City in Australia. Situated on the western seaboard, Perth, the capital of Western Australia, is one of the most isolated cities of its size in the world (its population was over one million in the late 1990s). Before the days of rapid communications its isolation hindered the development of a flourishing musical life. During the middle years of the 19th century, vocal music was the staple diet of what was then a British colony, there being little in the way of instrumental music because of the dearth of competent musicians.
In 1887 the colony's first orchestra, the Fremantle Orchestral Society, was established. It was not, however, until 1936 that the first firm foundations for the future development of professional orchestral music in Perth were laid when the Perth SO became the Australian Broadcasting Commission SO, later the West Australian SO. This has now grown to an 89-player orchestra which presents the state's principal orchestral series in the Perth Concert Hall, the leading music auditorium in Western Australia. The orchestra also plays in the pit of His Majesty's Theatre for the seasons of the Western Australian Opera Company (founded 1967) and the West Australian Ballet Company (founded 1952). The West Australian SO is funded by both the federal government and the West Australian state government.
Concerts in Perth range from large orchestral and choral concerts presented by the West Australian SO, usually with visiting international conductors and artists, through chamber music seasons promoted by Musica Viva, to numerous smaller events ranging from performances of Baroque music on original instruments to avant-garde or multi-arts productions of music written by Western Australian composers. The University of Western Australia figures strongly in the performances of 18th- and 20th-century music, while the Western Australian Conservatorium of Music has a national reputation for the quality of its jazz and music theatre productions. Since 1953 the University of Western Australia, together with the state government of Western Australia, has organized the annual Festival of Perth, in which music plays an important role. It is the longest established festival of its kind in Australia and balances the presentation of Western Australian musicians and ensembles with that of eminent international visitors.
Of growing significance in the musical life of Perth are performances by musicians who have recently migrated to Australia and who still practise the musical arts of their home country. In 1982 the Ethnic Music Centre (now the Kulcha) was established to support and promote the work of these musicians. More recently the organization Ab Music was established to provide support for the training of Australian aboriginal musicians and the dissemination of their work.
Music education in Perth during the 19th and early 20th centuries remained largely in the hands of private teachers. During the 1950s music as a class subject came to be accepted into the school system, and it is currently one of the listed subjects for the annual tertiary entrance examinations. Tertiary-level studies are available at the University of Western Australia, where students can elect to specialize in performance, musicology, composition or music education, or at Edith Cowan University, which offers performance and music education.
A.H. Kornweibel: Apollo and the Pioneers (Perth, 1973)
C. Buttrose: Playing for Australia: a Story about ABC Orchestras and Music in Australia (Sydney, 1982)
J.E. Farrant: Music in Western Australia 1900–1950 (diss., U. of Western Australia, forthcoming)
MARGARET SEARES