A Sunburnt Country is related to the completion of your Masters degrees in both flute and piccolo at the Royal Conservatoire of Antwerp. What sparked the idea for the interdisciplinary project?

I knew from the beginning that I wanted to explore Australian identity, which led to the idea of an all-Australian programme as Australian music is under-represented in Belgium. The Royal Conservatoire of Antwerp is part of a performing arts campus; it works alongside the dance and drama departments, and this leads to a lot of opportunity and encouragement for cross-fertilization between music, dance and drama students. But it wasn’t until I stumbled upon a performance on YouTube by Claire Chase, an American flutist, that I decided to go for it and create an interdisciplinary programme.

It’s a bit of an abstract connection; Chase’s performance didn’t include dance or poetry, and the music in A Sunburnt Country does not reflect her experimental style. It was something else about her performance, which just moved me so much. I was simply in awe. Her movement and how strongly she emoted definitely had an impact, along with the impressive sound and lighting design. It inspired me to broaden my horizon, get out of my comfort zone, challenge myself to...