Music Mothers and Others

Our guest today is Ron Haryanto. Ronny is an artist, a music industry consultant, the former general manager of Studios 301 in Sydney (the largest recording studio in the southern hemisphere, thank you), and now the co-founder of new venture Mentor Academy. In his spare time he’s also a Dad and touring musician, regularly working with Australian icon Marcia Hines. A true all rounder and a joy to talk to - welcome Ronny!

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This episode is a kaleidoscope of fun with our guest --- Emma Peel! She's been a DJ on Melbourne's PBS FM for way over 15 years, and her Saturday show "Switched On" features dusty & obscure gems from the vinyl vaults of time. Emma's a mother of two, a musician in the band CURLERS, and co-creator of the suburban music festival  "Reservoir Stomp". Maybe you've come across her fab Instagram account "DJEmmaPeel", where you can...

Our guest today is Elana Stone. A graduate of Australian National University's School of Music, Elana is a double ARIA Award-winning musician whose style combines instrumental invention with pop styling and quirk! She's an ongoing member of Missy Higgins' live band, and has toured the world as a singer/pianist/accordion player/percussionist with the John Butler trio as well as opening for John Butler across Europe in 2022, and a me...

Our guest today is Becky Bennison. A graduate of the prestigious Sydney Conservatorium of Music, Becky went on to be a primary school teacher while finishing her PhD in Cultural Studies and Audio Production (as you do). An accomplished writer, songwriter and performer in her own right, these days she’s also Faculty Head of Music and Performance at Macarthur Anglican School in Camden, South West of Sydney (covering Kindy to Ye...

Our guest today is Penny Spirou. An arts critic for AU Review, and arts administrator for various organisations, university lecturer, tutor and popular music PhD - these days Penny works for The Tax Institute where she is the learning technology coordinator. We’ve known Penny since the ‘before times’ (before kids) and when she was also the treasurer of IASPM ANZ - the Australia/New Zealand Association for the Stud...

Our guest today is Jeremy Dullard – he’s is the founder and director of the Melbourne-based music group, Gamelan DanAnda. Jeremy is a champion of Balinese ‘gamelan’: a percussion based orchestra of gongs, flutes, metalophones, and more. Through rehearsals, lessons, workshops, and concerts, Jeremy’s community-based enterprise brings together participants of all ages, backgrounds, and expe...

This episode's guest is Paula Kruger. Paula is a broadcaster and manager who has extensive experience from across the creative industries, having worked across Australia and internationally for over 30 years, and is no. the CEO of Media Diversity Australia. Former ABC Radio presenter, ABC television producer and Managing director of 2SER, and importantly an incredible mentor for young people across the sector. This chat covers a ra...

Vicky O’Keefe is a vital part of an incredible Australian music legacy. Born into a musical household as the daughter of Australian rock and roll pioneer Johnny O’Keefe, Vicky has been a musician for decades with her band ‘The Vicky O’Keefe Band’ and as a solo artist. More recently Vicky has been presenting a musical tribute to her father in The Johnny O’Keefe Story, a celebration of his work fro...

Phia Exiner is a composer, musician, and songwriter who's hard to categorise (in the very best way). Phia first gained a cult following in Europe with her innovative approach to the kalimba thumb piano, using loop and effect pedals to create mesmerizing soundscapes. Since returning to Melbourne, she's transformed the Australian choral landscape by founding Melbourne Indie Voices, a non-traditional community choir that has grown fr...

Fran Grant is a Yuin woman, and her Aboriginal family comes from the NSW South Coast. She holds a Bachelor of Education (Early Childhood Education) and a Master of Strategic Communication. She is a current Lecturer in Social and Political Sciences at UTS. Fran is the child of a Stolen Child and the experiences of these children, and their lives in the aftermath, is the focus of her research. She is a current, accredited, Classroom...

Delilah Rose is Brisbane-based self-described “neuro-divergent songwriter, doodler, mama of two small humans, and bold performer”. A musician since her twenties, she’s played shows across Australia; was nominated for Best Country Act (at the Western Australia Music Awards) and her single Thin Black Line reached #1 on the AMRAP charts. When not making her own music (including new single Sophia) Delilah's other purs...

Emma Driver is a musician, writer, editor, journalist - Emma has done (and does) a lot across the music and associated industries. Not always front of stage or on the front cover - she's contributed 'in the weeds' of the industry as she puts it as an editor, artist and quiet activist for getting the facts straight. We've loved hearing from Emma how she juggles all she does - including when and how to step away. This episode also fe...

Toby Martin is a musician who you might know from back in the day (or still in the day) with Oz indie darlings Youth Group, as well as a country and indie musician more broadly. He also has a day job at the University of Sydney as Dr Toby Martin, “Senior Lecturer in Contemporary Music Practice”, the author of academic books and articles including the newly published “Cross-cultural collaboration in popular music: ...

Fans of Australian radio will know Robbie Buck's voice from MANY places including 2SER - where he got his start (ish). More on that in the interview. From there, Robbie went onto SBS and then to Triple J, where he was a complete legend for over a decade, then moved to ‘Grown Up Radio’ at where he was host of ABC Sydney Breakfast for 8 years; and has since also been presenter of Songs and Stories on ABC . After a break h...

Chris McAllister is a Sydney based comedian and Instagram phenomenon. Through their daily posts of trans joy, Chris gives audiences across the world a chance to get together and share. With the hashtag #ICanTell Chris invites the internet to feedback in a GOOD way – and they truly have commanded a force for good.

In the leadup to the Sydney Comedy Festival Show I Can Tell Chris talks to Liz about comedy, parent...

Deborah Conway is Australian musical royalty - actually musical royalty generally. Talking to us on the back of her book, Book of Life (Allen and Unwin) it's an incredible story of music, motherhood, childhood, partnerhood and all the things in between. In this episode Deborah talks about her life with Willy Zygier and their now grown up girls, also wonderful creative people. Read the book, see and hear them play around the country...

We here at Music Mothers and Others LOVE talking about gigs that you can bring your kids to. And our next guest Liz Irby is someone who loves this topic as well! She lives in Collorado with her husband and two little  kids, where she works for a music non-profit called the Music Appreciation Society which curates intimate shows for multi-generation audiences.  AND She’s just completed a Masters with Distinction from the Berklee Col...

We're now spoken to Georgia Fields twice on MMO - and in this second chat we were lucky enough to also feature some new music, with Georgia's permission, pieces from her new songs "How A Girl Becomes A Puddle", "In My Blood" and "Find Your Way Back".

In addition to working as a self-managed artist for over a decade and raising two children, in recent times musician & songwriter Georgia Fields has launched a new online communit...