The Beaumaris Variations was commissioned by the UTAS Ossa Music Prize and written for the 2022 winners, Jamie Willson, keyboard percussionist and Sophia Mitchell, french horn player. I was asked to write a five minute piece of music about Mary Grant Roberts (1841-1921) who founded the Beaumaris Zoo initially located at Beaumaris House in Battery Point, then later at the Domain grounds near Government House. Mary Roberts not only collected native and rare exotic birds and animals for her zoo, but also successfully bred Tasmanian Devils and Thylacines and was passionate about their protection and welfare.

The music uses gestures and figures throughout that generally evoke an animal’s movements or call. Bird calls, for example, are notated by ascending or descending two-note semiquavers, glissandi or a quickly repeating note. The piece begins with a short introduction played by both instruments. The main theme, Beaumaris - Beautiful Marsh, is announced in the vibraphone part with a tune centred on the notes B E A, the first three letters of ‘Beaumaris.’ The variations are named after phrases or words taken from various articles written about Mary Roberts and the zoo with the exception of Beautiful Marsh, which is the meaning of the Welsh place name, ‘Beaumaris:’

Intro and Theme: Beaumaris - Beautiful Marsh
Variation 1: Tiger Queen
2: Devils and Playmates
3: Her Rare Collection
4: A Wire Across the Entrance

The title of the fourth variation is inspired by a journalist’s description of the remains of the Zoo on the Domain:

These days, all that remains of Hobart's Beaumaris Zoo are crumbling concrete structures in a grassy field and a white pavilion, the only visual clue of its past
being wire stretched across the openings at its front.

Originally situated in a ‘beautiful marshland’, the site now sits in a solitary field overlooking the River Derwent. Remnants of the stretched wire seem to evoke the eerie cry of the last dying Thylacine and were the inspiration for the french horn part in the last bars of the work. These cries also serve as a reminder to us of our responsibility in ensuring the wellbeing of all living creatures left in our care.

Recording here.

Downloadable sample pages found at the link here.

Instrumentation: French Horn, Marimba, & Vibraphone.