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Dictionary of Sydney

The Dictionary of Sydney
Subjects
Culture and Customs
Performing Arts
Music

The Dictionary of Sydney was archived in 2021.

The Dictionary of Sydney was archived in 2021.

Music

Subject

Alpen, Hugo

Austral String Quartet

Bishop, Anna

Bochsa, Nicholas

Bodgies and African American Influences in Sydney

Bradley, Joseph

Breeding delinquents: Surf City 1963-1966

Building Bridges Association

Castell, William

Christian, Mary Ellen

Clutsam, George

Collegium Musicum

Deane, John Phillip

Delany, John

Ellard, Frederick

Garcia School of Music

Kelly, Frederick

Lemmone, John

McCormick, Peter

Monk, Cyril

Monk, Varney

Nathan, Isaac

Packer, Charles

Paling, William Henry

Paul, Mrs John

Percy Grainger at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music

Plummer, George

Spagnoletti, Ernesto

The Beatles in Sydney

Transcript: Mr Peter Granville-Smith recalls his family singing in the little Union Church Hoxton Park

Truman, Ernest

Wallace, William

Worgan, George

de Cairos-Rego, George

de Cairos-Rego, Iris

Advance Australia Fair

Ahitereria

Australia

Australia the Wide and Free

Australian Bird Waltz

Berceuse

Commemoration Ode

Como Waltz

Cooey! An Australian Song

Creole Cradle Song

Crimea: Alma, Inkermann, Balaklava

Currency Lasses

Friday on My Mind

Gumbery jah (Harry's song)

Hail! Men of America, Hail!

Heart's Desire

Koorinada Braia

Leichhardt's grave

Lilac Time

National Country Dances

Paean on Leichhardt's return

Plantation Songs

Robert and William Grey organ

Six O'Clock Rock

Six Songs from the South

Stockrider's Song

Sydney Flour Song

Sydney Railway Waltz

The Australian Ladies

The Australian Quadrilles

The Cornstalk Polka

The Damask Rose

The Southern Euphrosyne

The Sydney Corporation Quadrilles

Waiata Poi

Alfred Square bandstand

Green Park bandstand

Sydney Conservatorium of Music building

Verbrugghen Hall

Big Day Out

Carols by Candlelight

Oratorio of 1836

Rolling Stones concert Enmore Theatre 2003

Beach House

2MBS-FM

AC/DC

Albion Brass Band

Arts Club

Austral String Quartet

Australian Academy of Music

Australian Music Examinations Board

Beale Piano Company

Bill Haley and the Comets

Billy Thorpe and the Aztecs

Black Lace

Bondi-Waverley Music Club

Building Bridges Association

Burt's Milk Bar

Chappell & Co

Christian Concert Company

Cold Chisel

Collegium Musicum

Conservatorium High School

Cooper Bailey's International Show Band

Crowded House

Còisir Ghàidhlig Astrailianach

Don Cossack Choir

Dragon

Dutch Choir and Folkloric Group Dee Why

EMI

French's Tavern

Garcia School of Music

Glebe Brass Band

Hawaiian Eye

Hill, Norman & Beard (Aust) Pty Ltd

J & N Tait Concert Management

Jadran tambouritsa band

Jazz Action Society

Lincoln Records

Marrickville Municipal Symphony Orchestra

Mastertouch Piano Roll Company

Mendelssohn Quintet Club

Midnight Oil

Musica Viva

Musical Association of New South Wales

Māori Hi-Five

Māori Troubadours

Māori Volcanics

New South Wales Academy of Music

New South Wales State Orchestra

Nicholson & Co

No Age

Opera Australia

Orpheus Club

Quin Tikis

Radio Birdman

Ray Brown and the Whispers

Redgum

Rembrandt Male Choir

Rowe Street Records

Royal Philharmonic Society of Sydney

Silver Lining

Split Enz

Stray Dags

Sunrise Choral Society

Surf City

Sydney Balalaika Orchestra

Sydney Civic Symphony Orchestra

Sydney Conservatorium of Music

Sydney Flute Club

Sydney Liedertafel

Sydney String Quartet

Sydney Symphony Orchestra

The Angels

The Atlantics

The Beatles

The Easybeats

The Missing Links

The Necks

The Strollers

The Vibratones

WH Paling & Co

Young Australian Band

Zerbini Quartet

de Groen's Vice Regal Band

Abravanel, Maurice

Aengenheyster, MF

Allpress, HG Rivers

Alpen, Hugo

Amadio, Neville

Anson, Peter

Arrau, Claudio

Austral, Florence

Bailey, Amelia

Baker, Frederick

Baker, Glenn A

Barnard, Len

Barry, Keith

Bate, Stanley

Beecham, Thomas

Beilharz, Kirsty

Bell, Gladstone

Benjamin, Arthur Leslie

Berg, Charles

Bishop, Anna

Blevins, Jim

Bochsa, Nicholas

Bockelmann, Thomas Paul

Boland, Eugenie

Bonynge, Richard

Bradley, Joseph

Brown, Ray

Browne, Allan

Buddee, Julius

Bukovsky, Miroslav

Bushelle, John

Butt, Clara

Campbell, Matiu

Carmody, Kev

Carter, Bryce

Carter, Frances Mowat

Caspers, Ella

Castell, William

Cazabon, Albert

Christian, Emily

Christian, Mary Ellen

Clare, John

Clutsam, George

Cole, Nat King

Collins, Lottie

Concannon, Gertrude

Cooke, Nelson

Cordner, William

Coughlan, Frank James

Covell, Roger

Cramer, Madame

Crossley, Ada

Dal Monte, Toti

Date, Tina

Davidenkov, George

Davidson, Frankie

Davis, Sammy Junior

Dawson, Peter

Deane, Edward

Deane, John

Deane, John Phillip

Delany, John

Devlin, J

Dolma, Garpa Dawa

Dowd, Ronald

Ellard, Francis

Ellard, Frederick

Ellard, William

Erskine, Norman

Evans, Lindley

Falson, Ron

Forde, Florrie

Garrett, Peter

Gaston, Ed

Geddes, Alan

Geia, Joe

Gibb, Bert

Gibbs, John

Gibson, Florence

Gillespie, Dizzy

Giorza, Paolo

Goddard, Doris

Goldner, Richard

Golla, George

Goossens, Eugene

Gordon, Lee Lazer

Gotsch, Carl

Gotsch, Leonore

Grainger, Percy

Hanney, Fred

Hardy, Col

Harrigan, John William

Harrison, George

Harrison, Zillah

Hawkins, Coleman

Hayes, Catherine

Heard, James Charles

Heifetz, Jascha

Hibbler, Al

Hill, Alfred

Hill, Mirrie

Hines, Marcia

Hudson, Eliza

Hutchens, Frank

Hyam, Lottie

Jagger, Mick

James, William G

Jones, Jonah

Jones, Maureen

Jones, Vince

Joosten, Harry

Joye, Col

Katayama, Shinshiro

Keats, Horace

Kelly, Frederick Septimus

Kelly, Paul

Kidman, Nicole

Kingi, Noel

Laine, Frankie

Lammers, Isidoor

Lanceley, Carrie

Lane, Don

Lawrence, Marjorie

Lee, Sammy

Leggo, Charles William

Lemmone, John

Lennon, John

Levarrier, Ivonne

Lewis, Jeannie

Little, Jimmy

Livermore, Reg

Llewellyn, Ernest

Mackerras, Charles

Maling, Roy

Marriott, Edward

Marsh, Henry

Marshall-Hall, George

Martin, Jessie

May, Ricky

McCartney, Paul

McCormick, Peter

Mills, Jonathan

Moncrieff, Gladys

Monk, Cyril

Monk, Varney

Muset, Joseph

Nathan, Isaac

Neeson, Doc

Nicol, Jimmy

Nicol, Johnny

O'Doherty, Chris

O'Keefe, Johnny

Orchard, Arundel

Packer, Charles

Paderewski, Ignaz

Page, David

Paki, Peter

Paling, Richard

Paling, William Henry

Paul, Mrs John

Phelps, Bertha Emily

Plummer, George

Post, Joseph Mozart

Prerauer, Maria

Rawlins, Adrian

Ray, Johnnie

Reichenberg, Joseph

Roach, Archie

RoadKnight, Margret

Robinson, John

Rooney, Kate

Russell, Katherine

Santley, Charles

Sculthorpe, Peter

Sebastian, Guy

Shankar, Ravi

Shaw, Artie

Sinatra, Frank

Spagnoletti, Ernesto

Spagnoletti, Ernesto jnr

Staehelin, Lucas

Staell, Henry

Starr, Ringo

Stewart, Nellie

Stewart, Rex

Stubbs, Thomas

Tashi, Garpa Nyima

Tauber, Richard

Teka, Tui

Tenana, Mat

Thistlethwayte, Rai

Thorpe, Billy

Tibbits, George

Toppano, Peggy

Truman, Edwin Philip

Truman, Ernest

Tschaikov, Anton

Vanda, Harry

Verbrugghen, Henri

Vost-Janssen, S

Waaka, Gugi

Wallace, Elizabeth

Wallace, Isabella

Wallace, Wellington

Wallace, William

Weigand, Auguste

Westlake, Donald

Whelan, Albert

Wilden, Henri

Wilson, Teddy

Wirth, Johannes

Wong, Denis

Wong, Jap Kuan (Keith)

Worgan, George

Wright, Stevie

Young, Angus

Young, George

Young, Malcolm

Zuel, Bernard

de Cairos-Rego, George

de Cairos-Rego, Iris

de Cairos-Rego, Rex

de Gunst, Mollie

de Muro Lomanto, Enzo

de Waart, Edo

A broadcasting party who descended nearly 3000 feet below Sydney Harbour, Balmain August 1926

Advertisement for Jubilee Singers, Wesleyan Centenary Hall, York Street, c1892

Anna Bishop as Lucrezia 1857

Anna Bishop c1860s

Anna Bishop, c1870

Anna Bishop, soprano, 1868

Arrival of the Beatles at Sydney airport, 11 June 1964

At 90, Melba's Teacher Still Works On... 1938

Audience listening to Anna Bishop singing 'Home Sweet Home', Melbourne Punch, 22 May 1856

Beatles fans in the rain outside the Sheraton Motor Inn, Potts Point 11 June 1964

