Ros Bandt


Rosalie Edith Bandt is an Australian composer, sound artist, academic and performer.

Biography

Bandt was born in Geelong, Victoria. Her father Lewis Bandt was a car designer and notable for designing the first ute.
Described as one of the most individual presences in Australian music, Bandt is an internationally acclaimed sound artist, composer, researcher and performer. Since 1977 she has pioneered interactive sound installations, sound sculptures, and created sound playgrounds, spatial music systems, and some 40 sound installations worldwide. Trained as a school teacher, Bandt went on to study chance music and completed her Masters in 1974 at Monash University with a thesis on the work of John Cage and later completed her PhD in 1983 also at Monash University.
A pioneer of interactive sound sculpture in Australia she has exhibited in many Australian city and regional centres including her work Sound Playground in Brunswick, Melbourne in 1981. Making use of electronics, tapes and interactive playback systems, Bandt's compositions also feature environmental sounds and unusual instrument combinations. Bandt performs on a wide variety of instruments including recorders, psaltry, percussion and the tarhu. She is a founding member of ensembles LIME, Back to Back Zithers, La Romanesca, Carte Blanche and the Free Music Ensemble.

Awards

Bandt was the first woman to be awarded the Don Banks Music Award in 1991 and was awarded the Cochrane Smith award for sound heritage in 2012 by the National Film and Sound Archive.

Discography