Silent Hand Catches Silver Bell

Speak Percussion has redefined the sound and scope of percussion in the 21st century. Now, after a quarter-century of avant-garde, boundary-defying experimentation, the Melbourne-based organisation marks its anniversary with Silent Hand Catches Silver Bell – a major exhibition at the University of Melbourne’s Grainger Museum.

This immersive exhibition brings audiences face-to-face with unique custom-built instruments, striking installations, and archival materials that reveal the scale and audacious impact of Speak Percussion’s practice. It offers a fascinating insight into the ensemble’s post-instrumental approach – where sound, object, space and concept intersect to create genre-breaking work.

From large-scale performances featuring hundreds of musicians to intimate collaborations with chefs, architects and space scientists, Speak’s extraordinarily diverse body of work has spanned disciplines and traversed continents. Highlights include Polar Force, Atlas of the Sky, A wave and waves, Fluorophone, Anicca, Pigeons, Assembly Operation, and collaborations with the Grainger Museum — each showcasing the ensemble’s visionary scope.

Also featured are contributions from some of the most compelling voices in contemporary music and performance, including Eugene Ughetti, Kaylie Melville, Matthias Schack-Arnott, Liza Lim, Philip Samartzis, Michael Pisaro, Simon Løffler, Clare Britton, and Thomas Meadowcroft.

Explore the sounds, images and ideas that have shaped Speak Percussion’s evolution into one of the world’s most innovative musical forces.