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Everyone Goes To Heaven In The Clothes They Died In - David Gagliardi. First test run creative development stage 5, Ulumburra Theatre December, 2021. Photo by Press 1 Photography.
It only takes one idea to evolve, as David Gagliardi explains his creative process in relation to his latest stage work.
By Dianne Dempsey
As a composer and artistic director, David Gagliardi is very aware of the creative process that flows beneath his work. Author Elizabeth Gilbert has described this process as capturing magical ideas. Indeed it is precious, this business of creating something original from the core of a simple idea. Take for example the origins of David’s latest stage work, Everyone Goes To Heaven In The Clothes They Died In. It started in 2019, when he was attending a talk at La Trobe University: on that occasion, he says he “received” a small idea inspired by local manufacturing company Australian Turntables. “I thought, now wouldn’t it be interesting to have three pianos placed on a turntable. As the turntable rotated, the volume would naturally decrease and increase.” The idea had been planted. He put it aside. About a year later, while getting up to use the bathroom in the middle of the night, that small idea suddenly reappeared. Only it wasn’t small anymore, not at all. “Instead of three pianos, I now had six pianos. The backdrop is a floor-to-ceiling projection screen. In front of that, the six (upright) pianos, backs facing the audience, are lined up across the stage. They form a wall of sound and act as six individual projection screens, where animations depict each character’s final moments.” Ruefully, David says ideas can arrive at inconvenient times. But no matter: he quickly scribbled some notes on a pad and returned to sleep. From the basic idea, he was to eventually create a highly sophisticated, integrated work of art. The heart of the performance is an examination of our mortality. David’s six characters are captured in the moment of dying. We glimpse their life, and we mourn their death. A first test-run of the work was shown to a small group at Ulumbarra recently, as part of the creative development process. David’s audiences told him he turned their darkest fears into something beautiful and approachable.
To further explore this concept of creativity, it is helpful to go back to the artist as a child and examine his environment and influences and, most of all, his inclinations. The eldest of three children, David was born in 1980 to loving, working-class parents and grew up in Frankston. “As a child, I was fascinated by music. I always loved it,” he says. “I never had any formal training in music. I taught myself from a children’s picture book, which had a very basic keyboard in it. Later, my mother bought me a guitar. When I told Mum I couldn’t actually play guitar, she shrugged that off and said she was sure I could figure it out. Well that’s what I did, and I went on to ‘figure out’ the drums and bass and pursue my desire to write my own songs. “When I was eight, in an attempt to listen to as much music as I could, I used to put my small tape recorder in front of the TV and record Rage. The other music I listened to was my parents’ record collection. So you know, Dire Straits, Phil Collins, Eurythmics, Midnight Oil. As a teenager, I headed towards Nirvana and Sonic Youth. When I finished school, I bypassed uni and went straight to work for the record company that had released my first band’s EP, and where I had done work experience.” In his 20s, David was playing with the alternative, post-rock band Laura and living life large as a busy performer and songwriter. Laura released multiple recordings, including the albums Mapping Your Dreams and Radio Swan Is Down, on David’s own independent label. The Triple R crowd loved Laura. They were promoted in music magazines and gathered an enthusiastic online audience that swelled out to America and Japan. And the band loved the audience. “They would typically position themselves the same way,” David says. “The 18-year-olds would be right at the front of the crowd, then would come the millennials, and hanging out at the back would be the middle-aged fans. We loved that Laura had such a broad appeal.” Their intense shows featured the band’s signature wall of sound and its dramatic and at times chaotic dynamics. They played national headline tours and festivals and they toured Japan. As well as writing for Laura, David was also creating music for the BBC, American TV dramas and documentaries. He was busy, he loved working full time, writing music and performing. And then he stopped the merry-go-round. As he approached his 40s, he paused and looked around. He moved to the region with his young family and worked as an arts management professional. No longer performing, his writing became more reflective and orchestral. When the ideas visited him, they now embraced matters of life – and death.
Photograph by Leon Schoots
Photo by David Gagliardi Photo by David Gagliardi
It was after his move to Bendigo in 2019, and with the aid of various grants, that he started work on Everyone Goes To Heaven In The Clothes They Died In. It eventually employed 24 creatives and stagehands, 18 of whom were locals. He is following up on several opportunities to tour the production nationally and internationally with the option of virtual performances. As part of his current residency with the Emporium Creative Hub, David goes to work every day from nine to five. In his briefcase are a keyboard and a computer. He’s like Nick Cave, who has breakfast, says goodbye to the family and then goes to the studio. David’s latest project is developing the six vignettes he wrote for the six pianos, extending them into six separate works. He tries not to chase the muse, but waits for ideas to come to him, no matter in what order. Excitement these days is not found in the heady euphoria of a loud, live, rock performance. It is in the thrill of capturing an idea and giving it a shape and form. “These things most often happen inside a structured process,” David says. “You place yourself in a situation where you can receive the idea. You’re ready, prepared and waiting. And then you act.” You can see filmed footage of Everyone Goes To Heaven In The Clothes They Died In on David Gagliardi’s website: davidgagliardi.com.au
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