NOMINATION: Work of the Year - Electroacoustic / Sound Art
The Electroacoustic / Sound Art category is for works which utilise and manipulate digital and/or analogue sound as the primary medium. The work may be interdisciplinary (incorporating more than one media). It may include, but is not limited to; sonic art, electronics, interactive work, generative music, environmental sound, installations, soundscapes, electroacoustic music, and intermedia works.
A work is defined as a single complete musical composition, or expression. This includes music with movements or sub-works (i.e. song cycles), installations, and real-time compositions (improvised music).
If you believe your work to be nominated in the wrong category or the details of your nomination to be incorrect, please contact the AMC via email at awards@australianmusiccentre.com.au before proceeding with the nomination.
Art Music Award guidelines →
Nominee
Robert McIntyre
Title of the work
Codifying Neutralities
Performer
Robert McIntyre
Performance Date
29/6/2024
Venue
Tempo Rubato
Nominator Statement
Rob McIntyres Codifying Neutralities is a subtle yet powerful composition that challenges unconscious bias in the legal system, particularly in Victorian legislation and its reliance on the gender binary. The work highlights how laws are often framed using non-inclusive languageespecially the persistent use of he or she instead of gender-neutral alternatives. Rob unpacks this bias with sharp irony, referencing the Equal Opportunity Act 2010 (Vic)a law meant to prevent discrimination, yet itself written with gendered pronounsand the Constitution Act 1975 (Vic), which continues to use he or she in appointing judges, some of societys most influential figures.
Created as part of his final semester of a Juris Doctor, Codifying Neutralities is the first-ever art music composition submitted in a law schoolan unprecedented fusion of music and legal critique. The piece bridges these disciplines through electroacoustic tape and live flute performance, using sound to communicate structural bias in ways that words alone cannot.
The structure of Codifying Neutralities is as much a legal statement as it is an artistic one. The score is physically formatted to resemble legislation, immersing performers in the very system the work critiques. This unique approach forces musicians to engage with legal language firsthand, making visible the biases embedded in laws that often go unquestioned. More than just a piece of music, its an invitation to reflect on the ways language shapes our social structures.
Nominee
Robert McIntyre
Title of the work
Codifying Neutralities
Performer
Robert McIntyre
Performance Date
29/6/2024
Venue
Tempo Rubato
Created as part of his final semester of a Juris Doctor, Codifying Neutralities is the first-ever art music composition submitted in a law schoolan unprecedented fusion of music and legal critique. The piece bridges these disciplines through electroacoustic tape and live flute performance, using sound to communicate structural bias in ways that words alone cannot.
The structure of Codifying Neutralities is as much a legal statement as it is an artistic one. The score is physically formatted to resemble legislation, immersing performers in the very system the work critiques. This unique approach forces musicians to engage with legal language firsthand, making visible the biases embedded in laws that often go unquestioned. More than just a piece of music, its an invitation to reflect on the ways language shapes our social structures.