Bodgies, widgies have might night - but def! February 1951

Brazilian Carnival poster 1979

Carols by candlelight in Hyde Park, Sydney December 1970

Catherine Hayes at the Victoria Theatre, Sydney 1854

Catherine Hayes c1857

Class 1A percussion band at unidentified Sydney school c1950

Como Valse c1905

Couple looking at Sydney Symphony Orchestra Youth Concerts brochure, 1960s

Cover of 'The Balmain Polka' by Ernesto Spagnoletti 1857

Cover of 'Six songs from the south' 1916

Cover of The Australian Bird Waltz sheet music 1850-59

Cover of the colonial edition of the song 'Your King & Country Want You: A Woman's Recruiting Song' by Paul A Rubens 1914

Cover of the sheet music 'St Leonards Scottische' by Ernesto Spagnoletti 1863

Crowd watching La Traviata at the first Opera in the Park concert in the Domain 1982

Crowds outside the Chevron Hilton hoping for a glimpse of the Beatles staying in the Sheraton Hotel opposite, Macleay Street, Potts Point 11 June 1964

Crowds singing the national anthem during Armistice celebrations, Martin Place 12 November 1918

Dame Joan Sutherland performing in La Traviata at Opera in the Park 1982

Departure of Miss Catherine Hayes from Sydney 18 October 1854

Dragon at the Aria Hall of Fame, Melbourne 2008

Drummer Peg Clark plays as June Howarth and Ray Shart dance to band on the way to Broken Bay on the South Steyne, December 1953

Easybeats with Gold Records received for sales of their single 'Friday On My Mind' , 15 May 1969

Eugene Goossens November 1956

Exclusive Memoirs of Madame Christian, 1935

Field's transcription of Harry's song 'Iah, iah, gumbery ja' in The London Magazine, November 1823

Frederick Septimus Kelly

Frederick Septimus Kelly, after John Singer Sargent 1915

From Saturday afternoon till Monday 1926

Front cover 'Hymn to Sydney' 1897

Gay Choir, Macquarie Street, 1981

German migrant Rudolph Goldbach playing with band at Leo's Bistro, 1965

Government House stables 1842

Government House stables 1872

Grave sculpture, St Stephen's Anglican Church, Newtown, Sydney, 1936

Guy Sebastian in Sunrise Seven interview 2007

Harry Rickards on the cover of sheet music of 'Where is my Nancy?' c1880

I. Nathan, Esq 1854

If you're a square you'll have to get hep to bodgey language, March 1951

Introduction to The Australian bird waltz 1850-59

Irish National Association Pipe Band and Cardinal Gilroy at the St Patrick's Day Sports, Sydney Sports Ground 14 March 1965

Isaac Nathan's opera 'Don John of Austria' 1847

Isaac Nathan, Australia's first composer

Jim Davidson's ABC Dance Band give a public performance in Martin Place 12 January 1939

Johnny O'Keefe 1962

La Perouse Aborigines' Mission: music at the annual outdoor rally of the United Aborigines' Mission 26 January 1931

Land of the Sunny South, All Hail 1879

Latvians rehearse for Sydney Festival 1959

Letter from William Joseph Cavendish (previously Castell) in Parramatta to M Castell [probably his wife] in London, 20 April 1833

Life with American Squadron, descriptive fantasia 1908

Madame Christian 1892

Marjorie Lawrence at Sydney Town Hall c1944

Marrickville Municipal Symphony Orchestra at Marrickville Town Hall, 9 May 1937

Monument in memory of NC Bochsa, erected by Anna Bishop over his grave in Camperdown Cemetery, 1856

Mr WH Paling's new establishment in George Street 1883

Māori male musical group in native costume arrive on TEAL aircraft at Mascot 18 January 1960

Paul Cullen at the Palatial Theatre, Burwood 1936

Percy Grainger 1910-20

Portrait of Hugo Alpen, Superintendent of Music, Department of Music, Department of Public Instruction of New South Wales, 1884-

Program for Mr E Boulanger's grand evening concert on Monday, June 11, 1855, at the Prince of Wales Theatre

Ray Brown and the Whispers performing at a union picnic c1965

Reg Mombassa, drawn 2013

Rolf Harris amuses diners at a nightclub in Sydney 1966

Roosevelt nightclub, Kings Cross September 1944

Rydalmere: a polka song 1886

Salvation Army, Oh! 1887

Score to two quadrilles 'Kurry Jong' (Currajong) and the fourth quadrille is 'Woo-loo-moo-loo' by William Castell 1833

Sonny Clay's Plantation Band arriving in Sydney, January 1928

Square piano by Collard & Collard made for Francis Ellard, Sydney c1835-37

Sydney Conservatorium of Music 2007

Sydney Railway Waltz, dedicated to Wm Randle Esq, composed by WH Paling 1855

Sydney Symphony Orchestra 1965

Tenzin Choegyal playing a Tibetan flute 2007

The Anniversary Polka 1853

The Australian Bird Waltz 1850-59

The City of Sydney Polka 1854

The Cornstalk Polka 1857

The Cornstalk Polka c1863

The Currency Lasses by Isaac Nathan 1846

The Glebe District Silver Band 1936-1937

The Marian Waltzes 1853

The Māori Troubadours sideshow act, Royal Easter Show 1964

The Regatta Waltzes, cover of Australian presentation album for 1855

The Romaine of the Trocadero 1941

The Sydney Corporation Quadrilles 1842

The Sydney Flour Song 1945

The Wearing of the Green: new version, as sung with immense effect at Messrs Punch and McGrath's, February 1868

The catodon polka c1850

The rotunda, or bandstand, in Prince Alfred Park, Parramatta 2015

The soprano Florence Austral as Brunnhilde in London c1925

The wonder boy Charlton

Title page of 'The Darling Point Polka' 1863

Tivoli music album No 29, Xmas number, 1906-7

Varney Monk c1933

Wattle Day: march song and two-step 1920s

When Manly's on the spree 1928

William Vincent Wallace c1860

Frank Gardiner Is Caught At Last

Gumbery Jah (Harry’s Song) and Cooee (Guwi), sung by Matthew Doyle and Clarence Slockee, recorded by Kevin Hunt at the Conservatorium of Music, Sydney 2010

Mr Peter Granville-Smith talks about the Hoxton Park Union Church and his family singing there c1920s, interviewed in 1986

Sydney Flour Song radio advertisement 1955

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Music

Alpen, Hugo

Alpen influenced the musical culture of Sydney through his composition, teaching and conducting. As Superintendent of Music for New South Wales public schools, he emphasised singing and listening as part of music training for all students.

Austral String Quartet

Part of Sydney's musical scene before the beginning of World War I, the Austral String Quartet premiered new music from Australia and overseas.

Bishop, Anna

One of the first world-famous musicians to perform in Sydney, Anna Bishop had scandalised London by leaving her husband. Her lover Bochsa died suddenly in Sydney in early 1856, after their first concert, and Bishop left soon afterwards.

Bochsa, Nicholas

A visitor with a scandalous past, harpist Nicholas Bochsa gave only one concert in Sydney before his sudden death. He was buried in St Stephen's cemetery, Newtown.

Bodgies and African American Influences in Sydney

The bodgie movement was a feature of street life in Sydney in the post-war period. This article, based on oral history interviews, reveals how bodgies modelled their dress and movement on African Americans, including black GIs stationed in Sydney during World War II. Part of the first generation recognised as 'teenagers', bodgies embraced fun, sensuality and spectacle as a rebellion against the dull years of depression and war and the conformism of the dominant Anglo-Irish culture, and their parents' generation.

Bradley, Joseph

A conductor and organist, Bradley was appointed conductor of Sydney's Royal Philharmonic Society in 1908, and also conducted the first Sydney Symphony Orchestra from 1908-14. He resigned from the Philharmonic Society in 1927 with failing sight, having conducted from memory for several years.

Breeding delinquents: Surf City 1963-1966

The venue Surf City in the former Kings Cross Theatre on Darlinghurst Road was accused of ‘breeding delinquents’ soon after it opened in 1963. Despite its short lifetime, the venue is crucial to the musical history of Australia. For three years it served as the spiritual home of Australian beat music, giving rise to mainstream pop stars and underground cult heroes whose influence remains today.

Building Bridges Association

Founded by Kev Carmody and Paul Kelly, Building Bridges has launched the careers of some of Sydney's foremost Aboriginal musicians.

Castell, William

Arriving in Sydney in 1833, after leaving Mauritius under a cloud, William Castell was a man with many names, female companions and stories.

Christian, Mary Ellen

Singer and nun, Mary Ellen Christian contributed to Sydney's musical education over a long period.

Clutsam, George

Despite being an expatriate for most of his life, George Clutsam composed much music inspired by Australia and his works were performed in Sydney.

Collegium Musicum

Playing both the latest music and the early music of the distant past, Collegium Musicum gathered round the cellist Carl Gotsch on his return from many years in the East Indies in 1937.

Deane, John Phillip

After a short term in prison for debt in Hobart, John Deane arrived in Sydney and soon became a popular performer and composer before returning to Hobart in 1844.

Delany, John

A musician who played, conducted and composed for theatre, concert hall and church, John Delany was called 'The Australian Gounod' and conducted, with others, the massed choir at the inauguration of the Commonwealth in Centennial Park in January 1901.

Ellard, Frederick

Though Frederick Ellard spent much of the 1840s in Melbourne and London, Sydney remained the base of his activities. His first published composition was The Sydney Corporation Quadrilles (1842) which, like most of his other works of the 1840s, was published by the Ellard family business. He also became one of the city's leading cellists and piano teachers, and, during the last 20 years of his life, a singing teacher.

Garcia School of Music

The Garcia School of Music trained many of Sydney's best musicians for four decades after its founding by the Sisters of Charity in 1897.

Kelly, Frederick

Born in Sydney, Frederick Kelly lived almost all his life in Britain and even won a gold medal for rowing in the London Olympic Games. His acclaim in Sydney however arose from his solitary 1911 visit as composer and pianist.

Lemmone, John

Self taught on a tin whistle, John Lemmone became an internationally recognised flautist and concert promoter, with a long association with Dame Nellie Melba.

McCormick, Peter

School teacher and music director for the Presbyterian Church, Peter McCormick is little known in Sydney, although every Sydneysider knows his work. His song, 'Advance Australia Fair', was sung by a choir of 10,000 at the celebration of the inauguration of the Commonwealth in 1901, and was made Australia's national anthem in 1984, long after his death.

Monk, Cyril

Violinist Cyril Monk was a central part of Sydney's music scene from the 1910s until the 1950s, as a musician, teacher, composer and examiner.

