LIMITLESS: ARTISTS
Naomi Dart: Naomi is well known and loved around Newcastle for her virtuosity, versatility and capacity to move seamlessly between genres. From folk to classical and musical theatre, she is as likely to be found experimenting with loop pedals and ambient/ meditative sounds as she is to be seen in the pit at the Civic Theatre or playing well loved solo classical works. She is also the creative force behind a number of local initiatives promoting music such as Lounge Sessions, Ekstasis Ensemble and Cafe Sessions. Naomi’s passion is founded on exploring the innovative ways in which music can be experienced, she aims to remove the barriers between the audience and the performer and create immersive art experiences.
Sarah Monk: Sarah seeks to draw her listeners into an intimate sound world that cultivates curiosity and play. For Sarah, the flute entered her hands at age 8 and has been an ever-evolving exploration of authenticity and creativity leading to earnest collaborations and musical discoveries. Whilst Sarah is classically trained, she enjoys stretching the flutes textural and tonal capacities, and mixing these with technology. Her compositions draw from her visual, emotional and tactile investigations of nature. Sarah has won grants from New Music Network, Flute Society of NSW, University of Newcastle and performed as part of Crack Theatre, TINA Festival, Vivid Festival, Sydney and Newcastle Fringe Festival, Riverlights Maitland and Backstage music Sydney. She performs regularly with improvised music group Hidden Strings, New music group Ekstasis Ensemble and Afro Brazilian trio Big Jarda.
The Emerald Ruby: Imbued with the ethereal textures of folk music, ornate baroque instrumentals, and bardic storytelling, the sonic pallet of multi-instrumentalist, songwriter and ABC Classic commissioned composer The Emerald Ruby share’s musical milieu with Sufjan Stevens, Joanna Newsom and Missy Higgins. Whimsical in nature, her gentle songs are often juxtaposed by dark undertones cultivated in the chaos of late-diagnosed neurodivergence. A kaleidoscope of influences nourishes every performance from this multi-genre powerhouse; The hazy virtuosity of 18th-century French flute music, chaotic abstractions of a moonlit jazz jam, and trading traditional jigs and reels at a folk session are drenched with a mood only decades of musical adventures along Australia’s east coast can inscribe. 2024 will feature the conclusion and releases of multiple long-term projects including “Finding Fondness” (flute duets), “Folksy Dreams volume 3” (instrumental folk music), Patchwork (folk songs) as well as premier new commissions for Backstage Music, Ekstasis Ensemble and Maitland Regional art gallery.
Christopher Sutherland: Christopher Sutherland is a composer and performer of a diverse array of musical forms, all united by the search for truth and a restless sense for the bittersweet aesthetic. Under the moniker of Abhaya Sky, he creates expansive electro-acoustic music, the most recent project being endless, an evolving album that will continue to shift and grow over the course of the rest of his life. Christopher is currently recording a collection of chamber folk songs for guitar, voice and strings under a new alias, due for release in early 2025. He performs fully improvised musical meditations known as sound dreamings with Hidden Strings and leads Petrichor Play Choir in Newcastle and Maitland.
Liam Tooth: Liam loves everything about rhythm - he gels with its boundless, yet organised nature. He has extensively studied rhythm from behind the drums and has been known to play everything from heavy metal to modern jazz. Liam is an avid educator and lifelong learner holding undergraduate and postgraduate degrees in music with a third on the way in psychology. He enjoys that thought that not only does music evoke emotions, it sustains them for a little while before letting them pass.