The virtuoso
• Lyndall Crisp
• The Australian
• March 17, 2010 11:38AM
Tognetti says there is rivalry in the group, but in a collegiate way - "we're playing the same music and pretty much on the same level," he says.
LIKE many successful people, Richard Tognetti was not a born leader. "I was not a leader at school. I was never really one to be part of the group, let alone lead the group. I didn't want anything to do with leading school riots certainly. But I definitely wasn't a follower either."
Nevertheless, the lad from Wollongong morphed into a brilliant violinist, conductor and “by necessity” a leader, as artistic director of the internationally successful Australian Chamber Orchestra. He is also artistic director of the Maribor Festival in Slovenia, Niseko Winter Music Festival in Japan and Vasse Felix Festival in Australia.
“I don’t lead because I feel I have to lead. I know I have a message in music, a strong musical personality that I want to express. Yet the repertoire I want to play requires more than one person. So it’s out of necessity that I end up in a leadership role,” he says.
It was while studying at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music that Tognetti, and others, began to realise he was someone his colleagues admired and would follow. It was his interpretation of music, as much as his extraordinary versatility as a violinist performing on period, modern and electric instruments, that inspired those around him.
Today, as well as shepherding an orchestra of 17 highly skilled musicians through concert performances, tours and special appearances here and overseas, Tognetti, 45, reaches out across other art forms and artistic styles to collaborate with artists as diverse as singer Neil Finn, photographer Bill Henson and artist-cartoonist Michael Leunig. He was also co-composer of the score for Peter Weir’s Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World, and tutored the film’s star, Russell Crowe, in violin.
And that’s in addition to planning the ACO’s seasons years ahead and all at a time when it’s become more difficult than ever before to raise funding and attract sponsorship. “We’re a pretty strong ship in that we’re adaptable and we’re small. We thought we were going to suffer more and we had contingency plans. We suffered, but not as much as most.”
He has no formal business training and relies on a strong administrative team. However, he insists on having a foot firmly planted in both the management and musical camps.
“I have a lot to do with the management side,” he says. “If I don’t, then there’s a big chasm between management and the orchestra. We have a highly responsible general manager. I make sure we’re doing the right concerts, going to the right places, playing the right repertoire. If I hear mutterings that things are going badly, then I’ll listen. But it’s not really my role to manage people.”
Positive energy, vision, innovation - they’re all elements of effective leadership. Yet, as Tognetti points out, there are plenty of successful leaders whose modus operandi is the opposite.
“There are quite a few negative leaders who are very good. There are people who create negative energy in a team that maybe creates a positive outcome - conductors such as Toscanini, who didn't do ‘nice’. Too much emphasis is placed on being ‘nice and lovely and jolly’ these days. It's strange but true that Michael Leunig has a cute image, but it’s actually his vicious independent voice that creates his unique resonance.”
“For myself, more often than not I’m being fairly positive about things. But if I’m only being positive, then people can be a bit lax. To lead people you need a steel spirit and resolve.
“I know what I want and how to achieve it in this sphere I work in. That comes from experience. I’ve always been clear about what I want musically. If people don’t know where they stand, then it’s a sign of bad leadership. To them it seems you’re dissembling or hiding the truth, which is not a good thing. You have to be honest. Sometimes if you think the truth is going to hurt, you are overly considerate and that can be a negative.”
Tognetti, 45, holds honorary doctorates from three Australian universities, was made a National Living Treasure in 1999 and his recordings of Bach’s solo violin repertoire for ABC Classics won three consecutive ARIA awards for best classical album (2006-8). This year he was awarded an AO (Officer of the Order of Australia). He spends more than three months each year away from home and his idea of a holiday is to go somewhere else and work.
When it comes to the orchestra he insists on perfection. “If someone’s not performing, you have to take them aside. But we haven’t had many dismissals from the orchestra, something I’m very proud of. On the management side, there have been many more [dismissals] because people apply for jobs without the right experience, yet they show very well in the interview.”