Monk, Varney

Part of a musical circle in 1930s Sydney that hoped to create an Australian music, Varney Desmond (later Monk) built her work on Australian stories and musical motifs.

Nathan, Isaac

An associate of kings and poets in England, Isaac Nathan emigrated for financial reasons and became a founder of Sydney's musical culture.

Packer, Charles

Convict and musician, who came to Sydney after his pardon and became a well known organist, conductor and composer. After a further spell in gaol for bigamy, he resumed his career.

Paling, William Henry

Born in the Netherlands to a family of musicians, William Paling became one of Sydney's foremost businessmen and philanthropists.

Paul, Mrs John

Perhaps Sydney's first composer, Mrs Paul produced a tune for William Wallace to play at his concert in 1836.

Percy Grainger at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music

Percy Grainger was an 'all-round man' whose musical passions ranged from English folk songs through an eclectic array of composers, styles, influences and orchestrations. He graced the stage of the Sydney Conservatorium of Music as part of a two-year tour of Australia and New Zealand in 1935, leaving behind a harmonium that would languish beneath the main stage of the Vergrugghen Hall for over 70 years.

Plummer, George

Otherwise unknown, George Plummer owned the name 'Sydney Symphony Orchestra', until the ABC bought it from him in 1937. An earlier group by that name had formed in 1908 and gave performances until 1914.

Spagnoletti, Ernesto

Two musicians by the name of Ernesto Spagnoletti, father and son, were prominent in the musical life of Sydney in the 1850s.

The Beatles in Sydney

The Beatles visit to Sydney in 1964 was a cultural phenomenon. Greeted at the airport by adoring fans, they went on parade in the city and entertained the media, before touring Adelaide and Melbourne. On their return they performed six concerts at the Sydney Stadium in Rushcutters Bay.

Transcript: Mr Peter Granville-Smith recalls his family singing in the little Union Church Hoxton Park

Mr Peter Granville-Smith was born in 1910 and interviewed in 1986 for the 'Looking Back at Liverpool: An Oral History of the Liverpool Region 1900 to 1960.' He came to live in Hoxton Park with his family in 1914 because his clergyman father was ill.

Truman, Ernest

A musician and composer trained in Leipzig, Ernest Truman was City Organist for 26 years.

Wallace, William

Hailed as the 'Australian Paganini', William Wallace was a musical star in Sydney on his arrival in 1836, but left only two years later, in debt, for adventures elsewhere.

Worgan, George

Worgan brought the first piano to the colony in 1788, and left it with Elizabeth Macarthur when he returned to England. His journal recorded his impressions of the first six months of European settlement, and is now in the State Library of New South Wales.

de Cairos-Rego, George

Composer, administrator and critic, George de Cairos-Rego was an advocate of the establishment of the Sydney Conservatorium.

de Cairos-Rego, Iris

After training in Europe, child prodigy Iris de Cairos-Rego returned to Australia to a career as a musician and teacher.

Advance Australia Fair

Song composed by Peter Dodds McCormick, first performed in 1878 and made Australia's official national anthem in 1984.

full record »

Ahitereria

Song written by Matiu Campbell.for the 1979 Māori Festival in Sydney.

full record »

Australia

Music composed by Paolo Giorza for the Sydney International Exhibition 1879-80 with words by Henry Kendall.

full record »

Australia the Wide and Free

Song composed by Nathan Isaac, with lyrics by WA Duncan, to celebrate the inaugural Sydney City Council in 1842.

full record »

Australian Bird Waltz

full record »

Composition by Frederick Ellard that is possibly the first published piece of music based on an Australian bird call.

Berceuse

Modernist piano composition by George Clutsam.

full record »

Commemoration Ode

Ode written by Hugo Alpen in 1899 for Fort Street School's jubilee.

full record »

Como Waltz

Waltz composed by Thomas Paul Bockelmann in 1900-1909.

full record »

Cooey! An Australian Song

Creole Cradle Song

Musical composition written by G.H. Clutsam in 1801.

full record »

Crimea: Alma, Inkermann, Balaklava

Musical composition by Frederick Ellard.

full record »

Currency Lasses

Song written by Isaac Nathan in 1846 to commemorate the 58th anniversary of the colony.

full record »

Friday on My Mind

International hit song performed by Australian rock group The Easybeats, written in 1966 by band members George Young and Harry Vanda.

full record »

Gumbery jah (Harry's song)

full record »

Aboriginal chant or song performed by Corrangie (Harry) between 1820 and 1823 and transcribed by Judge Barron Field. It was first published in 1823 when The London Magazine published Field's article ‘Journal of an excursion across the Blue Mountains of New South Wales’ and again in 1825 in Fields' Geographic Memoirs of New South Wales. The work was performed by Matthew Doyle and Clarence Slockee and recorded by Kevin Hunt Conservatorium of Music in 2010.

Hail! Men of America, Hail!

Song written by Hugo Alpen to welcome the American Fleet in 1908 with words by Roderick Quinn.

full record »

Heart's Desire

Song written by Haydn Wood with words by Anthony Mainwaring.

full record »

Koorinada Braia

Song written by Isaac Nathan with words by IW Robinson.

full record »

Leichhardt's grave

Song by Isaac Nathan from the poem by Robert Lynd.

full record »

Lilac Time

Music from Franz Schuber arranged by George Howard Clutsam.

full record »

National Country Dances

Two scores for piano.

full record »

Paean on Leichhardt's return

Song by Isaac Nathan with words by AK Silvester.

full record »

Plantation Songs

Music composed by Australian-born George Clutsam for the 1924-25 British Empire Exhibition.

full record »

Robert and William Grey organ

Organ built in 1796 by Robert and William Gray of London, for the Hon Spencer Perceval. The organ was lent to the Emperor
Napoleon, and after his fall in 1815 was brought to England in 1817 by Lady Perceval, who later ordered it to be sold.
In 1829 it was in the possession of the Congregational Church, Wiveliscombe, Somerset UK.
In 1901 it was purchased by Dr CA Edwards of Sydney who was born at Wiveliscombe and eventually bought to Sydney.

full record »

Six O'Clock Rock

Rock and roll television show which appeared on ABC television from 28 February 1959 until 1962.

full record »

Six Songs from the South

full record »

Music for voice and piano by George Clutsam with lyrics by Mary Gilmore.

Stockrider's Song

Composition by William G James

full record »

Sydney Flour Song

Advertising song broadcast on radio

full record »

Sydney Railway Waltz

full record »

Waltz music composed by WH Paling to mark the opening of the first railway from Sydney to Parramatta in 1855.

The Australian Ladies

Sixteen piano solos named for leading ladies of colonial Sydney.

full record »

The Australian Quadrilles

Five quadrilles for orchestra.

full record »

The Cornstalk Polka

full record »

Music for piano written by George Thornton.

The Damask Rose

Composition based on the music of Chopin.

full record »

The Southern Euphrosyne

An historical sketch with examples of the native aboriginal melodies put into modern rhythm and harmonized with several other original vocal pieces, arranged for piano.

full record »

The Sydney Corporation Quadrilles

full record »

Dance music composed by Frederick Ellard to celebrate the incorporation of the City of Sydney.

Waiata Poi

Māori poi song by Alfred Hill

full record »

Alfred Square bandstand

Concert bandstand erected for local band concerts that were held regularly in the park from the 1880s.

full record »

Green Park bandstand

Bandstand erected in Green Park, Darlinghurst, to host public concerts, popular during the interwar years, and later converted to a cafe.

full record »

Sydney Conservatorium of Music building

full record »

Designed by Francis Greenway as stables for the Government House that had been commissioned by Governor Macquarie in 1816, the building became the Conservatorium in 1916.

Verbrugghen Hall

Concert hall and the largest venue at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music, seating a total of 528.

full record »

Big Day Out

Contemporary music festival held in January across Australia and New Zealand.

full record »

Carols by Candlelight

full record »

Annual community event held in the city at Christmas time. It was first held in Hyde Park near the War Memorial in 1946 (apart from 1947 when it was postponed due to rain and held on Good Friday at the Showground instead. The festival moved to the Domain in 1983.

Oratorio of 1836

Festival of sacred music held at St Mary's Cathedral on the 26th July 1836.

full record »

Rolling Stones concert Enmore Theatre 2003

Concert held during the Rolling Stones tour of Australia. Mick Jagger chose the Enmore Theatre as its venue because his mother had been born in the area and lived nearby.

full record »

Beach House

Nightclub in a former car showroom on Elizabeth Street in the city in the 1960s. It was run by John Harrigan, the manager of Surf City and other venues.

full record »

2MBS-FM

One of the first FM radio stations in Sydney.

full record »

AC/DC

Rock and roll band formed by Angus and Malcolm Young in 1973.

full record »

Albion Brass Band

Band formed from within the Salvation Army.

full record »

Arts Club

Ladies' musical and social club active in the 1930s.

full record »

Austral String Quartet

Chamber music group loosely formed in 1908 then active in Sydney during the second decade of the twentieth century.

full record »

Australian Academy of Music

Music school established by William Wallace to instruct young ladies in voice and instrumental music.

full record »

Australian Music Examinations Board

Organisation established to develop syllabuses, publications and written examinations for music, speech and drama.

full record »

Beale Piano Company

Australia's first piano factory established in 1893 which became the largest piano manufacturer in the British Empire. It closed in 1975.

full record »

Bill Haley and the Comets

American rock and roll band who toured Australia in 1957.

full record »

Billy Thorpe and the Aztecs

Rock band that enjoyed huge success in the 1960s and 1970s.

full record »

Black Lace

Aboriginal pop group who performed in the 1970s.

full record »

Bondi-Waverley Music Club

Community music club.

full record »

Building Bridges Association

Organisation formed to link Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal people through music.

full record »

Burt's Milk Bar

Milk bar in Kings Cross which initially sold non-alcoholic beverages including milkshakes before it became a gathering place for young people from the 1940s featuring seating, snack food and two juke boxes. From the late 1940s it played progressive jazz music, a genre which, according to one frequent patron, Martin Vaughan, was played no where else in Sydney.

full record »

Chappell & Co

Music publishing company founded in London in 1810 which established a branch in Sydney in 1900.

full record »

Christian Concert Company

Small group of singers formed by Mary Ellen Christian who toured extensively in the 1870s.

full record »

Cold Chisel

Rock band originally formed in Adelaide in 1973 and renamed 1974, which achieved success in Australia and New Zealand in the 1970s and 1980s.

