Over the river and through the woods... to Canberra we go!

What a great weekend!
I got in to school like normal on Thursday morning. Peter and I left around 10:30. The drive down to Canberra is about 4 hours, so we definitely got some good discussion in about my project. However, that is not all we talked about. As I think I have made clear already, Peter is a very easy going, and hilarious guy. In fact, another one of his little sayings from the other day went something like this: "You know, I reckon you've got to have a sense of humor to travel. You know you see those people on planes who are just sitting there all serious looking... how can they be having any fun?" So, next, I would like to give a few examples of why Peter is so fun to work/travel with...
Obviously, sometimes things can get tense and stressful at work, no matter where you work. Whenever some really bad situation comes up at the Con, like professors getting in some big argument over something at a meeting, Peter will pleasantly comment, "Man, this little part is going to be great for when they make a movie about us." In other words, every movie needs a little drama, so Peter always likes to joke that "they" are going to make a movie about him and all of his colleagues. Conveniently, this can nicely lighten up the mood because who could really stay upset when someone makes a comment like that? So another game they like to play related to this is the "who will play me in the 'movie' game?" They like to take turns picking out who would play them in the 'movie.' Naturally, it has to be the worst possible choice of actors to play you, someone who looks/acts/represents nothing like you. I've been trying to think who would be a good actor to play me in the movie... any thoughts?
After this, to help the time pass a bit, we played the alphabet game, which Peter made up. What you do, is name off a letter of the alphabet, then challenging the other player to come up with three musicians whose last name starts with that letter. Only two of the musicians can be from the same category... meaning you could have two classical composers, and a rock musician. Try it out, it's quite fun.
Upon arriving in Canberra, we checked into our hotel, and then drove up to the Black Mountain Tower, which is where there was a big phone tower, and a great view of Canberra. Incidentally, Canberra was created as a circle. Parliament House is a the center, and then the roads form big circles around that... quite a strange design. Everything is pretty spread out too, not quite as crowded as Sydney. There are a lot of trees, and open spaces.
The next day was packed with loads of adventures. We first went to AIATSIS (Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies). Peter dropped me off, so that I could get a tour of the building and talk to a couple of the people who work there. I also got a chance to do a little browsing in the library, though much of the research they have on music is also in the Con Library. One of the services that the institute offers is to assist Aboriginal people track their family history. To do this sort of searching through the collections, you have to get on a waiting list that is nearly 6 months long... wow. I got to meet the lady who is in charge of the publishing department, and she even gave me a few books that they have published on music. Building up my library, right on.
The next stop was the National Museum. The building had a very interesting design. Very modern, and nice. On one of the outside walls, it looks like there is something enormous written in braille, with each bump probably six inches or so in diameter... to bad I don't read braille.
After the Museum, we went to the National Gallery. This was a great stop. One of the first things you see when you go into the exhibits is this large Aboriginal Memorial. There are 200 poles standing up in this sort of field arrangement. There is a nice little path weaving through the middle representing a river up in Aboriginal lands. Each pole is painted in a different style... each style representing a different region of land/group of people. The painting on each and every stick was beautiful, making the whole exhibit almost overwhelming. My next favorite piece in the gallery was Jackson Polluck's Blue Poles. Really great.
Next we went to the War Memorial, which was a really nice setup. Just like when I visited Washington DC a few years ago... there is a tomb of an unknown soldier, an eternal flame, etc... that kind of stuff.
Finally, we went to visit the new Parliament House, but only got to go in for a few minutes before it closed. The building is sort of built into a hill, so parts of it are underground. The foyer is supposed to represent Australian bushlands. There are pillars that look a lot like gumtrees, and all of the materials come from Australia. On our way out of the building, we noticed a person dressed in a koala costume walking around out front, and some other guys were filming him. why not.
That evening, we got to meet up with one of Peter's old friends Margaret Gummow. We went out to dinner with her, and got to talk quite a bit about my project. Margaret is also an ethnomusicologist, and did a lot of research on the music of the Bungalung people. These are the Aboriginal people in the region of northern New South Wales and Southern Queensland. She also attended the Garma Festival a few years ago, which is the festival I will be attending in August. She gave me a lot of good advice about what to expect when I go up there.
After some more talking with Peter, we've decided to give my project a little more focus. Many people might think that there is just one big collective Aboriginal people in Australia. However, when research on Aboriginal people was beginning, there were nearly 250 different Aboriginal languages... there are now thought to be somewhere around 80 left, but that still begins to give a sense that tribes from different areas can vary quite a bit. In fact, traditionally, didgeridoos were only used by Aboriginals in the northern part of the country... So, after some discussion, we decided to focus my project on Arnhem Land, which is up in the Northern Territory, (where I will be going for Garma.)
On the way home, Peter took me through a number of different small towns off of the highway. It was cool to see these more remote towns out in this very different countryside (from what I'm used to in Sydney anyways.) We also go to see the Big Sheep. There is a series of 'Big Things' around Australia, which I think is hilarious. Some of the other ones include: the Big Pineapple, the Big Banana, the Big Prawn, the Big Potato, etc...
We also go to pass Lake George, which doesn't actually have any water in it. It is huge though. Apparently, this lake fills up and empties at unexplainable times, with years in between. Peter says that it has been empty for quite a few years now. How odd.
Tomorrow Goetz Richter, the head of the string department in at the Con, is giving a recital! He will be playing the Prokofiev Violin Sonata No. 1, Brahms Violin Sonata No. 2, and others, I believe. I can't wait! His wife is accompanying him on piano too.




















The Institute.















The National Museum.




















Peter! (at the War Memorial)















Me! (Behind me is the road into the Parliament House)




















The Big Sheep!



Don't forget to suggest who you think should play me in 'the movie.'

signing off,
L. Chesterfield