Powerhouse Australian/British pianist, flutist, and composer Keyna Wilkins is stopping by Studio Z on April 12 along her U.S. tour and we were delighted to ask her a few questions about her music and her solo show she will be performing.
Tell us about your tour! How long are you in the U.S. and where else are you going?
I have a workshop of a brand new piano duet composition "Outback Sonata for 2 Pianos" with high profile pianist Shannon Wettstein on April 15th, and I will be teaching at Saint Cloud State University on Monday, April 17. Then I head to New York for a solo show at Williamsburg Music Centre in Brooklyn, Live Jams at The Smooth Spot Studio and Studio #305, and a solo show at the Downtown Music Gallery. Details are on my website: www.keynawilkins.com and social media.
Your music spans a wide range of topics and genres, and your solo shows include both composed works and stream-of-conciousness improvisations on both flute and piano. How do you go about combining all of these elements into a cohesive set?
That is a really great question! I think what links it all together is the fact that I hope I am able to merge all the styles into a hybrid so that it does all fit together in one big journey, with broad strokes of jazz, art music and contemporary classical as well as some experimental material. My music background is eclectic, but at the end of the day it's all music and it's all expression, and it all comes from me, so that must be a common thread. It begins and ends with outer space, with a bit of humanity and philosophy thrown in the middle, in a cosmic way.
Along those same lines, how do you find that the various aspects of your musical career influence or inform one another?
I was classically trained in UK, Australia and Germany on flute and piano. But I found that this approach was rather limiting for me. I got lessons in free improvisation from a Tibetan Buddhist monk when I was 19 years old, and this definitely inspired me to a new path of using improvisation as a catalyst for compositional ideas, and as a tool used in performances. What you will hear in my show is a range of stylistic features in the same piece, a hint of flamenco, Debussy, alongside contemporary jazz.
How do you hope the audience feels after seeing your show, or what do you want them to take away from it?
Firstly I want to create a space where people feel taken out of their daily lives, even for a moment, and be taken on an expressionistic journey. I also hope to raise awareness of issues around refugee rights around the world, and help people see connections between all things in a cosmic way.
I have a workshop of a brand new piano duet composition "Outback Sonata for 2 Pianos" with high profile pianist Shannon Wettstein on April 15th, and I will be teaching at Saint Cloud State University on Monday, April 17. Then I head to New York for a solo show at Williamsburg Music Centre in Brooklyn, Live Jams at The Smooth Spot Studio and Studio #305, and a solo show at the Downtown Music Gallery. Details are on my website: www.keynawilkins.com and social media.
Your music spans a wide range of topics and genres, and your solo shows include both composed works and stream-of-conciousness improvisations on both flute and piano. How do you go about combining all of these elements into a cohesive set?
That is a really great question! I think what links it all together is the fact that I hope I am able to merge all the styles into a hybrid so that it does all fit together in one big journey, with broad strokes of jazz, art music and contemporary classical as well as some experimental material. My music background is eclectic, but at the end of the day it's all music and it's all expression, and it all comes from me, so that must be a common thread. It begins and ends with outer space, with a bit of humanity and philosophy thrown in the middle, in a cosmic way.
Along those same lines, how do you find that the various aspects of your musical career influence or inform one another?
I was classically trained in UK, Australia and Germany on flute and piano. But I found that this approach was rather limiting for me. I got lessons in free improvisation from a Tibetan Buddhist monk when I was 19 years old, and this definitely inspired me to a new path of using improvisation as a catalyst for compositional ideas, and as a tool used in performances. What you will hear in my show is a range of stylistic features in the same piece, a hint of flamenco, Debussy, alongside contemporary jazz.
How do you hope the audience feels after seeing your show, or what do you want them to take away from it?
Firstly I want to create a space where people feel taken out of their daily lives, even for a moment, and be taken on an expressionistic journey. I also hope to raise awareness of issues around refugee rights around the world, and help people see connections between all things in a cosmic way.
KEYNA WILKINS
"AD LIBITUM" SOLO SHOW
Keyna Wilkins is a pioneering Australian/British composer-musician. She was one of three finalists for the Australian Art Music Awards for Individual Excellence in 2021 and 2018 (APRA/AMCOS). As an innovative soloist her solo show explores stream-of-consciousness improvisations merging jazz and art music, alongside her composed pieces, often using loop pedal and visual projections and inspired by contemporary human rights issues, astronomical phenomena and thoughts. She has collaborated with six detained refugees from their prison cells via zoom, victims of Australia's brutal mandatory refugee detention laws for nine years, on various music, poetry and art collaborations. She has performed her solo show around Australia including Phoenix Central Park, MONA, Sydney Women's International Jazz Festival, Melbourne Digital Concert Hall, Australian Flute Festival and many other venues. She has released 4 solo albums on piano and flute and 5 ensemble albums. Her works are published by Wirripang and performed internationally. While classically trained in UK, Germany and Sydney Conservatorium, she has branched into jazz, flamenco, live theatre and has studied intuitive conceptual improvisation with Tibetan Buddhist musician Tenzin Cheogyal.
"A powerhouse player"
JAZZ JOURNAL UK
"Particularly fine nuanced playing throughout"
LIMELIGHT MAGAZINE
"Creating soundtracks for the biggest issues of our time"
JAZZ IN EUROPE
"A powerhouse player"
JAZZ JOURNAL UK
"Particularly fine nuanced playing throughout"
LIMELIGHT MAGAZINE
"Creating soundtracks for the biggest issues of our time"
JAZZ IN EUROPE
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