full record »

Collegium Musicum

Chamber music group which performed in Sydney from the late 1930s until the 1950s.

full record »

Conservatorium High School

Specialist music high school whose students have often become the core of Australia's musical institutions.

full record »

Cooper Bailey's International Show Band

Show band which toured Australia in 1876 as part of the circus tour of the Cooper Bailey and Co Circus from the United States of America.

full record »

Crowded House

Pop rock band formed in Melbourne in 1985 by New Zealand-born Neil Finn.

full record »

Còisir Ghàidhlig Astrailianach

Australian Gaelic Singers, formed in Sydney in 1982.

full record »

Don Cossack Choir

Men's chorus of exiled Russian Cossacks founded by Serge Jaroff in 1921. It toured extensively under his direction until 1979.

full record »

Dragon

Rock band formed in Auckland New Zealand in 1872 which then relocated to Sydney in 1975.

full record »

Dutch Choir and Folkloric Group Dee Why

Performing group founded in the 1950s under director Isidoor Lammers, that performed at the Sydney Opera House and Carols by Candlelight in Sydney's Domain.

full record »

EMI

Global music publishing company originally renowned for its development of electronics and electrical engineering.

full record »

French's Tavern

Wine bar at 86 Oxford St which provided a venue for many emerging bands in the 1970s.

full record »

Garcia School of Music

Music school established at St Vincent's College in 1897. Named for Manuel Garcia who had taught the founder Sister Mary Paul at the Royal Academy of Music in London.

full record »

Glebe Brass Band

Brass band which operated intermittently from 1879 to the 1890s depending on the enthusiasm of the local community. It played in local parks and at many civic functions.

full record »

Hawaiian Eye

Nightclub or 'discotheque' in the city in the 1960s and 1970s that was owned and managed by John Harrigan and Denis Wong.

full record »

Hill, Norman & Beard (Aust) Pty Ltd

Organ builder.

full record »

J & N Tait Concert Management

Theatre managers and concert promotion company formed by John and Nevin Tait in 1902.

full record »

Jadran tambouritsa band

Croatian marching band

full record »

Jazz Action Society

Cultural society formed to promote Australian jazz music.

full record »

Lincoln Records

American record label of the 1920s.

full record »

Marrickville Municipal Symphony Orchestra

full record »

Orchestra formed by unemployed musicians in 1930 and supported by Marrickville Municipal Council. It was disbanded in 1945, but has been revived in 2010.

Mastertouch Piano Roll Company

A company established in Sydney which manufactured and sold piano rolls. It was the only piano roll manufacturer operating in Australia and one of two remaining large scale piano roll manufacturers in the world, the other being QRS in the United States of America. Following the closure of the company, the Powerhouse Museum acquired the Mastertouch Piano Roll Company Collection.

full record »

Mendelssohn Quintet Club

Musical quintet which performed early in the twentieth century.

full record »

Midnight Oil

Rock band formed in Sydney in 1972 and active between 1972 and 2002. The band became known for its hard rock sound and political activism in aid of Indigenous, environmental and anti-nuclear causes.

full record »

Musica Viva

Independent professional performing arts organisation founded to bring chamber music to Sydney.

full record »

Musical Association of New South Wales

Organisation to promote performance and scholarship in music.

full record »

Māori Hi-Five

Māori showband formed in 1955 which toured to Australia and the United States of America.

full record »

Māori Troubadours

Māori based showband which toured extensively from 1958 into the 1960s.

full record »

Māori Volcanics

Māori showband formed in 1967 which toured extensively.

full record »

New South Wales Academy of Music

Music academy established by William Paling and Henry Marsh in November 1855.

full record »

New South Wales State Orchestra

Orchestra formed at the Conservatorium of Music by the then director Henri Verbrugghen composed of professional musicians and Conservatorium students. It was the first full time orchestra in Australia.

full record »

Nicholson & Co

Music publishing business of George Street.

full record »

No Age

American Indy band which toured Australia in 2008.

full record »

Opera Australia

Formed by the merger of the Australian Opera and the Victoria State Opera (VSO) companies in 1996.

full record »

Orpheus Club

Club formed by Leon Caron which was amongst the first to be allowed to provide concerts on a Sunday.

full record »

Quin Tikis

Maori rock and roll band which was formed in Rotorua and relocated to Sydney in 1964.

full record »

Radio Birdman

One of Australia's first punk bands, formed in Sydney in 1974.

full record »

Ray Brown and the Whispers

Rock band which found Australian success between 1964 and 1967.

full record »

Redgum

Folk and political music group originally formed as part of a music project at university in Adelaide.

full record »

Rembrandt Male Choir

Choir was formed by eight members of the Rembrandt Dutch Club in October 1985.

full record »

Rowe Street Records

Record shop established by George Cooks in 1961, it specialised in classical music.

full record »

Royal Philharmonic Society of Sydney

Music ensemble active between 1885 and 1973 which grew out of a number of choral societies which had existed from the 1830s. By charter granted in 1909 it became the Royal Philharmonic Society.

full record »

Silver Lining

Aboriginal performing group.

full record »

Split Enz

Musical act from New Zealand formed by Tim Finn and Philip Judd. Whilst the membership changed over the years band were very successful in the 1970s and 1980s.

full record »

Stray Dags

Lesbian rock band in the 1980s.

full record »

Sunrise Choral Society

Dutch choral group formed in 1959

full record »

Surf City

One of Sydney's biggest 'beat' music venues in the 1960s, located in the former Kings Cross Theatre that was demolished to make way for the underground railway station and the Crest Hotel.

full record »

Sydney Balalaika Orchestra

Orchestra of authentic folk instruments which plays traditional Russian folk music.

full record »

Sydney Civic Symphony Orchestra

Shortlived Sydney orchestra.

full record »

Sydney Conservatorium of Music

Prestigious music school established to provide tuition and performance experience at the highest level for both secondary and tertiary students.

full record »

Sydney Flute Club

Musical society which gave frequent concerts during the 1920s.

full record »

Sydney Liedertafel

Sydney amateur singing group which gave concerts in the latter part of the nineteenth century.

full record »

Sydney String Quartet

Chamber music quartet.

full record »

Sydney Symphony Orchestra

The orchestra grew out of the group of musicians assembled to perform incidental music for radio plays and broadcasts of concert repertoire for the newly established Australian Broadcasting Commission in 1932. Its first concert as the Sydney Symphony Orchestra was given in 1946.

full record »

The Angels

Hard rock band which enjoyed local success after relocating from Adelaide to Sydney in the 1970s.

full record »

The Atlantics

Australian instrumental surf rock band that was formed in Sydney's southern suburbs in 1961. Their single Bombora, released in July 1963, was an international success.

full record »

The Beatles

English rock band formed in Liverpool, which became widely regarded as the greatest and most influential act of the rock era.

full record »

The Easybeats

full record »

Rock and roll band formed in Sydney in 1964, who had an international hit with 'Friday on My Mind' in 1966.

The Missing Links

Rhythm and blues band which bought frenzied playing and long hair to the Sydney music scene.

full record »

The Necks

Experimental jazz trio comprising Chris Abrahams on piano and organ, Tony Buck on drums, percussion and electric guitar, and Lloyd Swanton on bass guitar and double bass which have entertained for over 25 years.

full record »

The Strollers

Dance band which performed during the 1920s and 1930s.

full record »

The Vibratones

Four piece instrumental band that formed in the 1960s and soonevolved, with the addition of a lead vocalist, into Billy Thorpe and the Aztecs.

full record »

WH Paling & Co

Music publishing company.

full record »

Young Australian Band

Band which was active at the end of the nineteenth century.

full record »

Zerbini Quartet

Quartet formed in Melbourne by John Baptist Zerbini soon after his arrival in 1885.

full record »

de Groen's Vice Regal Band

Performing band who provided music for Government House functions, State balls, and social events at Parliament House from the 1880s. Enormously popular in 1908.

full record »

Abravanel, Maurice

Swiss-American conductor who visited Sydney in 1934-36 conducting opera and orchestral concerts, and returned in 1946 for another tour.

full record »

Aengenheyster, MF

French conductor.

full record »

Allpress, HG Rivers

Violinist.

full record »

Alpen, Hugo

full record »

German-born composer, choral conductor and teacher who directed musical education in New South Wales from 1884.

Amadio, Neville

Flautist.

full record »

Anson, Peter

Musician and guitarist who was one of the founders of 1960s band The Missing Links. He was also renowned for his long hair.

full record »

Arrau, Claudio

Chilean pianist who performed in Sydney in 1947.

full record »

Austral, Florence

full record »

Singer born in Victoria who became a star in London and appeared in Sydney during the 1930s.

Bailey, Amelia

Soprano.

full record »

Baker, Frederick

Organ builder who made the organ at St Benedict's Catholic church Broadway.

full record »

Baker, Glenn A

Australian journalist, commentator and broadcaster well known for his vast knowledge of Rock music.

full record »

Barnard, Len

Australian jazz drummer.

full record »

Barry, Keith

Doctor, musician and music critic who became controller of programmes with the ABC.

full record »

Bate, Stanley

English composer who whilst openly gay, was also married to composer Peggy Glanville-Hicks.

full record »

Beecham, Thomas

British conductor who visited Australia in 1940.

full record »

Beilharz, Kirsty

Composer and interactive media artist.

full record »

Bell, Gladstone

Cellist.

full record »

Benjamin, Arthur Leslie

Composer, pianist and teacher who made his professional career in London with occasional tours of Australia.

full record »

Berg, Charles

Accountant and music administrator who fostered chamber music and opera in Sydney.

full record »

Bishop, Anna

full record »

English singer who visited Sydney several times, once with her lover Nicholas Bochsa.

