This week STA caught up with Alexei Caulfield to hear about his studio practice and his upcoming performance for the Sydney Sacred Music Festival.

I have lived in the bush for my whole life, I have grown up with access to lots of space and silence to go on walks to clear my head. The bush has been a really good way for me to cope with stress and keep me in a calm state for my music.

I have been playing the recorder for roughly 8 years now and for the majority of that time I have been seeking out performance after performance to share my love of the recorder and develop my skills.

Throughout the year I would usually be very busy with events such as performances at the Hume Conservatorium but also recorder workshops in Armidale and playing in a recorder ensemble up in Sydney.

Covid however has been challenging. People have had to come up with new, creative ways to deliver music. For me, this has led to performances such as an an online isolation orchestra with Symphonia Jubilate the Sydney recorder ensemble and most frequently, the Sydney Sacred Music Festival. Both of these events have given me an opportunity to still experience the excitement of performance, just online and not in front of a live audience.

At the end of the day I’m still finding plenty of opportunities to practice and expand my repertoire, and then go for long walks to clear my head in such a bizarre and unusual time.

Check out Alexei as part of the Symphonia Jubilate isolation orchestra.