Robert Davidson is an Australian composer whose music explores the relationship between speech and music. He studied composition with Terry Riley and South Indian vocal music in Kerala, India, before completing a PhD at the University of Queensland, where he is now Senior Lecturer in the School of Music. A former bassist with the Australian Opera, Sydney Symphony and Queensland Symphony orchestras, he founded and directs the post-classical quintet Topology, ensemble-in-residence at the Brisbane Powerhouse, which has released twelve albums and toured internationally to venues including New York’s Lincoln Center and London’s Barbican. His “voice portraits” frame recorded speech as melody, from political figures to historical voices, as in the multimedia work Stalin’s Piano. All of Australia’s professional orchestras and many leading soloists have commissioned his work, which is performed and broadcast worldwide.