Tognetti has never had a mentor - “you have to work things out on your own” - and doesn’t mentor others, although he’s happy to give advice when asked.
“I find it necessary to be emotionally honest. If I’m in a bad mood, I’m not going to pretend I’m not (as long as it’s for a good reason). I’m not a happy-clappy person, I’m not in a happy clappy profession. We’re expressing quite deep, often tumultuous emotions. I am part of that language.”
One thing he won’t abide is gossip. “If I’m talking about someone behind their back, I won’t continue the conversation unless I feel sure I can say all those things to the person,” he says. “You can’t just backstab people. You must be able to confront them. We have a very good system, a forum with strong rules where people can express their grievances. People can put [their complaint] on the agenda and if we can’t deal with it then and there, we get outside counselling.”
As a man who wakes every day with a dozen new ideas in his head, Tognetti makes it clear he doesn’t want to be overburdened with petty grievances.
“If things are not being run very well - and years ago things were run very badly; there was a lot of learning to do when we started - then you have to listen to petty grievances and take them seriously. If things are going well and you’re still getting petty grievances, you have to look at the person who’s complaining and give them a bit of a psychological slap.
“In a way dealing with a small orchestra is even more difficult because it’s more personal. It’s the proximity. As Stalin said, ‘One man’s death is a tragedy; a platoon’s is a statistic.’ The closer you get, the more personal it is.
“Some members will become friends, some acquaintances and with some you have a wonderful collegial relationship. There’s rivalry whenever you get people together, but here it’s very collegiate. We are all playing the same music and pretty much on the same level. You can’t meddle.”
He feels he’s a strong leader but says that “staying ahead of the pack” is one of the toughest challenges.
“If you’re an independent thinker, then you have to be prepared to be lonely. Sometimes you have to make quite difficult and unpopular decisions. You have to be ready for all that. It happens often. When things are going well, you know something is going to come along [that will test you]. You have to be on your toes and also make sure the people who are following know it’s not all about things being easy.
“Yes, I enjoy leading - certainly more than following - otherwise I wouldn’t do it. There are a myriad of rewards. When things are going poorly, I take responsibility and when things go well ... it’s necessary to have a kind of humility.”
Sometimes he feels the pressure (though surfing helps). “You do become acclimatised to the pressure of performing and leading and dealing with crises. The only way to deal with a crisis is to keep calm. If the pilot is freaking out, then you’re doomed. Sometimes it’s better to put your head down and be fair but cruel, to be considered and apply your experience to making your own decisions without being distracted by listening to too many people.”
Monday, July 19, 2010
Saturday, July 17, 2010
" GUARDIAN CENTRAL ": Scientists find bizarre creatures of the deep
Scientists find bizarre creatures of the deep
Updated Fri Jul 16, 2010 2:28pm AEST
Australian scientists have discovered bizarre deep sea life hundreds of metres down in the seas around the Great Barrier Reef.
Ancient sharks, giant oil fish, swarms of crustaceans and a primitive shell-dwelling squid species called the nautilus were among the astonishing life captured by remote controlled cameras 1,400 metres below the surface at Osprey Reef, 350 kilometres north-east of Cairns.
Lead researcher Professor Justin Marshall, from the Queensland Brain Institute at the University of Queensland, says his team also found several unidentified fish species, including "prehistoric six-gilled sharks".
"Some of the creatures that we've seen we were sort of expecting, some of them we weren't expecting and some of them we haven't identified yet," he said.
"There was a shark that I really wasn't expecting, which was a false cat shark, which has a really odd dorsal fin."
The mission, known as the Deep Australia project and funded by the Australian Research Council, used special low-light sensitive cameras that were custom designed to trawl the ocean floor.
Professor Marshall says Osprey Reef is part of the Coral Sea Conservation Zone, which has been identified as an area of high conservation value.
He says it is therefore important we study the ecosystems and species that live in this area.
