Elissa Goodrich

BIOGRAPHY

Elissa Goodrich is a musician (percussionist), sound artist & composer with an abiding interest in contemporary music across idioms & collaborative arts-making. A Victorian College of the Arts graduate and University of Melbourne Masters postgraduate, Elissa’s sound-art works have played in; Centre de Cultura Contemporanea Barcelona’s Sound Art Zeppellin Festivals (Spain), Soundwaves Festival & International Lightworks Festival, Sonorities Contemporary International Music Festival (UK), Sonori Sguardi, & Tempo Reale, (Italy), Melbourne International Arts Festival (Australia),
Elissa records & performs in contemporary classical, jazz & pop groups & co-led world-jazz Shannon-Goodrich Ensemble with 2 nominations for 2009 Australian Jazz Work of the Year from their Worlds Within Worlds CD. Elissa also works in independent theatre & dance, including long-term collaboration with director Bagryana Popov (1998–current).Over 2015/16, in collaboration with writer Cressida Bradley, Elissa created a major soundwork ‘Between Footsteps’ hosted at Heide Museum of Modern Art – sculpture park, supported by Creative Victoria. This year Elissa will also create a new work with evolutionary biologist Dr Anna Syme for Elissa’s Carlton Connect Artist Residency. In collaboration with writer Cressida Bradley, Elissa created a major soundwork ‘Between Footsteps’ (2016 – current) hosted at Heide Museum of Modern Art – sculpture park, supported by Creative Victoria. Following on from Elissa’s Carlton Connect Lab Artist Residency with evolutionary biologist Dr Anna Syme and Nadja Kostich (dramaturg), Elissa is currently composing a large-scale work ‘Gene Tree: Listen.Now.Again.’ in partnership with St Martin’s Youth Performing Arts Centre and with a composer’s commission from APRA AMCOS Art Music Fund 2018.

Composer website:  via CDbaby.com

FEATURED WORKS

Rust and Endless Windows and Dreamweaver, from Between Footsteps for vibraphone, electric guitar and percussion (found objects) .

Both these works originate from the project ‘Between Footsteps’, with compositions inspired by 6 sculptures in Heide Museum of Modern Art’s sculpture park. The album features members of Elissa’s outfit States of Play, the excellent Melbourne-based artists, in highly original music that travels across emotional landscapes and bends traditional genres. Dreamweaves was recorded live and in one take.

Featured in Minimalist Waves October 2016

Compas for flute, vibraphone, double bass and drums

A composition for contemporary jazz / improvising ensemble inspired by rhythms and harmonies of Andalusain (Spanish) traditional flamenco and nuovo flamenco traditions

Featured in Jazz-World Waves – November 2017

Rarified Air Elegy for cello, vibraphone, flexatone, vibraphone motor and car sample.

This is a cut from: Rarefied Air Elegy – soundart work (full length 7 minutes 21 seconds) which premiered at Sonorities International Contemporary Music Festival (Belfast, UK) April 24th, 2015. The original mix comes from: “Dusk to Dawn D-Evolving – An elegiac audio-visual ‘field report’ on the loss of birds in the region” (2014) (length 35 minutes), by Elissa Goodrich (soundart / artistic director) and Michael Carmody (video).

Featured in Place Waves May 2018

Conversation 5 (from Bach Conversations), for Voice, marimba, bolivian rattle, frame drum.

“Conversation 5” is from “Bach Conversations” (2013) a work for solo marimba and responding duet improvisations by Elissa Goodrich, adapted from JSBach’s Cello Suite no 3. This short piece features Ria’s extraordinary ‘vocalese’ – Javanese / North Indian style!

– Elissa Goodrich

Featured in Harmonic Waves (May 2019).

Children’s Score, for Piano and sampled clocks.

This piece was originally created for the children’s portraits annexe / room – for “Uncle Vanya” at The Cedars (at the estate of artist Hans Heysen and family), Adelaide Festival 2019. The composition is exploring a sense of play and of time in limbo, and a sense of presence within absence – themes that are prevalent within Anton Chekov’s play, and in my impressions of The Cedars house. This is track 2 of a 5 track sound installation – where various sound pieces are discreetly projected in rooms within the Cedars House, and with one outdoor soundscore.

– Elissa Goodrich

Featured in Evolving Waves– November 2019