Art Music Awards on for 2012

The Art Music Awards are on again this year, and look set to provide an exceptional ceremony for modern mixes of music in Australia for the second year running.

The Art Music Awards has returned for the second time after a hiatus to be hosted by the Playhouse Theatre at the Sydney Opera House, the only event made exclusive for contemporary, experimental and jazz music’s stars.

The Art Music Awards did not always dedicate the prizes to the eclectic aspects of music – the former Classical Music Awards were divided into two celebrations of classical contemporary music, until the collaboration of Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA) and the Australian Music Centre (AMC) in 2003 combined the two.

APRA, also in partnership to AMCOS (Australasian Mechanical Copyright Owners Society), is a corporation that caters to the music industry as administrators, ensuring the rights of composers and publishers and managing their respective royalties as well as reproductions of artists’ works.

AMC is a national institution dedicated to the documentation of Australian music, focusing on contemporary classical, experimental and sound art for collection. AMC provides educational programs and represents composers and sound artists, with publications and media services supporting Australian musicians for 35 years.

The annual ceremony skipped a year in 2010 and returned in full force to hit 2011 as the Art Music Awards, with two new categories specifically tailored for the Australian contemporary music scene: Jazz Work of the Year and Award for Excellence in Experimental Music.

This year, a brand new category has been added to the list, rounding up the awards to 10 with the Award for Excellence in Jazz (for works, people or events). The addition is meant to widen the scope of Australian jazz, encouraging more activity and giving more recognition to those involved. A second addition is Distinguished Services to Australian Music, by the Board of Directors of APRA and AMC.

The CEO of AMC, John Davis, spoke of the development of the exciting occasion: “The Art Music Awards continue to grow in stature, highlighting the rich diversity and excellence of activity in the art music scene across music creation, performance, presentation, contribution, education, and activity in regional areas.”

Marshall McGuire will be the curator of the shortlists for the 2012 Art Music Awards, an internationally renowned harpist famed for his contemporary and baroque music. The outstanding talents and pioneers in the idiosyncratic fields will be named on Wednesday March 7, and the honours shall be presented to the winners on the eve of Tuesday 3 April at the Playhouse Theatre, Sydney Opera House.