Blevins, Jim

Australian jazz musician.

full record »

Bochsa, Nicholas

Harpist and composer who died in Sydney on concert tour in 1856.

full record »

Bockelmann, Thomas Paul

Composer of 'Como Waltz'.

full record »

Boland, Eugenie

Contralto who achieved some recognition in London in the 1900s.

full record »

Bonynge, Richard

Conductor and pianist who conducted almost all his wife, Joan Sutherland's performances.

full record »

Bradley, Joseph

Conductor of the Sydney Royal Philharmonic Society from 1908-27.

full record »

Brown, Ray

Singer who joined the Nocturnes in 1964 to form Ray Brown and the Whispers.

full record »

Browne, Allan

Jazz drummer and composer.

full record »

Buddee, Julius

Pianist and teacher.

full record »

Bukovsky, Miroslav

Jazz trumpeter and composer.

full record »

Bushelle, John

Singer.

full record »

Butt, Clara

English recitalist and concert singer.

full record »

Campbell, Matiu

Māori teacher who worked with Māori cultural groups.

full record »

Carmody, Kev

Aboriginal singer and songwriter who founded Building Bridges Association with musician Paul Kelly.

full record »

Carter, Bryce

Cellist who played a prominent part in concert life in Sydney.

full record »

Carter, Frances Mowat

Violinist and teacher who was prominent in concert life early in the twentieth century.

full record »

Caspers, Ella

Contralto who continued her training in London before the scandal of marriage to a bigamist hastened her return to Sydney. She recovered her career and was an early recording artist in the 1910s and 1920s.

full record »

Castell, William

Musician, conman and adventurer.

full record »

Cazabon, Albert

Composer and conductor who became musical director at the Prince Edward Theatre in 1927 and also conducted at the Conservatorium.

full record »

Christian, Emily

Pianist.

full record »

Christian, Mary Ellen

A singer of some renown before she took religious vows, she was to use her skills as a teacher of many of Australia's finest singers in the early decades of the twentieth century.

full record »

Clare, John

Jazz musician, critic and author.

full record »

Clutsam, George

Sydney-born composer who spent most of his career in London.

full record »

Cole, Nat King

American jazz pianist and singer.

full record »

Collins, Lottie

English music hall artist famous for her song 'Ta-ra-ra Boom-de-ay!'.

full record »

Concannon, Gertrude

Soprano, composer and teacher who often programmed Australian works into her performances throughout her 15 year international career.

full record »

Cooke, Nelson

Cellist.

full record »

Cordner, William

Organist and singer who greatly influenced church music in Sydney and taught some of Sydney's best musicians.

full record »

Coughlan, Frank James

Musician, bandmaster and arranger who was one of the most influential figures in the development of jazz in Australia.

full record »

Covell, Roger

Academic, writer and journalist.

full record »

Cramer, Madame

Singer who performed in Sydney in 1856 and 1857.

full record »

Crossley, Ada

Concert singer whose parents allowed her to take lessons as a child on the condition she never sang opera. After further training in London and Paris in the 1890s she enjoyed concert success across Europe, America, and Australia.

full record »

Dal Monte, Toti

Italian soprano who toured Australia with Nellie Melba and was married in Sydney in 1928.

full record »

Date, Tina

Folk singer and pianist.

full record »

Davidenkov, George

Russian emigrant and active member of the community in Sydney.

full record »

Davidson, Frankie

Comic entertainer.

full record »

Davis, Sammy Junior

American dancer, singer, musician and actor of stage and screen.

full record »

Dawson, Peter

Singer who achieved international fame through his many recordings and tours.

full record »

Deane, Edward

Musician in one of Sydney's earliest string quartet performances.

full record »

Deane, John

Violinist and conductor in some of Sydney's earliest classical music performances.

full record »

Deane, John Phillip

Musician and music teacher in early nineteenth century Sydney and Hobart.

full record »

Delany, John

Leading musician and composer.

full record »

Devlin, J

Bandmaster and composer.

full record »

Dolma, Garpa Dawa

Tibetan teacher of traditional dance and song.

full record »

Dowd, Ronald

Tenor who toured Australia and overseas and sang at the opening of the Sydney Opera House.

full record »

Ellard, Francis

Music seller and composer who emigrated from Dublin Ireland.

full record »

Ellard, Frederick

Irish-born composer who became a leading music teacher, and published his work through the family music publishing business in Sydney.

full record »

Ellard, William

Composer who fell overboard and drowned returning to Australia.

full record »

Erskine, Norman

Australian singer and boxer who became a prominent figure in the nightclub scene in Sydney during the 1950s and 1960s.

full record »

Evans, Lindley

Pianist, teacher and composer who worked with the ABC Children's Hour for over thirty years.

full record »

Falson, Ron

Australian jazz trumpeter.

full record »

Forde, Florrie

Singer and entertainer who ran away from home to join a music hall and eventually found fame in England.

full record »

Garrett, Peter

Musician and environmentalist who pragmatism has attracted both criticism and praise since becoming a Federal Labor politician.

full record »

Gaston, Ed

American-born Australian jazz bassist.

full record »

Geddes, Alan

Australian jazz drummer.

full record »

Geia, Joe

Guitarist, composer and didgeridoo player who has been influential in the development of contemporary Indigenous music.

full record »

Gibb, Bert

Band leader of the Strollers in the 1920s and 1930s.

full record »

Gibbs, John

Violinist and leader of the orchestra at the Royal Victoria Theatre during the 1850s.

full record »

Gibson, Florence

Singer.

full record »

Gillespie, Dizzy

American jazz trumpeter, bandleader, composer and singer.

full record »

Giorza, Paolo

Composer and conductor who was director of music for the International Exhibition of 1879.

full record »

Goddard, Doris

Publican of the Hollywood Hotel in Surry Hills from 1977 until her death in 2019. Doris Goddard grew up in Glebe with her mother Essie. In 1952 she left Sydney for London in order to have an operation on a heart defect and to follow her theatrical and musical career. After a successful film, television and musical career, she returned to Sydney in 1958 to visit family and stayed, entering the hotel business with her mother. The Hollywood Hotel became an iconic destination in inner city Sydney, with a diverse and colourful clientele who were welcomed and entertained by Doris until her death at 89 in 2019.

full record »

Goldner, Richard

Viola player and inventor who used some of the proceeds of his successful zipper invention to fund the foundation of Musica Viva, and support chamber music in Australia.

full record »

Golla, George

Australian jazz guitarist.

full record »

Goossens, Eugene

full record »

Conductor and composer eminent in Sydney musical circles until a public scandal in 1956.

Gordon, Lee Lazer

American-born entrepreneur and music promoter who moved to Australia in the 1950s and brought popular American entertainers to Sydney, including Frank Sinatra and Bill Haley and the Comets.

full record »

Gotsch, Carl

Cellist who completed his musical training in Germany.

full record »

Gotsch, Leonore

Soprano who completed her training in Germany before returning to perform in Australia.

full record »

Grainger, Percy

full record »

Australian composer, arranger, and pianist who studied and played in England and Europe before settling in the United States of America.

Hanney, Fred

Musician and conductor who led the Marrickville Symphony Orchestra.

full record »

Hardy, Col

Aboriginal musician.

full record »

Harrigan, John William

Music promoter and manager.

full record »

Harrison, George

English musician, multi-instrumentalist, singer and songwriter and music and film producer who achieved international fame as the lead guitarist of The Beatles.

full record »

Harrison, Zillah

Singer who formed her own touring company in the 1910s.

full record »

Hawkins, Coleman

American jazz tenor saxophonist.

full record »

Hayes, Catherine

full record »

Irish-born singer who became an international star, and toured Australia in 1854 and 1855, when Sydney was seized by 'Hayesmania'.

Heard, James Charles

American swing, bop and blues drummer.

full record »

Heifetz, Jascha

Lithuanian born American violinist considered to be one of the finest violinists of all time. He toured extensively before injury forced him to focus on teaching.

full record »

Hibbler, Al

American baritone vocalist.

full record »

Hill, Alfred

Musician whose teaching, performance and composition were influential in Sydney for the first half of the twentieth century.

full record »

Hill, Mirrie

Prolific composer and teacher who wrote for voice, piano, orchestra and film.

full record »

Hines, Marcia

American-born vocalist, stage actress and TV personality who achieved success in her adopted home of Australia.

full record »

Hudson, Eliza

Music shop proprietor with her husband George Hudson, musician, from the 1840s until the late 1850s.

full record »

Hutchens, Frank

New Zealand born pianist and composer who became a popular concert pianist.

full record »

Hyam, Lottie

Pianist who formed her own quintet for performances from 1898.

full record »

Jagger, Mick

English musician and rock singer.

full record »

James, William G

Composer and pioneer of music broadcasting in Australia. Born 1892, died 1977.

full record »

Jones, Jonah

American jazz trumpeter.

full record »

Jones, Maureen

Pianist.

full record »

Jones, Vince

Australian jazz musician born in Scotland in 1954, migrated to Australia 1964.

full record »

Joosten, Harry

Leader of the Dutch choral group the Rembrandt Male Choir, established 1985.

full record »

Joye, Col

Popular entertainer who was the first Australian rock-and-roll singer to have a No. 1 hit Australia-wide, and who became an influential music entrepreneur.

full record »

Katayama, Shinshiro

Japanese pianist who visited Sydney in 1936 but who gained disfavour after he married an Australian woman at the outbreak of World War II.

full record »

Keats, Horace

Composer and songwriter who wrote music for radio plays, ballet, and film.

full record »

Kelly, Frederick Septimus

full record »

Talented Australian born musician and oarsman who won gold for England rowing in the 1908 Olympics.

Kelly, Paul

Indigenous singer songwriter.

full record »

Kidman, Nicole

Actress, singer and film producer who has worked prolifically since first appearing in 1983.

full record »

Kingi, Noel

Māori musician who joined the Howard Morrison Quartet and achieved fame in New Zealand and Australia between 1960 and 1965.

full record »

Laine, Frankie

American singer who visited Australia in 1956.

full record »

Lammers, Isidoor

Founder of the Dutch Choir and Folkloric Group in Dee Why in 1958.

full record »

Lanceley, Carrie

Soprano who achieved international success before and after World War I.

full record »

Lane, Don

American-born talk show host and singer who spent much of his career in Australia, best known for hosting the Don Lane Show.

full record »

Lawrence, Marjorie

full record »

Australian singer who made an international career and performed in Sydney in 1951.

