19 leading musicians, mainly from the jazz world, who were brought together by Artistic Director Paul Grabowsky in 1994 to perform at the Melbourne International Festival of the Arts. The group made such an impact at the festival that plans were put in train to make it a permanent feature of Australian contemporary music. The AAO has commissioned and performed close to 30 new works by Australian composers and has made three recordings: Ringing the Bell Backwards, Origin Recordings 1994, Passion, ABC Classics 1999, and Into the Fire (with Karaikudi R. Mani and the Sruthi Laya Ensemble), ABC Classics 2000.
Paul Grabowsky writes:
'The invitation to appear at the World Expo gives us the perfect opportunity to show international audiences that such a thing as the AAO exists and second, what we have been up to for the past six years. ...it should be a completely new experience for the audience as well as for us. We have invited Karaikudi R. Mani and his group of three percussionists to tour with us so we can play music we have just recorded on a CD called Into the Fire.
'Everything is falling into place, as the CD will be released by ABC Classics just as we head off to Europe. Into the Fire is an ideal program to tour because we all enjoy the music so much, as have our audiences, and it makes such a positive statement about the kinds of cultural interactions Australians are interested in...'
'Also, the Hannover performance will give us a chance to test ourselves out on a big occasion event, an important part of any group's development, and we have felt the need for some time now, to get a wider response to our work. We will be showing off the cream of our improvising musicians, players like Sandy Evans and John Rodgers, and I'm sure we'll come back feeling really positive about what we have achieved...this is a very big opportunity and we are not unappreciative of the fact that there has been a lot of support for us to get to Hannover, and to Heads Up in London.'