When was the last time you heard a harp echoing through a 19th-century customs hall?
Kaleidoscope of Joy transforms Immigration Museum’s Long Room into a concert space on 15 November.
The performance brings together flautist Maria Zhdanovich, clarinettist Georgia White and harpist Gemma Tong for two sessions exploring how joy manifests across different contexts. Kaleidoscope of Joy runs alongside the museum’s Joy exhibition, with the musical program featuring improvisational pieces created in response to the artworks on display. The concert also includes works by composers Claude Debussy, Nancy Gustavson, Ian Whitney, Sally Greenway and Luke Henderson, blending established repertoire with new interpretations.
Kaleidoscope of Joy
- Where: Immigration Museum Long Room, 400 Flinders Street, Melbourne
- When: 15 November, 1pm and 3pm (45-minute sessions)
- Tickets here
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The program opens with Debussy’s 1915 Trio for Flute Viola and Harp, followed by Whitney’s Architecture of Butter and Sugar, a solo flute work exploring themes of queer nightlife and self-expression.
Gustavson’s A Great Day showcases harp virtuosity, while Henderson’s In Search of Simorgh draws on eastern music traditions and Persian mythology. Greenway’s The Strawberry Thief Suite offers three musical vignettes depicting childhood whimsy and play in nature.
The concert closes with group improvisation acknowledging the Wurundjeri people and referencing the waterfall that once existed under Queens Bridge, plus a song from a 1971 film designed to spark nostalgia.
The Immigration Museum opened in 1998 within the Old Customs House building at 400 Flinders Street, transforming a heritage-listed site into a Melbourne museum dedicated to exploring migration stories and cultural identity.
As one of the city’s most significant cultural institutions, this Melbourne museum operates under Museums Victoria alongside Melbourne Museum, Scienceworks, and the Royal Exhibition Building, offering exhibitions and programs that examine the diverse experiences of people who have made Australia home.
Use promo code COLOURPOP for a discount on your ticket.
For more information, head here.