Lee, Sammy

Canadian bandleader who settled in Potts Point and became a prominent and flamboyant night club owner.

full record »

Leggo, Charles William

Organ builder who created instruments for a number of Sydney churches.

full record »

Lemmone, John

Flautist and composer who was a favourite accompanist to Dame Nellie Melba.

full record »

Lennon, John

English singer and songwriter who rose to worldwide fame as a co-founder of the band The Beatles. He was shot dead by fan, Mark David Chapman, in New York City in 1980.

full record »

Levarrier, Ivonne

Pianist and teacher.

full record »

Lewis, Jeannie

Singer, songwriter and political activist.

full record »

Little, Jimmy

Aboriginal singer and musician whose career spans six decades.

full record »

Livermore, Reg

Singer, actor and playwright who has entertained Australian audiences for over five decades.

full record »

Llewellyn, Ernest

Violinist.

full record »

Mackerras, Charles

Conductor and oboist who performed with many of the world's greatest orchestras and opera companies.

full record »

Maling, Roy

Composer and jazz musician.

full record »

Marriott, Edward

Cellist.

full record »

Marsh, Henry

Publisher and composer who set up business at 490 George Street.

full record »

Marshall-Hall, George

Controversial composer, conductor and professor of music from Melbourne.

full record »

Martin, Jessie

American jazz drummer.

full record »

May, Ricky

New Zealand singer who found fame as a cabaret and television performer in Australia.

full record »

McCartney, Paul

English singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and composer. He gained worldwide fame as the bassist of British rock band the Beatles.

full record »

McCormick, Peter

Composer of Australia's national anthem.

full record »

Mills, Jonathan

Composer and artistic director.

full record »

Moncrieff, Gladys

Popular soprano whose roles in vaudeville and musical comedy made her one of the highest paid performers in Australian theatre. She toured extensively, including entertaining the armed forces during and after World War II.

full record »

Monk, Cyril

Musician, teacher and composer.

full record »

Monk, Varney

full record »

Composer whose work in musical theatre was based on Australian themes.

Muset, Joseph

Composer, teacher and priest.

full record »

Nathan, Isaac

full record »

English-born composer, conductor, publisher and printer hailed as 'Australia's first composer'.

Neeson, Doc

Doc Neeson was the charismatic lead singer of Australian rock band The Angels from the 1970s until the 1990s.

full record »

Nicol, Jimmy

English drummer and business entrepreneur best known for temporarily replacing Ringo Starr in The Beatles for a series of concerts in 1964.

full record »

Nicol, Johnny

Original band member of the Māori Troubadours and respected jazz singer-songwriter.

full record »

O'Doherty, Chris

full record »

New Zealand born artist and musician also known as Reg Mombassa.

O'Keefe, Johnny

full record »

Singer who became known as Australia's homegrown rock 'n roller.

Orchard, Arundel

Influential composer and conductor who greatly strengthened the Conservatorium orchestra.

full record »

Packer, Charles

Convict and musician, who came to Sydney after his pardon and became a well known organist, conductor and composer.

full record »

Paderewski, Ignaz

Polish pianist and composer who was to become the second Prime Minister of the Republic of Poland.

full record »

Page, David

Musician and resident composer for the Bangarra Dance Theatre.

full record »

Paki, Peter

Māori musician and singer who frequently performs in Australia.

full record »

Paling, Richard

Music store proprietor and brother of William Paling.

full record »

Paling, William Henry

Musician and teacher who became a businessman, selling instruments, publishing music and promoting concerts.

full record »

Paul, Mrs John

Musician and composer.

full record »

Phelps, Bertha Emily

full record »

Author and composer active at the beginning of the twentieth century.

Plummer, George

Founder of the first Sydney Symphony Orchestra.

full record »

Post, Joseph Mozart

Musician and conductor who enjoyed a distinguished career as Australia established a professionally based music scene.

full record »

Prerauer, Maria

Soprano, music critic and journalist.

full record »

Rawlins, Adrian

Australian poet, performer and one of the country's first music journalists.

full record »

Ray, Johnnie

American singer most popular in the 1950s, whose work was a precursor of rock and roll, and who toured Australia in 1954.

full record »

Reichenberg, Joseph

Bandmaster of the British 40th Regiment.

full record »

Roach, Archie

Aboriginal singer, songwriter and guitarist.

full record »

RoadKnight, Margret

Melbourne-based singer and social activist.

full record »

Robinson, John

Trumpet player with the Sydney Symphony Orchestra

full record »

Rooney, Kate

Singer who achieved some success internationally.

full record »

Russell, Katherine

Pianist and actress who often appeared in productions staged by her husband Alfred Dampier.

full record »

Santley, Charles

English born opera singer who became the most eminent baritone of the Victorian era.

full record »

Sculthorpe, Peter

Composer of orchestral and chamber music who has sought to combine elements of native Australian music with that of Asia and the West.

full record »

Sebastian, Guy

Malaysian born singer-songwriter who achieved fame in 2003 by winning the 'Australian Idol' television talent program.

full record »

Shankar, Ravi

Indian musician and composer who has toured the world playing the sitar.

full record »

Shaw, Artie

American jazz musician, composer and bandleader who played at the Trocadero in Sydney with his American Navy Band in 1943.

full record »

Sinatra, Frank

American singer and actor who performed in Sydney in 1959 and 1974.

full record »

Spagnoletti, Ernesto

Musician and composer who became choirmaster at St Stephen's Newtown.

full record »

Spagnoletti, Ernesto jnr

Musician.

full record »

Staehelin, Lucas

Musician and early music specialist.

full record »

Staell, Henry

Violinist and teacher.

full record »

Starr, Ringo

English musician and actor who gained worldwide fame as the drummer for The Beatles.

full record »

Stewart, Nellie

Singer and actor who achieved national and international success in operettas and pantomimes before turning to comedy and drama as her voice failed.

full record »

Stewart, Rex

American jazz cornetist.

full record »

Stubbs, Thomas

Composer and musician who performed in Sydney's first symphony performance.

full record »

Tashi, Garpa Nyima

Tibetan teacher of traditional dance and song

full record »

Tauber, Richard

Austrian singer and composer (1891-1948)

full record »

Teka, Tui

Member of the Māori showband Maori Troubadours.

full record »

Tenana, Mat

Member of the showband Māori Troubadours.

full record »

Thistlethwayte, Rai

Rock and jazz musician and songwriter.

full record »

Thorpe, Billy

Rock singer and songwriter.

full record »

Tibbits, George

Composer and architect.

full record »

Toppano, Peggy

Vaudeville performer, dancer, lyricist and composer whose career spanned 70 years from child star to her partnership with husband Enzo Toppano.

full record »

Truman, Edwin Philip

Financier and amateur musician.

full record »

Truman, Ernest

Musician who gave over 3,000 recitals as Sydney City Organist.

full record »

Tschaikov, Anton

Violinist.

full record »

Vanda, Harry

Musician and songwriter who was a member of the Easybeats and later one of Australia's most successful songwriters and record producers.

full record »

Verbrugghen, Henri

Inspired teacher and foundation director of the New South Wales State Conservatorium of Music.

full record »

Vost-Janssen, S

Viola player and composer.

full record »

Waaka, Gugi

Māori musician who toured Australia.

full record »

Wallace, Elizabeth

Singer who travelled to Sydney with her brother and family and chose to remain when he left abruptly.

full record »

Wallace, Isabella

Soprano who travelled to Sydney with her husband.

full record »

Wallace, Wellington

Flautist who travelled with his brother to perform in Sydney in 1836.

full record »

Wallace, William

full record »

Composer and violinist whose stay in Sydney was short but eventful.

Weigand, Auguste

Sydney's City Organist during the 1890s.

full record »

Westlake, Donald

Clarinetist.

full record »

Whelan, Albert

Singer and entertainer who found fame in England early in the twentieth century.

full record »

Wilden, Henri

Tenor in the Sydney Opera Company of Mauritian descent

full record »

Wilson, Teddy

American jazz pianist.

full record »

Wirth, Johannes

Bavarian-born musician who travelled eastern Australia with first his brothers and then his sons as part of his itinerant band.

full record »

Wong, Denis

Restaurateur and nightclub owner.

full record »

Wong, Jap Kuan (Keith)

Chinese businessman who first arrived as a student in 1938 and who, with his brother, Denis, established a highly successful nightclub business.

full record »

Worgan, George

First fleet surgeon who kept a journal for six months in the early settlement.

full record »

Wright, Stevie

Songwriter and lead singer with the rock and roll band The Easybeats.

full record »

Young, Angus

Scottish-born guitarist and founding member of rock band AC/DC.

full record »

Young, George

Scottish born rock musician and songwriter who was a member of pop group The Easybeats.

full record »

Young, Malcolm

Scottish-born guitarist who founded rock band AC/DC.

full record »

Zuel, Bernard

Music critic and journalist of Mauritian descent.

full record »

de Cairos-Rego, George

Musician and journalist who was influential in Sydney in the first half of the twentieth century.

full record »

de Cairos-Rego, Iris

Pianist and composer who continued her studies in Europe before returning to teach and perform.

full record »

de Cairos-Rego, Rex

Pianist and composer.

full record »

de Gunst, Mollie

Operatic singer who toured extensively in the 1920s and 1930s.

full record »

de Muro Lomanto, Enzo

Italian tenor who visited Sydney on tour in 1928.

full record »

de Waart, Edo

Dutch-born chief conductor of the Sydney Symphony Orchestra 1995-2004.

full record »

A broadcasting party who descended nearly 3000 feet below Sydney Harbour, Balmain August 1926

full record »

A broadcasting party was afforded an interesting experience on Sunday, when, in conjunction with Farmer's broadcasting service, a programme of vocal and instrumental items was transmitted from the depths of the Sydney Harbour Colliery. About 60 people assembled at the pit-mouth at Balmain and were lowered to the bottom of the shaft, a distance of over 2800 feet. Here several selections were broadcast by the 17th Area B Military Band. Members of the Sydney Harmonic Male Voice Choir rendered solo and choral selections from a point near the coal face, three-quarters of a mile from the entrance to the main drive, and nearly 3000 feet below the surface of the harbour. Despite the illumination afforded by the electric safety lamps with which the party had been provided, a certain eeriness was not dispelled until the silence was broken by the lusty male voices. Even then the incongruity of the situation became apparent only when one realised that, far above, busy ferries were plying their accustomed routes.