"We simply do not know what life is down there and our cameras can now record the behaviour and life in Australia's largest biosphere, the deep sea," he said.
Ancient nautilus
The researchers also collected footage of the nautilus, an ancient relative of the squid and octopus, which lives in a shell.
They measured the 'living fossils' to find out more about their biology before returning them to sea.
"Learning more about these creatures' primitive eyes and brain could help neuroscientists to better understand human vision," research student Andy Dunstan said.
Professor Marshall says most of our knowledge on how nerve cells function and communicate was first pioneered through work on giant squid nerve cells.
"We are now returning to these original model systems, both for their own intrinsic interest and also to better understand brain disorders which lead to conditions such as epilepsy," he said.
Under threat
Professor Marshall says the research had been made more urgent by recent oil spills affecting the world heritage-listed Great Barrier Reef, and the growing threat to its biodiversity by the warming and acidification of the world's oceans.
"One of the things that we're trying to do by looking at the life in the deep sea is discover what's there in the first place, before we wipe it out," he said.
"We simply do not know what life is down there, and our cameras can now record the behaviour and life in Australia's largest biosphere, the deep sea."
Scientists have already warned the 345,000-square kilometre attraction is in serious jeopardy, as global warming and chemical run-off threaten to kill marine species and cause disease outbreaks.
In April, the Chinese coal ship Shen Neng 1 gouged a scar in the reef when it ran aground whilst attempting to take a short cut, leaking tonnes of oil into a famed nature sanctuary and breeding site.
Professor Marshall says the cameras will now be sent to the sludge-ridden Gulf of Mexico to monitor the effects of the oil spill on marine life there.
Updated Fri Jul 16, 2010 2:28pm AEST
Australian scientists have discovered bizarre deep sea life hundreds of metres down in the seas around the Great Barrier Reef.
Ancient sharks, giant oil fish, swarms of crustaceans and a primitive shell-dwelling squid species called the nautilus were among the astonishing life captured by remote controlled cameras 1,400 metres below the surface at Osprey Reef, 350 kilometres north-east of Cairns.
Lead researcher Professor Justin Marshall, from the Queensland Brain Institute at the University of Queensland, says his team also found several unidentified fish species, including "prehistoric six-gilled sharks".
"Some of the creatures that we've seen we were sort of expecting, some of them we weren't expecting and some of them we haven't identified yet," he said.
"There was a shark that I really wasn't expecting, which was a false cat shark, which has a really odd dorsal fin."
The mission, known as the Deep Australia project and funded by the Australian Research Council, used special low-light sensitive cameras that were custom designed to trawl the ocean floor.
Professor Marshall says Osprey Reef is part of the Coral Sea Conservation Zone, which has been identified as an area of high conservation value.
He says it is therefore important we study the ecosystems and species that live in this area.
"We simply do not know what life is down there and our cameras can now record the behaviour and life in Australia's largest biosphere, the deep sea," he said.
Ancient nautilus
The researchers also collected footage of the nautilus, an ancient relative of the squid and octopus, which lives in a shell.
They measured the 'living fossils' to find out more about their biology before returning them to sea.
"Learning more about these creatures' primitive eyes and brain could help neuroscientists to better understand human vision," research student Andy Dunstan said.
Professor Marshall says most of our knowledge on how nerve cells function and communicate was first pioneered through work on giant squid nerve cells.
"We are now returning to these original model systems, both for their own intrinsic interest and also to better understand brain disorders which lead to conditions such as epilepsy," he said.
Under threat
Professor Marshall says the research had been made more urgent by recent oil spills affecting the world heritage-listed Great Barrier Reef, and the growing threat to its biodiversity by the warming and acidification of the world's oceans.
"One of the things that we're trying to do by looking at the life in the deep sea is discover what's there in the first place, before we wipe it out," he said.
"We simply do not know what life is down there, and our cameras can now record the behaviour and life in Australia's largest biosphere, the deep sea."
