The JazzLab

Commissioned and performed by the Monash Art Ensemble, Beyond Me by Raymond MacDonald (UK), tears down the myth of individuality and reimagines composition as collective action. Blurring the lines between composer, performer, and conductor, the piece is built from fragments of graphic scores, notations, loose structures, and is brought to life through dynamic rehearsal and improvisation. The result? A bold, playful work that fuses spontaneous creativity with intentional design. Beyond Me is accessible, anarchic, and radically human. A celebration of what’s possible when creative voices collide and communities co-create. It’s music as conversation, not command. Authorship becomes shared. Meaning becomes mutual.

Beyond Me is a world premiere which will featured as part of the Melbourne Jazz Co-Op program at The JazzLab. The work will also performed at the Sir Zelman Cowen School of Music and Performance 60th Anniversary celebration.

RAYMOND MACDONALD

Raymond MacDonald (UK) is a saxophonist, composer and multidisciplinary artist and Professor of Music Psychology and Improvisation at University of Edinburgh. He has released over 60 CDs and toured and broadcast worldwide. He has produced music for film, television, theatre and art installations and is a founder member of The Glasgow Improvisers Orchestra -“One of the best large improvising ensemble in the world.” BBC Jazz on 3. He has a particular interest in cross-disciplinary collaboration and has extensive experience of working with artists, dancers and filmmakers. He has also collaborated extensively with an artificial intelligence producing films, compositions, sculptures, visual art and book, Conversations with Chimère.  Much of his recent work is collaborative free improvising contexts while his roots in jazz and pop music can be heard in his playing and composing. He has published over 100 academic papers and book chapters, was head of music at Edinburgh university between 2013 and 2017, editor of the Journal Psychology of Music between 2006-2012 and has co-edited five texts:  Musical Identities (2002), Musical Communication (2005), Music Health and Wellbeing (2012), Musical Imaginations (2012) and The Handbook of Music Identities (2017) and co-written 2 books, The Art of Becoming: How Group Improvisation Works, (2021) with Graeme Wilson and New Directions in Musical Collaborative Creativity: The Glasgow Improvisers Orchestra and the Theater of Home (2025)with Maria Sappho, Tia DeNora, Robert Burke, and Ross Birrell

MONASH ART ENSEMBLE

The Monash Art Ensemble (MAE), based at the Sir Zelman Cowen School of Music and Performance, is a hybridistic ensemble blending composition, improvisation, and new technologies across the art music world. Founded in 2012 with support from key philanthropic partners, MAE commissions and performs new Australian music, connecting students with leading artists and mentors. The group collaborates with leading international and national figures, features regularly at the Melbourne International Jazz Festival, and has released several acclaimed albums. With a focus on innovation, education and artistic research, MAE nurtures emerging talent and expands audiences beyond Melbourne’s CBD, earning numerous awards and national recognition for its ground-breaking work.

Monash Art Ensemble Committee

Prof. Paul Grabowsky
Assoc. Prof. Robert Burke - Artistic & Managing Director
Dr. Michael J. Kellett - Ensemble Manager & Producer
Dr. Paul Williamson
Dr. Aura Go
Chelsea Wilson

CONTACT

For all media enquires, please contact mae@monash.edu