Three humans and three double basses paint a world of irresolution.

Melbourne Fringe Festival 2024

Headwater follows a stream of consciousness, guided by ideas unrealised and vaporized. The self here becomes water, dispersed across a collage of thoughts and earworms that appear and evaporate into the next - never quite settling, but always moving.

A work by double bassist/vocalist Helen Svoboda, this music performance dissects her eclectic solo identity across six bodies in space - three humans, and three double basses. As Svoboda navigates the ever-changing subconscious, she is joined by Finnish vocalist Selma Savolainen and Sydney double bassist Jacques Emery to bring each fleeting vignette towards a visible life - if only for a brief moment. Expect miniature songs, moments of stark beauty, and occasional nonsensical Finnish language, highlighted by Tilman Robinson as a sound avatar, lighting from Alex Nguyen, and movement direction from choreographer Jo Lloyd.

“A musician who absolutely defies categorisation” (Andrew Ford – The Music Show, ABC), Helen Svoboda is a 2023-24 Musica Viva Australia FutureMaker and Headwater is produced by Michaela Coventry - Sage Arts.

• Presented by: Musica Viva Australia in association with Abbotsford Convent

• Supported by: Musica Viva Australia, the Berg Family Foundation and the Victorian Government through Creative Victoria