Sydney’s much-loved arts and music venue City Recital Hall will mark its 20th anniversary with a day of free events, culminating in a special concert on Wednesday 30 October. Curated by Australian musician and songwriter Megan Washington, this concert will celebrate the diversity of Australian music and culture. For the first time ever, Megan will collaborate with renowned artists Electric Fields, Luke Howardand Topology to look ahead to the music of tomorrow with a classical crossover theme. Of the collaboration, Megan Washington says “I feel very lucky and honoured to have the opportunity to create something cool for this anniversary. Twenty years is a major milestone and I am looking forward to creating an evening of music fit for such an occasion.”

City Recital Hall CEO Elaine Chia says “Twenty years of musical stories, thousands of performances and millions of music-lovers have all led to this moment. We thought about looking back, but it’s much more exciting to look forward. We Are Twenty will be about now, tomorrow and the future.”

Modern pop’s patron saint Megan Washington is a platinum-selling and ARIA-award winning musician who has been known to reduce grown men to tears. The acute thinker and blistering performer has captivated music listeners with her ability to tell stories that inflate the spirit. “…pop is more interesting with her in it” (Idolator).

Electric Fields is a potent and unique force bringing together the brilliance and creativity of music producer and composer Michael Ross, with the mesmerising sensitivity of Zaachariaha Fielding – whose rare and beautiful voice has been described as ‘taking soul to the stratosphere’. These two feminine brothers create a striking and haunting merging of living traditional Aboriginal culture with electronic music.
Pianist and composer Luke Howard captures audiences with his contemporary classical arrangements that curl and twist around the boundaries of a particular emotion. Though wordless, Howard’s songs perform a function unique to music as a medium – that of evoking without describing, bringing listeners to a feeling which defies articulating.

Brisbane-based Topology are established leaders in musical creativity in Australia, prolific creators of new original work, expert collaborators across genres and art forms and award-winning music educators. The quintet experiments with surprising combinations of music genres, theatrical staging and cross art form collaborations to create exciting, thought-provoking music experiences for audiences of all ages, backgrounds and tastes.

About the venue
City Recital Hall was opened in 1999 and was the first purpose-built music venue to be built in Sydney since the Sydney Opera House in 1973. The establishment of City Recital Hall followed extensive lobbying by Sydney’s arts community, especially its fine music and chamber music ensembles, for a customised central city recital space. In its 20 years it has hosted some of the biggest and most exciting names in music including the venue’s Key Presenters the Australian Brandenburg Orchestra, Australian Chamber Orchestra, Music Viva, Pinchgut Opera and Sydney Symphony Orchestra. It has also hosted some of the biggest names in jazz, indie, hip-hop and contemporary music such as Paul Kelly, Kate Miller-Heidke, Madeleine Peyroux, Tori Amos, Neil Finn, Punch Brothers, Archie Roach, Cat Power, Branford Marsalis, Grizzly Bear, Bon Iver, The National, Joanna Newsom, Gotye and many more.