Across Silence

Walter Kadiki is a master of weaving signed poetry and visual vernacular into poetic performance. He is known for his profound and engaging signed poetry and storytelling that bridges cultures and is accessible to deaf and hearing audiences.

In Across Silence, Walter’s powerful poem Little Fledgling is set to music composed by Andrea Keller, with the vibrational connection created via a vibro-tactile haptic vest worn by Walter in the performances as a key focus of the composition. This concert will also feature the world premiere of Little Fledgling #2, composed collaboratively by Walter and Andrea using the haptic vest throughout the compositional process. Songs from Andrea's Still Night album round out the program, signed by Marnie Kerridge and sung by Gian Slater.

This new collaboration between Orchestra Victoria and Newmarket Collective sees Andrea's compositions orchestrated by Mark Buys for chamber orchestra featuring musicians from both organisations featuring Andrea herself on piano, and singer Gian Slater performing alongside Walter and Marnie.

Throughout the performance, Walter and Marnie wear vibro-tactile haptic vests created by Music: Not Impossible. Consisting of a body pack, wrist bands and ankle bands, this state of the art technology allows the performers to receive vibrations across 24 touch points on the body by specially preprogrammed software, to feel the individual instruments and connect to the music live on stage. A number of vests will also be available for the audience to wear and connect with the performers.