In 2023, Matt was a key creative (composer) for The Poison of Polygamy, a mainstage production with seasons at La Boite Theatre and Sydney Theatre Company.
This timeless tale of morality, murder, blackmail and betrayal, traverses the opium dens of 19th Century China to the harsh, rugged goldfields of colonial Australia, this production offers an illuminating insight into the early Chinese-Australian experience and puts a human face on the issue of migration.
In composing the soundtrack to this production, Matt drew on historical instrumentation and authentic cultural practices, and combined them with contemporary experimental approach to soundscapes and musical layering, to create a rich, world traversing music that explores cultural displacement and migratory survival.
In 2023, Matt Hsu's Obscure Orchestra partnered with MoB (Museum of Brisbane) to create an art and music experience of the Play Moves exhibition, which invited visitors to dance, weave and move their way through six large scale installations where every action you take makes the art around you grow, change and come alive. Bringing Matt's alternative experimental ensemble together with a collection of local and national participatory artists, Obscure Orchestra split into mini ensembles to accompany each installation room, leaning into the interactivies of each space, before melding back as the exhibition evolved.
Celebrating the 120 year anniversary of SLQ, Matt Hsu’s Obscure Orchestra were invited to devise a live pop-up takeover of the historic state library.
In 2023, Matt Hsu’s Obscure Orchestra as an 18-piece alternative ensemble, collaborative with the Australian Cinematheque at GOMA, to create a live musical accompaniment
to the lyrical Slovakian documentary Lines 2021 for the ‘City Symphony’ Live Music & Film series.To celebrate 90 years of Australian broadcasting, ABC invited Matt to contribute a version of Happy Birthday with his distinct 'Obscure Orchestra' sensibilities, in a nationally televised ident, featuring multiple Matt's performing with musical saw, glockenspiel, harp, trumpet, mbira, euphonium and more.
Writing and performing live multi-instrumental loops, Matt relayed his journey from internalised racism to self discoveries and a musical journey that led to celebrating his dual heritage.
The Neighbourhood offered an evening of honest, authentic, and deeply moving theatre, imbued with a sense of hope, power and recognition. Written and co-created by the story-tellers themselves, The Neighbourhood traversed a range of story-telling forms to examine the concept of home and the vital importance of belonging.
Composed music for critically-lauded author and illustrator Terry Whidborne’s book and animation project The Adventures of Moon — in collaboration with publisher Tiny Owl Workshop.
To create this piece, Matt used harp, saw, mbira, water filled cups, shakuhachi, ocarina, glockenspiel, piano and forest field recordings.
MELT Festival: Brood
We See Each Other: Digital Narrative
The Legend of the Lost Pearl
4ZZZ: Radio Reversal
Greens Councillor Jonathan Sri
In 2017, Grammy-nominated Tibetan musician Tenzin Choegyal met in a ramen shop. Quickly becoming friends and musical collaborators. Together they created the piece Every Step Is A Horizon , exploring the refugee ordeal — the simultaneously seeking of safe harbour and the aching remembrance of ancestral lands.
The piece features poetry by Tibetan artist-activist Tenzin Tsundue recited by Choegyal, cimbalom by Andre Bonetti, mandolin and vocals by Hannah Ryder, and Matt's signature multi-instrumental arrangements using mbira, accordion. double bass, musical saw, trumpet, kitchen percussion, euphonium and clarinet.
