CD Available through SONY Music
Paul Stanhope composed the music for the Boy on the Bay sequence of the Melbourne 2006 Commonwealth Games Opening Ceremony. It was watched live by some 80.000 people in the Melbourne Cricket Ground and by a worlwide TV audience of some 1.5 billion people. The music was written for the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra, Gondwana Voices and the Young Voices of Melbourne conducted and directed by Music Supremo Lyn Williams. The orchestra and choirs were recorded separately in different sessions in December 2005 and January 2006. Recording Engineer Christo Curtis is responsible for the wonderful luminous sound on the CD!
ROLE OF MUSIC in BOY ON THE BAY
Music is probably the least understood and most taken-for-granted element in a stage show like this (and the most ignored by the media). Inevitably it is the visual feast that people remember. However it is the music in a show like this that defines so much of what we take in. For example:
Music delineates structure and duration of the acts of the show.
Music creates the mood and helps pace the action sequences.
Music is timed for various "hit points" where the action corresponds with the music (and vice versa).
Strangely enough, the music for Boy on the Bay was recorded before many of the details of the staged action were in place. Indeed, many of these were changing up to the last minute. So really it is the music which helped define and articulate what eventuated on stage!
The Boy on the Bay is divided into two parts, reflecting the drama onstage. The first part, entitled "The Flying Dream", features a boy with his toy duck. Here poet, cartoonist and artist Michael Leunig reads his poem "A Little Duck".
With a bit of luck,
A duck will com into your life...The music starts softly with children's voices singing. The mood is ethereal and mystical.
The Little Duck indeed leads the boy on a wonderful journey. As a flock of birds flies over the stage, the duck begins a transformation into an angel-like woman called Stellar. She hands the boy a magical skateboard, and they fly off on an incredible journey.
The transformation music begins softly and leads to a huge climax. This leads to an energised section for full orchestra and choirs singing to depict the act of flying.
As Stellar and the Boy enjoy their free flight and aerial acrobatics, the choir sings in a made-up language — maybe the language of dreams. The music is melodic and dream-like here. Suddenly a macrame version of the Melbourne Arts Centre appears and before the Boy knows it, he is crashing into the spire of the building accompanied by an almighty orchestral CRASH! He is stuck up on the tower - a rescue mission is needed.
KOALA RESCUE!Teams of emergency rescue koalas appear on stage as sirens sound. The sirens were all recorded using orchestral instruments: clarinets and trombones with a range of exotic percussion instrumentsand special effects including bicycle horns, an air-raid siren, whistles, bells and -our favourite-the klaxon horn!
In this mad-capped tableaux, the Koalas are trying to rescue the boy from the tower. Despite the best intentions in the world, they are clearly failing to go about this in a useful way. Flying on a giant thong? Go figure!
The music is frenetic in its pacing and is very cartoon-like. Percussion effects are used extensively, as are sarcastic sounding brass sections and a crazy brass band. We hear an enormous fanfare in the centre of the piece. This is a version of the Boy/Duck theme that we hear at the very beginning of Boy on the Bay. It is musical motif which occurs throughout, even though it is cunningly disguised!
We see a koala's head pop off, and the inevitable game of football with the head! The children's choir all shout "Ouch!" A giant Koala mum inflates as a balloon, with her baby on board to halp out with the rescue effort. Despite all these madcapped efforts, the rescue mission accomplishes nothing. And typical of Melbourne weather, a thunderstorm appears from nowhere and washes all the koalas away!
What is the children's choir singing?
Havoc here, havoc there, everywhere.
Will they rescue you, can they resucue you?
Havoc here, havoc there, everywhere.
Watch them everyone to see how it's done,
Yes! See how it's done!Koalas here, emergency there, everywhere!
Running dream, flying dream, a wonderful fair!
Forget hugging trees and eating gum leaves,
We'll stop scratching fleas, come and rescue please!Responding to a crisis situation, orchestrate a seamless operation.
(It's a koala sensation!)
You can rely on koala attitude, it's what really makes them hot!
(Attitude is what they've really got!)
But from up there you can see the stars above,
And all your friends below (they're running to and 'fro)
To rescue you.Havoc! But now there's havoc!
Havoc! There's only havoc!
