I have composed the music to over 50 plays (for a complete list please click AGG_CV.pdf). The following pieces are montages of selected theatre works consisting of music and photo images. They will give you an idea of the mood of the show and the music. I hope you enjoy them.
The Visit - A mysterious billionairess arrives in town determined for revenge against her teen sweetheart’s betrayal nearly a lifetime ago. Slowly the town is turning against him - or is it just his paranoia?
The music for this Matthew Lutton show, which totalled nearly two hours, is rich in its European influence. It uses many styles as the two main themes are transformed in a myriad of ways.
The Gathering - A journey of self discovery and a search for inner peace, written by Eamon Flack. This was a play rich in images and quirky characters.
The music for this Matthew Lutton show, was full of delicate ostinato-driven music, pop-rock, and various other styles reflecting the weird and wonderful storytelling.
Animal Farm - This classic play was treated in an abstract and sometimes violent way by Matthew Lutton. It was powerful and dark, showing the true horror of a farm where the more human the animals became, the more inhumanely they treated each other.
The musical underscore totalled nearly 1.5 hours, and progressed from purely ethnic instruments to orchestral instruments as the shift from animal to human slowly took place.
Mountain Language - This dark and bleak Pinta play shows man dehumanised and treated with utter contempt by the uncaring machine of an overbearing government.
The soundscape was minimalist and slow-moving. The human element, represented by a woodwind quartet of flute, clarinet, oboe and bassoon, is degraded to a synthesised ‘woodwind quartet’ of sine, square, triangle and saw waves. These are eventually crushed into noise.
The Trial - Matthew Lutton’s direction of Louise Fox’s adaptation of Kafka’s novel was disturbing, amusing and powerful. I worked with sound designer Kelly Ryall, whose soundscape was brutal, crushing and dynamic. In contrast, the music was written for the purity of the solo piano. The juxtaposition was powerful, and here are some of the piano pieces in their pure form. The twisting ground bass theme of the final chaconne was heard over the death of Joseph K.
The Clean House - Kate Cherry’s direction of this play about life, death and love was tender and emotive, and the characters featured strong Argentinian and Brazilian influences. The music was imbued with the rhythms of the tango, bossa nova and rumba, as well as a few surprises.
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Gogo Fish - This show by the Barking Gecko Children’s Theatre Company was a lot of fun. It told the story of the first fish to walk on land. The music sent up everything from Westerns music, to sitcoms, to pop songs. I hope you have as much fun listening to it as I had writing it!
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The Lady Aoi - Matthew Lutton’s interpretation of this Japanese Noh play was almost filmic, and mixed elements of horror and sexuality with restraint and poise. The music reflected these contrasts with delicate pentatonic based piano notes, heavy beats, and a cinematic string climax.
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Woyzeck - Music and sound design bleed into one in this disturbing tale or revenge and obsession. The atonal flute theme and the obsessive four-note piano motive are juxtaposed with water textures and echoing voices.
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The Messiah - Black Swan Theatre Company’s production of this delightful comedy tells the story of the birth of the Messiah through the amateurish pantomime of a has-been actor and his young protégé. All of the themes in the music come from Handel’s Messiah, but they are transformed in ways that he definitely would not have approved of! There were over 50 references to Handel’s music in the play, all moulded to enhance the storytelling.
(Audio only)