Scientists have already warned the 345,000-square kilometre attraction is in serious jeopardy, as global warming and chemical run-off threaten to kill marine species and cause disease outbreaks.
In April, the Chinese coal ship Shen Neng 1 gouged a scar in the reef when it ran aground whilst attempting to take a short cut, leaking tonnes of oil into a famed nature sanctuary and breeding site.
Professor Marshall says the cameras will now be sent to the sludge-ridden Gulf of Mexico to monitor the effects of the oil spill on marine life there.
Wednesday, July 14, 2010
" GUARDIAN CENTRAL ": Fred Hollows coin released - Australian Geographic...
" GUARDIAN CENTRAL ": Fred Hollows coin released - Australian Geographic...:
"Fred Hollows coin released - Australian Geographic By: AAP July-8-2010 A one dollar coin commemorating the work of the late Fred Hollows..."
By: AAP
July-8-2010
A one dollar coin commemorating the work of the late Fred Hollows is being released this week.
The commemorative Fred Hollows one dollar coin is being released this week. (Photo: Royal Australian Mint)FRED HOLLOWS, WHOSE LEGACY lives on in the people he helped regain sight, will now be remembered through a commemorative coin, to be released Friday night.
Gabi Hollows says her late husband would be humbled at having a coin pressed in his honour. "He would be slightly embarrassed about it but also quite chuffed that they've given him that honour," she says.
Fred's work to save the sight of countless people across the world, and especially Australian Aborigines, brought him acclaim and in 1990 he was named Australian of the Year.
"He wore his badge of honour very well when he was Australian of the year and now to be put on an Australian coin - it will be quite special," his widow said.
Before his death from cancer in 1993, Dr Hollows pioneered the mass-manufacture of the intraocular lens in the developing world to treat cataracts and blindness.
"[Fred said] `let's manufacture this lens at an affordable price - let's make an operation for $25' and we've done that," says Gabi, estimating that more than four million people in the world have benefited from its use.
"Fred was determined to make sure we had no double standards in terms of prevention of blindness. People were given the same type of surgery that would have been done in his private clinic."
The Fred Hollows coin, which is uncirculated and aimed at collectors, will be part of the Royal Australian Mint's Inspirational Australians series. It recognises those who have made an extraordinary contribution to society. Sculpted by Mint Engraver Vladimir Gottwald, the coin design is inspired from a photograph taken by George Fetting, which depicts Fred holding an intraocular lens.
"We are proud to include Fred in this popular collector series which honours truly inspirational Australians," says Ross MacDiarmid, Chief Executive Officer of the Royal Australian Mint.
Gabi says she was "really, really proud" and hopes the coin brings attention to the work of the Fred Hollows Foundation, which helps restore eyesight to thousands of people in developing countries.
Last year, the Foundation restored sight to over 190 000 people across 18 countries and trained over 5000 eye health workers, said Brian Doolan, Chief Executive Officer of The Fred Hollows Foundation.
By: AAP
July-8-2010
A one dollar coin commemorating the work of the late Fred Hollows is being released this week.
The commemorative Fred Hollows one dollar coin is being released this week. (Photo: Royal Australian Mint)FRED HOLLOWS, WHOSE LEGACY lives on in the people he helped regain sight, will now be remembered through a commemorative coin, to be released Friday night.
Gabi Hollows says her late husband would be humbled at having a coin pressed in his honour. "He would be slightly embarrassed about it but also quite chuffed that they've given him that honour," she says.
Fred's work to save the sight of countless people across the world, and especially Australian Aborigines, brought him acclaim and in 1990 he was named Australian of the Year.
"He wore his badge of honour very well when he was Australian of the year and now to be put on an Australian coin - it will be quite special," his widow said.
Before his death from cancer in 1993, Dr Hollows pioneered the mass-manufacture of the intraocular lens in the developing world to treat cataracts and blindness.
