Photo: Sandy Evans (3rd from left) with filmmaker Shan Dalton (making a documentary about Sandy Evan's work), Naresh Fernandes, Aneesh Pradhan (tabla player), Sudhir Nayak (harmonium player), and Shubha Mudgal (vocalist)
Dr Sandy Evans AOM who recently completed her PhD at Macquarie University's Department of Media, Music, Communication and Cultural Studies was awarded a prestigious Winston Churchill Memorial Fellowship in 2014. These Fellowships provide an opportunity for Australians to travel overseas to conduct research in their chosen field that is not readily available in Australia, for the enrichment of Australian society.
"The Churchill Fellowship is an extremely important opportunity for me as an early career researcher, allowing me to continue the research I began during my PhD at Macquarie University," explains Sandy.
Cross-cultural collaboration through music
"Sandy is amongst a handful of musicians in Australia who are able to move sensitively between jazz and Indian improvisation. As part of her PhD at Macquarie, she produced a CD called 'Cosmic Waves' that demonstrated her outstanding sensitivity towards cross-cultural collaboration. Undoubtedly, the Churchill Fellowship has opened new avenues for creative practice research in this area," says Dr Andrew Alter, Associate Dean, Higher Degree Research, Sandy's mentor in the application for the Churchill Fellowship.
Being a recipient of the award enabled Sandy who has been collaborating with Indian musicians since 1996, to travel to India at the end of last year to continue her research in performance, composition and pedagogy in intercultural music between jazz musicians and Indian musicians.
Whilst in India, Sandy, a saxophonist, improviser, composer and teacher with 35 years professional experience studied performance practice, teaching methods, and approaches to intercultural collaboration with some of the most eminent Indian classical musicians including: Aneesh Pradhan: tabla; Shubha Mudgal: Hindustani voice; Sudhir Nayak: harmonium; Guru Kaaraikkudi Mani: mridangam and South Indian rhythm; and B.V. Balasai: flute.
She also had the opportunity to attend the Chennai December music season, a conference for the Music Academy of Madras, and visited the True School of Music in Mumbai and the Global Music Institute in Delhi.
Experience inspires initiatives
Inspired by her experiences in India, Sandy is developing a number of initiatives including performing two collaborative works in Australia created during the Fellowship with Indian and Australian musicians; conducting workshops for universities, schools, music festivals and associations. She is also contributing to curriculum development and teacher training in intercultural music, along with publishing a journal article about her research. On her return from her fellowship, Sandy recorded a CD 'Kapture' with her trio and Bobby Singh and Sarangan Sriranganathan, developed partly from ideas generated from her Fellowship research.
"The beautiful dialogue that occurs in intercultural music has a special relevance to contemporary Australian society. It can foster understanding between diverse groups, such as the Indian diaspora and the jazz community," says Sandy.
"Doing this in a meaningful way is not easy. It takes knowledge, skill, creativity, imagination, mutual respect, and humility. Through intensive engagement with eminent Indian musicians and their culture, the Churchill Fellowship has helped me grow so I can make the most inspired, informed and worthwhile contribution to research in my field."
