MEET THE COMPOSERS

N Aomi Dodd

For as long as she can remember, Naomi has been moved by the all-encompassing power of music. Her desire now as a composer, is to create music which affects audiences similarly. Naomi graduated from Sydney Conservatorium of Music in 2019 with a Bachelor of Music Composition. Naomi has written a variety of solo and chamber works as well as orchestral. In 2018 she was selected to write for Ku-ring-gai Philharmonic Orchestra then in 2019 was the recipient of Penrith Symphony Orchestra’s Young Composer Prize. In 2019 Naomi also received 2nd place in the Australian Flute Festival’s composition competition and in 2020 received Highly Commended in the Flute Society of NSW’s composition competition. In 2021 KPO commissioned Naomi to write her third orchestral work, Deep Calls to Deep.

Naomi’s inspiration is deeply connected to her emotional sensitivities, with compositions often finding their genesis in various experiential sensations. Her work ranges from intensely passionate and colourful moments to gentle fragments echoing the ethereal.

Naomi’s belief that all people possess an innate potential for musical appreciation shapes her desire to create music that reaches and impacts all who listen.

Dawn ‘ til Dusk in Kosciuszko

Dawn ‘ til Dusk in Kosciuszko is inspired by one of my favourite places in the world –The Snowy Mountains. A few years ago in autumn, I walked up to a place called Porcupine Rocks to watch the sunrise. As I sat on that cliff top at dawn, overlooking the Thredbo valley, a pink hue on the horizon surrounded me. All was still. All was quiet… Then, in a moment of breath, the sun’s rays hit the rock; dazzling sunlight races across the landscape. The day has begun.

Frogs and insects wake, calling their song to the morning; birds soar across the ranges, arcing gracefully through the wide sky; skinks creep cautiously onto the stony granite to warm their leathery bodies, while the last of summer’s alpine daisies reach for the warming daylight. As clear skies are broken, the day darkens. In the mountains, the weather changes rapidly. The alps, once glazed in sunlight become stark. Shifting clouds cast their shadows across the terrain. The chill of winter beckons as the temperature drops. A day in the mountains is full of beauty, movement, drama and vast skies. As the sun sets, the day comes to a close. The pink and orange hues of dawn return to the horizon. A cycle is complete. The animals ready themselves for night. The day is done.

Dawn ‘ til Dusk in Kosciuszko is my impression of an autumn day in the Snowy Mountains. As you listen, I hope you are transported and can sense both the intimacy and the vastness, the beauty and the magnitude, of this special place in Australia.