"[Fred said] `let's manufacture this lens at an affordable price - let's make an operation for $25' and we've done that," says Gabi, estimating that more than four million people in the world have benefited from its use.
"Fred was determined to make sure we had no double standards in terms of prevention of blindness. People were given the same type of surgery that would have been done in his private clinic."
The Fred Hollows coin, which is uncirculated and aimed at collectors, will be part of the Royal Australian Mint's Inspirational Australians series. It recognises those who have made an extraordinary contribution to society. Sculpted by Mint Engraver Vladimir Gottwald, the coin design is inspired from a photograph taken by George Fetting, which depicts Fred holding an intraocular lens.
"We are proud to include Fred in this popular collector series which honours truly inspirational Australians," says Ross MacDiarmid, Chief Executive Officer of the Royal Australian Mint.
Gabi says she was "really, really proud" and hopes the coin brings attention to the work of the Fred Hollows Foundation, which helps restore eyesight to thousands of people in developing countries.
Last year, the Foundation restored sight to over 190 000 people across 18 countries and trained over 5000 eye health workers, said Brian Doolan, Chief Executive Officer of The Fred Hollows Foundation.
" GUARDIAN CENTRAL ": Australian Antarctic explorer dies - Australian Ge...
"Australian Antarctic explorer dies - Australian Geographic by Rebecca Courtney July-6-2010 ALF HOWARD, AUSTRALIAN EXPLORER, scientist,..."
by Rebecca Courtney
July-6-2010
ALF HOWARD, AUSTRALIAN EXPLORER, scientist, educator and last remaining member of Sir Douglas Mawson's 1929-31 expedition to Antarctica, died peacefully in his sleep on 4 July, at the age of 104.
Along with famed photographer Frank Hurley, Alf was aboard Discovery on the British, Australian and New Zealand Antarctic Research Expedition (BANZARE) led by Mawson.
Alf, the youngest member of the team at 23 years old, was recruited as a hydrologist and chemist.
Mawson described him as being responsible for "the taking of sea-water temperatures and the collection and chemical examination of sea-water samples".
Further, he commended Alf's role on board the Discovery, recounting the valuable scientific work undertaken as a delicate and difficult operation.
Pictures of Alf during this time show him lurching over the side of the ship, precariously perched upon a ledge above the open freezing sea and strapped in with a harness around his waist to collect water samples.
He was born in Camberwell, Victoria, and received his first of five degrees, a Bachelor of Science, at the University of Melbourne in 1927.
Later studies included a PhD in linguistics and an honorary doctorate in statistics from the University of Queensland, an institution with which he had an association of almost 50 years.
His love of science and education ensured he was a valuable addition to the Department of Human Movement Studies at UQ in his later years, where he worked as an honorary computer programmer and statistics adviser until 2003, at the age of 97.
Alf is described as much more than the man who accompanied Mawson on the well-documented expedition to Antarctica.
He is remembered by former colleague Professor Doune Macdonald, Head of the School of Human Movement Studies at UQ, as "a practical man, generous with his time and with prodigious skills in helping generations of students".
Doune recalls fondly Alf's daily morning ritual of making a pot of tea - tea bags would not suffice - and that he walked to work despite his age.
Alf was also a lover of classical music - Mozart was his favourite - and an avid reader of anything scientific. "Fiction", he would say, "is frivolous."
He was also generous financially, donating in 2005 a considerable sum of money for a computer laboratory for undergraduate students and spending his retirement years as an Honorary Research Fellow, volunteering his time. He once indicated that all he needed was a UQ red parking sticker and a library card.
The 1990s saw him return many times to Antarctica. One occasion was in 1991 with an Australian Geographic Society trip, which was led by Dick Smith, where they visited Mawson's Hut. In 2001 he was presented with the Australian Geographic Society Lifetime of Adventure award.
His funeral is being held on 9 July at 2.30 p.m. at Mt Thompson Crematorium in Holland Park, Brisbane. The University of Queensland will mark the day by flying flags at half mast.
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