Dr Paul Smith
Senior Lecturer in Music - Faculty of Humanities, Arts, Social Sciences and Education; School of Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences
Email: paul.smith@une.edu.au
Biography
Paul is a composer and researcher based in Sydney who specialises in writing opera and music for the toy piano. He holds a Doctorate of Creative Arts from Western Sydney University and is the co-artistic director of Blush Opera. Paul has collaborated internationally and his music and operas have premiered in Singapore, the UK, Italy, the USA, and Armenia in addition to Australian festivals and concert performances. In 2021, his largest operatic work, Chop Chef, a collaboration with writer and satirist Julie Koh which explores reality TV food competitions, will be premiered in Parramatta at Riverside Theatre. In 2018, Paul was an artist in residence with the Art and Cultural Studies Laboratory in Yerevan Armenia, where he worked on three new pieces for toy piano including an experimental chamber opera which he premiered as a keynote performer at the Music as Play Festival in Italy in 2019. He has collaborated with Italian toy piano specialist Antonietta Loffredo many times and she has recorded his keyboard works with the Australian label, Wirripang, as well as performing his music in Italy. Paul was also a contributing writer to the ABC and triple j digital series, What is Music?
Qualifications
Doctorate of Creative Arts (DCA), BMus(Hons)
Teaching Areas
Music Theory, Composition, Musicology
Research Interests
Paul’s work explores new narratives in the opera medium drawing on ideas of play, satire, and the absurd. His instrumental music is often written collaboratively with visual artists, theatre makers, and directors. Paul promotes non-traditional research and the way music and art can express new forms of knowledge within a university context. His traditional research examines the borders of music and other art forms and the politics of the voice and singing.
Research Supervision Experience
Music Composition; Classical Music Performance; Music Theatre; Practice-related Research; Popular Music; Voice Studies
Publications
Smith, Paul. 2018. ‘The Cloud of Musical Knowledge: Towards a Critical Music Theory Pedagogy’. In Carol Johnson & Virginia Christy Lamothe (Eds.), Pedagogy Development for Teaching Online Music. Pennsylvania: IGI Global.
Smith, Paul. 2016. 'Manga, Music and Ekphrasis' In Cathy Sell & Sarah Parfield-Neofitou (Eds.), Manga-Vision. Melbourne: Monash University Press.
Smith, Paul. 2016. 'Kawaii Aesthetics and the Exchange between Anime and Music' In Sally Macarthur, Jennifer Shaw & Judy Lochhead (Eds.), Music's Immanemnt Future. Ashgate Publishing.
Smith, Paul. 2010. 'Translating Gender from Anime to Music'. Online Global Media Journal, Australian Edition. 4(2).
Creative works and non-traditional research
2023
Songs of the Sirens - Chamber opera for eight singers and clarinet, commissioned by Bondi Festival
Three Canzone - Duo for toy piano and recorder Awarded ABC Classic 2022 Composer Commission
Papered - Chamber Opera for three singers and piano, Funded by CreateNSW Individual Project Grant
2021
Constellations - Solo for toy piano and toy percussion, recorded for The Toy Piano Takes the Stage (CD), Da Vinci Classics, Japan
The Real Me - Chamber Opera produced by Strange Trace, USA
Chop Chef – Chamber opera produced by Blush Opera and presented at Riverside Theatre, Parramatta
Country Knows You - Song of reconciliation in collaboration with Dr Lorina Barker and Wangkumara elders, commissioned by University of New England
2020
Jack of Clubs – Musical commissioned by Penrith Performing and Visual Arts
2019
Bidding – Chamber opera commissioned and premiered by Opera Elect, Idaho, USA
The Ugliest Duckling – Score for theatre work directed by Nick Atkins, produced by Q Theatre, Penrith
The City/The Forest – Chamber opera for toy piano, voice and electronics premiered as keynote performance at Music as Play Festival, Como, Italy
Fantasy Songs – Song cycle presented by Blush Opera at MAY SPACE, Sydney
Four Dragons in Flight - Recorder quartet premiered by BLOCK4 as finalist of the Society of Recorder Players Composer Competition, Durham, England
Modular Origami - Mixed sextet performed by Ensemble Offspring and premiered at Noosa-ISAM Festival, Noosa
2018
Cobblestones – Solo for toy piano presented during residency with Art and Cultural Studies Laboratory, Yerevan, Armenia
How to Build a Billy – Chamber opera presented by Blush Opera at Bondi Feast Festival, Sydney
Musings – Score for short film directed by Bina Battacharya, screened at Melbourne Queer Film Festival
With whom I was united by every tie – Score for animation by Todd Fuller, Sulman Prize finalist, exhibited at Art Gallery of NSW, Sydney
My brother calls this place God’s country – Score for animation by Todd Fuller, (Finalist) 10th Annual Drawing Discourse Exhibition, University of North Carolina Asheville, USA
2017
Holding Masks – Duet for piano & toy piano performed as part of Associazione Carducci concert series, Como, Italy
Vote Toll – Ensmeble for piano, hand bells and audience. Commissioned by Filibuster and performed at Late Night Library, NSW Customs House, Sydney
Icarus of the Hill – Animation score commissioned by artist Todd Fuller, Purchased by The Parliament House Art Collection, Canberra
2016
Clutter – Piano duo recorded for Multiple Keyboards, released by Wirripang (CD), Australia
Frankenstein – Score for theatre work, directed by Nick Atkins, produced by The Joan Sutherland Performing Arts Centre, Penrith
The Spidermaiden and the Runaway Plum Blossom – Chamber opera commissioned by Chamber.Sounds & The Kris Foundation and performed at The Esplanade Chamber Theatre, Singapore
2015
Fancy Me Dead – Chamber opera programmed at Festival of Voices, Hobart, New Music Network Mini Series, Sydney, and Bondi Feast Festival, Sydney
2014
The Death of Baldr – Sextet commissioned by Sirius Ensemble
2013
Iceberg Variations – Solo for toy piano recorded by Antonietta Lofreddo for Antarctica (CD), Wirripang, Australia