From the collections of the

State Library of New South Wales

(Sydney Mail 1 September 1926, p 14)

Advertisement for Jubilee Singers, Wesleyan Centenary Hall, York Street, c1892

full record »

Contributed By

State Archives & Records New South Wales

[NRS4481_St408 (Detail)]

Anna Bishop as Lucrezia 1857

full record »

By

Contributed By

National Library of Australia

[nla.mus-an5350554-s52]

(from the Australian Album, published in Sydney by J.R.Clarke, 1857)

Anna Bishop c1860s

full record »

By

Contributed By

National Library of Australia

[nla.mus-an6056351]

(from 'Oft in the stilly night' [music] by Thomas Moore ; as sung by Anna Bishop., published Sydney : J.R. Clarke, c1860s)

Anna Bishop, c1870

full record »

Contributed By

National Library of Australia

[nla.mus-an6619002]

(Cover of the sheet music 'Come home, father' by H.C. Work. published: Sydney : J.R. Clarke, (between 1869 and 1873))

Anna Bishop, soprano, 1868

full record »

From the collections of the

State Library of New South Wales

[a4176078 / P1/178]

(Mitchell Library)

Arrival of the Beatles at Sydney airport, 11 June 1964

full record »

By

From the collections of the

State Library of New South Wales

[d7_16557 / APA 16557]

(Mitchell Library)

At 90, Melba's Teacher Still Works On... 1938

full record »

Contributed By

National Library of Australia

[nla.news-article52266405]

(The Australian Women's Weekly, 16 July 1938, p2)

Audience listening to Anna Bishop singing 'Home Sweet Home', Melbourne Punch, 22 May 1856

full record »

Image courtesy of the

State Library of Victoria

[MP22/05/56/128]

(Pictures Collection)

Beatles fans in the rain outside the Sheraton Motor Inn, Potts Point 11 June 1964

full record »

By

From the collections of the

State Library of New South Wales

[d7_16579 / APA 16579]

(Mitchell Library)

Bodgies, widgies have might night - but def! February 1951

full record »

Groovy widgies were carried away by Bob Gibson's hot music. They gave little yelps, waved their arms.

From the collections of the

State Library of New South Wales

(PIX, 10 March 1951, p21)

Brazilian Carnival poster 1979

full record »

By

Chips Mackinolty

Contributed By

National Gallery of Australia

[Accession No: NGA 82.960]

Carols by candlelight in Hyde Park, Sydney December 1970

full record »

Contributed By

National Archives of Australia

[A1200, L85587]

Catherine Hayes at the Victoria Theatre, Sydney 1854

full record »

Contributed By

National Library of Australia

[nla.pic-an7978994]

Catherine Hayes c1857

full record »

By

Contributed By

National Library of Australia

[nla.mus-an5350554-s68]

(from the Australian Album, published in Sydney by J.R.Clarke, 1857)

Class 1A percussion band at unidentified Sydney school c1950

full record »

By

From the collections of the

State Library of New South Wales

[a213021 / PXE 789 (v.11), 42]

(Mitchell Library)

Como Valse c1905

full record »

By

Thomas Paul Bockelmann

Contributed By

National Library of Australia

[nla.mus-an5399579]

(W.H. Paling & Co. Ltd, Sydney)

Couple looking at Sydney Symphony Orchestra Youth Concerts brochure, 1960s

full record »

By

Contributed By

[abc.net.au/photo/DP036289]

Cover of 'The Balmain Polka' by Ernesto Spagnoletti 1857

full record »

From the collections of the

State Library of New South Wales

[M MUSIC FILE/SPA]

(Mitchell Library)

Cover of 'Six songs from the south' 1916

full record »

Contributed By

National Library of Australia

[MUS N m 783.2 C649]

(Clutsam, G. H and Gilmore, Mary. Six songs from the south London ; Melbourne: Chappell & Co, 1916)

Cover of The Australian Bird Waltz sheet music 1850-59

full record »

By

Frederick Ellard

Contributed By

National Library of Australia

[nla.mus-an10041000-s1]

(Published by Woolcott & Clarke, Sydney 185-)

Cover of the colonial edition of the song 'Your King & Country Want You: A Woman's Recruiting Song' by Paul A Rubens 1914

full record »

By

From the collections of the

State Library of New South Wales

[a9871001 / MUSIC FILE/RUB]

(Mitchell Library)

Cover of the sheet music 'St Leonards Scottische' by Ernesto Spagnoletti 1863

full record »

Contributed By

National Library of Australia

[MUS N JAF m 786.4052 A938, The Australian Musical Album for 1863, p10]

Crowd watching La Traviata at the first Opera in the Park concert in the Domain 1982

full record »

Contributed By

City of Sydney Archives

[017\017850]

Crowds outside the Chevron Hilton hoping for a glimpse of the Beatles staying in the Sheraton Hotel opposite, Macleay Street, Potts ...

full record »

By

From the collections of the

State Library of New South Wales

[d7_16551 / APA 16551]

(Mitchell Library)

Crowds singing the national anthem during Armistice celebrations, Martin Place 12 November 1918

full record »

From the collections of the

State Library of New South Wales

(Mitchell Library)

Dame Joan Sutherland performing in La Traviata at Opera in the Park 1982

full record »

Contributed By

City of Sydney Archives

[017\017851]

Departure of Miss Catherine Hayes from Sydney 18 October 1854

full record »

By

Contributed By

National Library of Australia

[nla.pic-an7979075]

Dragon at the Aria Hall of Fame, Melbourne 2008

full record »

By

Contributed By

Wikimedia Commons

[http://www.flickr.com/photos/pixels-bandwidth/3288248375/]

Drummer Peg Clark plays as June Howarth and Ray Shart dance to band on the way to Broken Bay on the South Steyne, December 1953

full record »

From the collections of the

State Library of New South Wales

[PXA 1307, Box 1/31]

(Mitchell Library)

Easybeats with Gold Records received for sales of their single 'Friday On My Mind' , 15 May 1969

full record »

By

From the collections of the

State Library of New South Wales

[d7_25659 / Australian Photographic Agency 25659]

(Mitchell Library)

Eugene Goossens November 1956

full record »

From the collections of the

State Library of New South Wales

Exclusive Memoirs of Madame Christian, 1935

full record »

Contributed By

National Library of Australia

[nla.news-article47480062]

(The Australian Women's Weekly, 19 October 1935, p 4)

Field's transcription of Harry's song 'Iah, iah, gumbery ja' in The London Magazine, November 1823

full record »

By

Contributed By

Internet Archive

[londonmagazine06taylgoog]

(Journal of an Excursion across the Blue Mountains of New South Wales, The London Magazine, November 1823 (Vol 8), p465)

Frederick Septimus Kelly

full record »

Contributed By

Wikimedia Commons

[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:F_S_Kelly_1903.jpg]

Frederick Septimus Kelly, after John Singer Sargent 1915

full record »

By

John Singer Sargent

Contributed By

National Portrait Gallery UK

(CC BY-NC-ND 3.0)

From Saturday afternoon till Monday 1926

full record »

By

Arthur Desmond-Kennedy

Contributed By

National Library of Australia

[nla.mus-an10561537-s1]

(Published: Manly, NSW: A Desmond Kennedy (1926))

Front cover 'Hymn to Sydney' 1897

full record »

By

Contributed By

National Gallery of Australia

[Accession No: NGA 00.192.9]

Gay Choir, Macquarie Street, 1981

full record »

By

Contributed By

National Library of Australia

[nla.pic-vn3097667]

German migrant Rudolph Goldbach playing with band at Leo's Bistro, 1965

full record »

Contributed By

National Archives of Australia

[A12111, 1/1965/6/23]

Government House stables 1842

full record »

By

From the collections of the

State Library of New South Wales

[a928831 / DG 51]

Government House stables 1872

full record »

By

Charles Percy Pickering

From the collections of the

State Library of New South Wales

[a110713 / PXD 524, f.130]

(Mitchell Library)

Grave sculpture, St Stephen's Anglican Church, Newtown, Sydney, 1936

full record »

Monument in memory of Nicholas Bochsa, erected by his partner Anna Bishop over his grave in Camperdown Cemetery, 1856

By

Edward William Searle

Contributed By

National Library of Australia

[PIC P838/840 LOC Cold store SEA Box 7]

Guy Sebastian in Sunrise Seven interview 2007

full record »

By

Contributed By

[http://www.flickr.com/photos/sunrise7/2061275604/]

Harry Rickards on the cover of sheet music of 'Where is my Nancy?' c1880

full record »

From the collections of the

State Library of New South Wales

[a4573 / MUSIC FILE/HUN]

I. Nathan, Esq 1854

full record »

From the collections of the

State Library of New South Wales

(Illustrated Sydney News, 21 January 1854, p 4)

If you're a square you'll have to get hep to bodgey language, March 1951

full record »

Bodgies and widgies have added to the headaches of the English language by inventing a whole tribe of new expressions.

From the collections of the

State Library of New South Wales

(PIX, 10 March 1951, p23)

Introduction to The Australian bird waltz 1850-59

full record »

By

Frederick Ellard

Contributed By

National Library of Australia

[nla.mus-an10041000-s2]

(Published by Woolcott & Clarke, Sydney 185-)

Irish National Association Pipe Band and Cardinal Gilroy at the St Patrick's Day Sports, Sydney Sports Ground 14 March 1965

full record »

By

John Aloysius Mulligan

Contributed By

National Library of Australia

[nla.pic-vn3099683]

Isaac Nathan's opera 'Don John of Austria' 1847

full record »

By

Contributed By

National Library of Australia

[nla.mus-an6427468-s25]

(from The southern euphrosyne and Australian miscellany : containing oriental moral tales, original anecdote, poetry and music ... / by the editor and sole proprietor I. Nathan, 1849)

Isaac Nathan, Australia's first composer

full record »

Contributed By

National Library of Australia

[nla.pic-an2292675]

Jim Davidson's ABC Dance Band give a public performance in Martin Place 12 January 1939

full record »

By

Contributed By

[abc.net.au/photo/DP040431]

Johnny O'Keefe 1962

full record »

By

Douglass Baglin

Contributed By

National Archives of Australia

[SP1011/1, 3597]

La Perouse Aborigines' Mission: music at the annual outdoor rally of the United Aborigines' Mission 26 January 1931

full record »

From the collections of the

State Library of New South Wales

(Sydney Morning Herald, 27 July 1931, p12)

Land of the Sunny South, All Hail 1879

full record »

By

Contributed By

National Library of Australia

[nla.mus-an5443739]

Latvians rehearse for Sydney Festival 1959

full record »

Contributed By

National Archives of Australia

[A12111, 1/1959/17/30]

...

full record »

By

William Joseph Castell

From the collections of the

State Library of New South Wales

[a4718005 / MLMSS 7989]

(Mitchell Library)

Life with American Squadron, descriptive fantasia 1908

full record »

By

Contributed By

National Library of Australia

[nla.mus-an6964576]

(Written and arranged by Harry V Ingham, Specially composed in honour of the American fleet, Sydney : Albert & Son, c1908)

Madame Christian 1892

full record »

