Aaron Wyatt on juggling music, fatherhood and a PhD
5 June 2025.
Ahead of his appearance with the TSO for our Family Concert on 19 June, we asked conductor, composer and educator Aaron Wyatt to share a little about his music, motivations, and managing life’s many moving parts.
Hi Aaron, please tell us about your piece that the TSO will perform (with you on the podium) for our concert Australia: One Land, Many Stories.
The Things Which Are Most Important Don't Always Scream the Loudest was actually my first piece for full orchestra. The references to nature in the piece come from the local Noongar (traditional Indigenous language of south-west WA) words for the four classical elements of Boodjar (earth), Maar (wind), Kep (water), and Kaal (fire).
I wrote it for the opening of the Bob Hawke College performing arts centre in Perth, which is why it takes its name from a hopefully totally not made up Bob Hawke quote (it's hard to find reliable sources for quotes on the internet). The piece was meant to be a kind of humble fanfare to reflect the egalitarian ethos that the school strives for.
In your Boyer lecture you talk about the importance of music education in remote areas and in particular in Indigenous communities. What role can orchestras and their communities play in increasing opportunities for aspiring musicians in regional areas?
It's a really tricky problem with no easy solution. I think one possible way forward is for orchestras to really commit to regional touring programs, and to try to maintain relationships with the communities that they visit well after they've returned home.
Whether that's in the form of follow-up visits from smaller chamber ensembles, or bringing kids from the regions to the cities to see concerts or engage in workshops, or something else entirely, would depend on the exact situation. Even though online instrumental lessons are less than ideal, using them to supplement less frequent, in-person lessons can be a way to maintain some continuity as well.
But of course all of this comes at a cost. So it really needs a government in office that is prepared to invest money in both the arts and in education, and that can see the value and importance in that.
What are you currently working on (and how do you manage the juggle!)?
Too many things! Currently making my way through a stack of commissions, preparing for a few different conducting engagements, and trying not to put off writing my PhD too much.
As well as trying to balance out work and family life with a small toddler to worry about.
For me, there's definitely no such thing as a typical day. Although I will say that far too much of my compositional output gets written between the hours of 10pm and 3am. Would not recommend, even though it is guaranteed quiet time.
You've won a spot in the Australian Conducting Academy – what are you most looking forward to with this training program?
For any emerging conductor, one of the most difficult things is getting access to time in front of an orchestra. So the Australian Conducting Academy has been so incredibly invaluable on that front.
And it helps that it's with such an amazing mentor in Ben Northey and that I'm going through the program with a really supportive group of peers.
Lastly, what would be your dream conducting gig?
At the risk of sounding corny, I always feel like my dream conducting gig is the next one.
It's such a huge privilege to be able to work as a conductor in any capacity with the major performing arts organisations in this country, and it's certainly not something I would ever take for granted.
Aaron Wyatt is a violist, violinist, conductor, composer, programmer, and academic. Originally from Perth, he spent many years performing as a regular casual with the West Australian Symphony Orchestra before moving to Melbourne to take up an assistant lecturer position at Monash University. In 2021 he became the first Indigenous Australian to conduct a state symphony orchestra in concert, and has since gone on to have engagements with the Melbourne, Adelaide, Sydney, and West Australian Symphony Orchestras. As a composer, Aaron has written for Ensemble Offspring, GreyWing Ensemble, Ensemble Dutala, and is currently Artist in Residence with Speak Percussion.
Aaron Wyatt will conduct One Land, Many Stories with the TSO on 19 June.
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