Introducing Musician, designer, innovator Monica Syrette

In June 2007 the Grainger Museum certain aspects of his unorthodox Megafun proposed an interactive received generous funding from the private life. The interactive would design that would echo the Hugh Williamson Foundation to seek to redress this imbalance by architectural footprint of the museum support the creation of a computer- weaving together the many strands of with six main screens corresponding based interactive research tool to Grainger’s life as composer, arranger, to the galleries in the art deco promote Percy Grainger and his pianist, folk-music collector, artist, building. The cabinet housing the multi-faceted life. The interactive designer, teacher, inventor and social interactive in the museum was would serve two purposes: provide an commentator. Rather than presenting designed by Deep in the Woods, a ‘add-on’ multimedia experience for Grainger’s life along strict furniture design and visitors and scholars at the museum, chronological lines, the themes, custom building company, to and in its DVD format, cater to those narrative and content of the resemble a 1930s radiogram. It unable to visit in person, or preparing interactive would reflect those aspects incorporates timbers appropriate to to visit the museum (especially of his personality that defined him: that era—Tasmanian blackwood and secondary school students). his honesty and openness, a collecting Queensland walnut—into the design. To get the project under way, an and archiving nature, his curiosity and The radio theme is extended to the extensive briefing document was experimentalism, and his charisma navigation style with the user ‘tuning’ compiled. This was used in the tender and popularity. into the screens by turning a radio dial. process to assist in selecting a consultant for the technical development of the interactive. The award-winning multimedia company Megafun was selected to work with the University team on the project. Grainger Museum curator Astrid Krautschneider and I, with input from curatorial assistant Jennifer Hill, met with Megafun general manager Ros Porter in 2008 to begin the complex process of shaping an interactive biography. Initial discussions centred on the public perception of Percy Grainger and how his wide-ranging interests and activities had been almost eclipsed by the popularity of his best-known arrangement, , and

44 University of Melbourne Collections, Issue 5, November 2009 Opposite: The first screen of the interactive Introducing Percy Grainger: Musician, designer, innovator allows the viewer to follow either a loose chronological narrative or select by thematic interest.

Left: Percy Grainger, Sketch of Grainger Museum, 1938, ink on photographic paper, 8.5 x 14.2 cm. Grainger Museum Collection, University of Melbourne. The design of the interactive was based on the Museum’s floor plan.

Below: Percy and Ella Grainger at the Grainger Museum, 1938, photographic print, 10.8 x 8.2 cm. Grainger Museum Collection, University of Melbourne.

Selecting content was a silent, so we looked instead to his protracted process as hundreds of diaries, reviews, scrapbooks, programs, images were needed. Museum staff publicity photos, correspondence, combed through the archive and advertisements and audio recordings storage site for appropriate objects to to tell the story. accompany the milestones of Whilst the selection of objects was Grainger’s life and illustrate the still in progress it was necessary to chosen themes. This exhaustive begin photographing them. Boxes process yielded both fresh containing everything from fragile perspectives into the collection and folksong collecting maps to long exciting discoveries of significant items plaits of hair regularly made their way that had not previously been on to photographer Lee McRae’s door. display. An array of objects was also chosen to There were also challenges in the be viewable on screen in three selection process. For example, there dimensions. To achieve this, Megafun was much discussion amongst the director Keith Tucker organised for team about how best to present selected objects to be photographed Grainger’s theories, which were wide- on a turntable 36 times in ten-degree ranging and often interconnected. increments, a relatively simple Although he could contradict himself approach, but one that produced at times, Grainger displayed a lifelong and I found ourselves labouring over remarkable results. commitment to his theories and fine- the editing, re-checking facts and The digital image archive tuned them over many years in tweaking sentences. generated by the project has boosted diaries, notebooks, correspondence, Another challenge we faced was the existing Grainger Museum digital lectures and essays. Whilst there was how to capture the intangible element image holdings significantly. This will a wealth of material to choose from, of Grainger’s career—his performances? assist staff in future when providing there were space limitations imposed We wished to illustrate how devoted reference services both in Australia by the interactive design. Thus in and enthusiastic Grainger’s audience and overseas, and lessen the handling some instances a complex theory had was, as this had such a strong impact of fragile objects by staff and to be represented by a single page. In on his life. He was highly ambivalent researchers, thus assisting in their these cases the text accompanying the about his popularity, expressing preservation. image needed to be crafted with great bitterness about lost creative The audio used in the interactive care. Text revisions were a major opportunities whilst pursuing contributes to an understanding of aspect of the project for the entire commercial success on the touring Grainger by building up a partial Grainger Museum team and even in circuit. The collection holds only one sound profile of his life, from music the final stages curator Brian Allison film of Grainger playing and it is favoured by his parents to works that

University of Melbourne Collections, Issue 5, November 2009 45 Right: The interactive cabinet, designed to resemble a 1930s radiogram. It will be housed in the Grainger Museum, reopening in 2010.

Below: Trustees for the Hugh Williamson Foundation at the presentation of the completed interactive. From left to right: Denis Tricks, Martin Carlson, Harry Carrodus and David Ward. Photography by Fiona Willan.

influenced him, folksongs he collected and his own compositions and experiments. Many factors had to be taken into consideration when selecting the audio component, including the quality of the recordings, file size and copyright. A project of this magnitude demands a comprehensive and efficient tracking system. Ros Porter devised a numbering system for the interactive layout that proved indispensable, whilst I created a colour-coded spreadsheet to list the objects; this ended up stretching to 63 pages. Project coordinator Georgina Binns (Music, Visual and Performing Arts Librarian) ensured the project ran smoothly and to schedule by liaising between Grainger Museum staff, Megafun and the Hugh creating the interactive has fed work and the depth and richness of Williamson Foundation. directly into exhibition planning for his achievements. Once the interactive was the newly refurbished building, due to completed Brian Allison and I gave it re-open in 2010. The DVD-ROM a thorough road testing. We have will be available free of charge to For more information about Introducing Percy Grainger: Musician, designer, innovator please endeavoured to achieve the highest music departments in schools contact the Grainger Museum at possible level of accuracy and throughout , and will also be [email protected]. attention to detail. We went through available for purchase. The stand- each screen minutely, making note of alone interactive will be located in the all necessary changes, as Keith Tucker Grainger Museum, with the capacity Monica Syrette is Assistant Curator at the can wearily attest. to act as a guide through both the Grainger Museum, University of Melbourne. She holds a Bachelor of Arts from Canberra Institute The project has been both exhibition space and Grainger’s life. of the Arts and a Post Graduate Diploma in challenging and rewarding in equal Introducing Percy Grainger: Musician, animation and interactive media from RMIT. measure. Everyone on the team is designer, innovator captures the Monica was Archivist at Arts Project Australia from 2004 to 2008 and is currently undertaking a delighted with the final product. For intense curiosity and creative energy PhD in the history and practices of art studios for Grainger Museum staff the process of that Grainger brought to his life and people with intellectual disabilities.

46 University of Melbourne Collections, Issue 5, November 2009