Biography
Sarah Hopkins, the noted performer and composer, entered the world in New Zealand during 1958 and relocated to Sydney six years later to pursue studies at the Sydney Conservatorium. She later earned a composition degree from the Victorian College of the Arts in Melbourne. Following graduation, her distinctive arranging concepts and embrace of traditional, ethnic, and newly invented instruments positioned her among Australia’s most compelling new age/classical hybrids. Her classical training manifests in substantial output scored for conventional forces such as cello, bass, violin, and chorus. Yet the music’s singular character stems from inventive overtone and partial singing, an unconventional cello technique that yields raw, non-traditional timbres, and circular drones generated by overhead-swung didjeridus and percussion. Recognized worldwide as a performer and clinician, she concentrates on compositional methods and overtone singing. Her earliest recordings appeared in the three-volume Soundworks series issued by Australia’s Resource Recordings in 1985; the opening volume presented cello duets with various instruments, the second showcased solo and duet pieces featuring droning percussion, didjeridu, and vocals alongside cello, and the third consisted chiefly of ensemble compositions. In 1989 Resource Recordings released Heart Song, which added numerous bell-type percussion instruments to her customary palette. “Sky Song” appeared on Vox Australis in 1993, followed in 1994 by Reclaiming the Spirit, a set of works conceived for larger ensembles. Co-composed with Alan Lamb, “Sky Song” was included on Australia’s Olympic 2000 bid CD. She maintains an active schedule of writing, recording, and teaching from her current base in Brisbane, Australia.
Albums
