About

Thoroughbass has always adhered to Historical Performance principles in our presentation of early music. We have endeavoured to explore, research and ultimately reveal the unique and beautiful sound qualities of music and instruments of the past.

But also of our own time. With many commissioned and dedicated works, and many recordings to our credit, our instruments have leapt into life in the present in the hands of our wonderful musicians.

Pushing ahead in this vein, we bring you new pieces and arrangements for early piano, harpsichord, and combinations with modern piano, that are intriguing and vibrant.

‘When you attend a Thoroughbass concert the listener can be assured of two experiences.  You will be introduced to some infrequently played compositions spanning a range of musical periods, and the intimate setting will allow you to have your hand taken as you walk through the unusual and captivating musical landscape.’ M. Sambell, music educator

‘An outstanding concert‘, ‘a spellbinding experience’, Weston’s rendition ‘pictures of sound that were superbly played’. ‘An outstanding concert of eclectic Australian music, mostly from the late 20^th century, played with a unique understanding of our contemporary sound. I can’t wait to see and hear Thoroughbass again’, Rob Kennedy, Canberra City News, Nov 22, 2021 review of Big Skies.

Anthony Gilbert (British composer) says of Flying West (2015):

‘I’ve now had a chance to listen to both discs, and have to say I enjoyed every minute! All this freshness, variety within a mysterious consistency of approach, the energy, the colours, all give me a big buzz. And the playing is superb. I particularly like Diana Weston’s technique and sense of rhythm in all the styles, and what mystifies me is the dynamic range of the harpsichord – one can even hear crescendos!

Mandy Stepanakis/Loudmouth (2019): ‘Joanne Arnott on recorder, Angus Ryan playing cello and harpsichordist Diana Weston perform superbly on Flying West, a series of short pieces composed in 2014.’

Gwen-Bennett/The Music Trust (2016) of The Birch Tree: The robust sound of the harpsichord suits the music (Bartok’s For Children/selections) well and Weston plays with verve and skill. The unexpected presence of Angus Ryan’s cello reinforces rhythm in about half of the pieces and also provides some lovely solos to chordal accompaniment from the harpsichord. These little pieces represent much effort on the part of their collector and transcriber…’

Thoroughbass has a number of recordings to their credit, all available from the website. In addition, Diana’s interest in poetry and art has resulted in some gorgeous productions – a toddler’s introduction to music with Magpie Baby Book and CD and a unique publication – an ebook Backyard Friends.

Commissions

Diana is a proud to support new music for harpsichord and has commissioned many new works for herself and Thoroughbass.

Some of these include:

• Ann Carr-Boyd’s Suite for Diana, 2014 (harpsichord), Crimson Rosella, 2016 (2 harpsichords), Flying West, 2013 (recorder, cello and harpsichord) and Moonrise over Lake Argyle, 2018 (piano and harpsichord), Outback River, 2022 (2 cellos and harpsichord). 
• May Howlett’s Flutter-by my Butterfly, 2014 and Tilting at Windmills (for 2 harpsichords) 2016
• Elena Kats-Chernin’s The Birch Tree, 2013 (for cello and harpsichord) 
• Diana Blom’s Night Music, 2019 (for 2 harpsichords)
• Nadje Noordhuis’ Magpie Baby: A Childhood Suite 2012
• Aspasia Nasopoulou’s Io. 2019 (for harpsichord) 
• Katia Tiutiunnik’s Illuminada. 2022 (for harpsichord and recorders)
• As well as Kymba Burrows’ illustrations for Magpie Baby book/Cd and Dog Tales, CD covers for Full Moon and Last Dance, and Isabel Doraisamy’s artworks for Hymn to the Sun (Akhnaten), Cock Crow and Lady Huang’s Album CD cover
• Thank-you Chiaki Namura for Akhnaten scent (commissioned by Alex Moskvin, gifted by International Flavors and Fragrances)

 In rehearsal for Phaedra: Shaun, Julia, Tara, Steve, Cathy, Angus, Lucy, Hester, conductor Sarah