Image courtesy of the

State Library of Victoria

[IAN01/12/92/4]

(Illustrated Australian News 1 December 1892)

Marjorie Lawrence at Sydney Town Hall c1944

full record »

From the collections of the

State Library of New South Wales

[hood_22259 / Home and Away - 22259]

(Mitchell Library)

Marrickville Municipal Symphony Orchestra at Marrickville Town Hall, 9 May 1937

full record »

From the collections of the

State Library of New South Wales

[hood_14698 / Home and Away 14698]

(Mitchell Library)

Monument in memory of NC Bochsa, erected by Anna Bishop over his grave in Camperdown Cemetery, 1856

full record »

By

From the collections of the

State Library of New South Wales

[a4236001 / SV1/Cem/Campe/1]

(Mitchell Library)

Mr WH Paling's new establishment in George Street 1883

full record »

From the collections of the

State Library of New South Wales

(Illustrated Sydney News, 7 July 1883, p9 http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-page5786854)

Māori male musical group in native costume arrive on TEAL aircraft at Mascot 18 January 1960

full record »

By

From the collections of the

State Library of New South Wales

[d7_07720 / APA 07720]

(Mitchell Library)

Paul Cullen at the Palatial Theatre, Burwood 1936

full record »

By

From the collections of the

State Library of New South Wales

[hood_13043 / Home and Away 13043]

Percy Grainger 1910-20

full record »

Image courtesy of the

State Library of Victoria

[Acc No: H2014.184/64]

Portrait of Hugo Alpen, Superintendent of Music, Department of Music, Department of Public Instruction of New South Wales, 1884- ...

full record »

Contributed By

National Library of Australia

[nla.pic-an22998419]

Program for Mr E Boulanger's grand evening concert on Monday, June 11, 1855, at the Prince of Wales Theatre

full record »

Contributed By

National Library of Australia

[JAF Broadside 11]

(F. Cunninghame, Printer)

Ray Brown and the Whispers performing at a union picnic c1965

full record »

From the collections of the

State Library of New South Wales

[ ON 161/Item 022]

(Mitchell Library, Courtesy SEARCH Foundation)

Reg Mombassa, drawn 2013

full record »

By

Contributed By

[http://wardoneill.com/]

Rolf Harris amuses diners at a nightclub in Sydney 1966

full record »

By

Contributed By

National Archives of Australia

[A1200, L54113]

Roosevelt nightclub, Kings Cross September 1944

full record »

From the collections of the

State Library of New South Wales

[Home and Away - 22272]

(Mitchell Library)

Rydalmere: a polka song 1886

full record »

Contributed By

National Library of Australia

[nla.map-lfsp806-s1]

Salvation Army, Oh! 1887

full record »

Contributed By

National Library of Australia

[nla.mus-vn1186231]

(from the 'Christmas number of the Australian musical magazine', no.22, Sydney : Bruce & Massey,1887, p 10)

Score to two quadrilles 'Kurry Jong' (Currajong) and the fourth quadrille is 'Woo-loo-moo-loo' by William Castell 1833

full record »

By

William Joseph Castell

From the collections of the

State Library of New South Wales

[a4718007 / MLMSS 7989]

(Mitchell Library)

Sonny Clay's Plantation Band arriving in Sydney, January 1928

full record »

By

From the collections of the

State Library of New South Wales

[a171002 / PXE 789 (v8), 2]

(Mitchell Library)

Square piano by Collard & Collard made for Francis Ellard, Sydney c1835-37

full record »

By

Contributed By

Museum of Applied Arts and Sciences

Sydney Conservatorium of Music 2007

full record »

Image courtesy of

[0707-0205-78]

Sydney Railway Waltz, dedicated to Wm Randle Esq, composed by WH Paling 1855

full record »

Contributed By

National Library of Australia

[nla.mus-an6340871]

(published Sydney : Woolcott & Clarke, 1855)

Sydney Symphony Orchestra 1965

full record »

Contributed By

National Archives of Australia

[A1500, K13241]

Tenzin Choegyal playing a Tibetan flute 2007

full record »

By

Contributed By

[http://www.flickr.com/photos/rustystewart/313687552/]

The Anniversary Polka 1853

full record »

By

Contributed By

National Library of Australia

[nla.mus-an6442810]

(Composed & Dedicated to the Committee of Management of the Anniversary Regatta)

The Australian Bird Waltz 1850-59

full record »

By

Frederick Ellard

Contributed By

National Library of Australia

[nla.mus-an10041000-s3]

(Published by Woolcott & Clarke, Sydney 185-)

The City of Sydney Polka 1854

full record »

By

Charles Sandys Packer

Contributed By

National Library of Australia

[nla.mus-an5396832]

(Published: Sydney : Woolcott and Clarke, [1854?])

The Cornstalk Polka 1857

full record »

By

George Thornton

Contributed By

National Library of Australia

[nla.mus-an6340858]

(Published Sydney : J.R. Clarke)

The Cornstalk Polka c1863

full record »

By

George Thornton

Contributed By

National Library of Australia

[nla.mus-an5352850]

(Published Sydney: J.R. Clarke, [186-])

The Currency Lasses by Isaac Nathan 1846

full record »

By

Contributed By

National Library of Australia

[nla.mus-vn2424117]

(Published Sydney : W. Ford ; London : Faulkner, 1846.)

The Glebe District Silver Band 1936-1937

full record »

Contributed By

City of Sydney Archives

[066\066776]

(SRC20212)

The Marian Waltzes 1853

full record »

By

Contributed By

National Library of Australia

[nla.mus-an6442745]

(Sydney : H. Marsh & Co., [1853])

The Māori Troubadours sideshow act, Royal Easter Show 1964

full record »

From the collections of the

State Library of New South Wales

[d7_17998 / APA 17998]

(Mitchell Library)

The Regatta Waltzes, cover of Australian presentation album for 1855

full record »

Contributed By

National Library of Australia

[nla.mus-an6422439-s3]

(Sydney : Woolcott and Clarke, [1855])

The Romaine of the Trocadero 1941

full record »

Contributed By

National Library of Australia

[nla.pic-an24056973]

The Sydney Corporation Quadrilles 1842

full record »

By

Frederick Ellard

Contributed By

National Library of Australia

[nla.mus-an5993207]

(Published by F. Ellard, Sydney. Dedicated by permission to Mrs John Hosking)

The Sydney Flour Song 1945

full record »

By

Contributed By

National Library of Australia

[nla.obj-165495193]

The Wearing of the Green: new version, as sung with immense effect at Messrs Punch and McGrath's, February 1868

full record »

From the collections of the

State Library of New South Wales

(Sydney Punch, 22 February 1868, p 95)

The catodon polka c1850

full record »

By

Contributed By

National Library of Australia

[nla.mus-an11032321]

(And most respectfully dedicated to William Sheridan Wall, Esq. Curator, Australian Museum Published: Sydney : G.W. Hudson, (between 1845 and 1859))

The rotunda, or bandstand, in Prince Alfred Park, Parramatta 2015

full record »

By

Michaela Ann Cameron

Contributed By

Michaela Ann Cameron

The soprano Florence Austral as Brunnhilde in London c1925

full record »

Contributed By

National Library of Australia

[nla.pic-an22489144]

The wonder boy Charlton

full record »

By

Contributed By

National Library of Australia

[nla.mus-vn3298706]

Title page of 'The Darling Point Polka' 1863

full record »

By

Frederick Charles Terry

From the collections of the

State Library of New South Wales

[a1774001 / DSM/Q786.4/C]

(The Australian musical album for 1863, Sydney : J.R. Clarke, 1863) (Mitchell Library))

Tivoli music album No 29, Xmas number, 1906-7

full record »

Contributed By

National Library of Australia

[nla.mus-vn4802845]

(Sydney : Joe Slater, c1907)

Varney Monk c1933

full record »

Contributed By

National Library of Australia

[nla.pic-vn3642327]

Wattle Day: march song and two-step 1920s

full record »

By

Contributed By

National Library of Australia

[nla.mus-an6631844]

(Sydney : Joe Slater Publishing Co., c[192-?])

When Manly's on the spree 1928

full record »

By

Contributed By

National Library of Australia

[nla.mus-vn4696710-s1]

(Words and music by Walter King. Published c1928)

William Vincent Wallace c1860

full record »

Contributed By

Library of Congress

[LC-DIG-cwpbh-02827]

Frank Gardiner Is Caught At Last

full record »

By

Contributed By

(recorded in 2007)

Gumbery Jah (Harry’s Song) and Cooee (Guwi), sung by Matthew Doyle and Clarence Slockee, recorded by Kevin Hunt at the Conservatorium ...

full record »

Contributed By

Keith Vincent Smith

(as transcribed by Barron Field and published in 'Journal of an Excursion across the Blue Mountains of New South Wales', The London Magazine, November 1823 (Vol 8), p465 )

Mr Peter Granville-Smith talks about the Hoxton Park Union Church and his family singing there c1920s, interviewed in 1986

full record »

Peter Granville-Smith was born in 1910 and interviewed in 1986 for the 'Looking Back at Liverpool: An Oral History of the Liverpool Region 1900 to 1960.' He came to live in Hoxton Park with his family in 1914 because his clergyman father was ill.
Transcript

PETER: Father had lost his voice, and he couldn't conduct services, but I understand he did conduct one on one occasion in the little Union Church at Hoxton Park, which he conducted it in a whisper. They tell me it was done so clearly [because] his diction and enunciation were perfect. But, he would attend the services in this little Union Church. There were four denominations came out there, they were: Church of England, Methodist, Presbyterian and Salvation Army. If there were five Sundays in a month the Church of England got that fifth Sunday as well. The little church was very small but when Granville-Smiths were in attendance on any service they filled the church not only with their figures but with their voices, because we were all pretty good musicians. The singing was absolutely outstanding, under the careful guidance of our sister Lois. She played the piano, and of course mother played the piano as well. And when we were all singing you'd know that the family was there, they were all in there.

Contributed By

Liverpool City Library

(Excerpt from interview with Mr Peter Granville-Smith from the 'Looking back at Liverpool : an oral history of the Liverpool region 1900-1960' conducted in 1986 by Liverpool City Council, editor and project co-ordinator Catherine Johnson ; researchers Angela Imbrosciano, Verica Miiosavijevic, Kathleen Smith.)

Sydney Flour Song radio advertisement 1955

full record »

Contributed By

National Film and Sound Archive

Performing Arts