Tim Munro – Testimonial

Tim was the flautist and co-artistic director of the chamber ensemble eighth blackbird from 2006 to 2015. As a member of eighth blackbird, Tim performed at major concert venues across 40 US states and internationally, worked as a soloist with America’s leading orchestras, curated three music festivals, and premiered more than 100 new works, including Steve Reich’s Double Sextet (Pulitzer Prize winner, 2009). Tim won his third Grammy Award with eighth blackbird in 2016 for the Cedille Records album Filament. He returned to the UQ School of Music in 2017 as the inaugural Paula and Tony Kinnane Scholar in Residence.

In October 2014, Tim released his first solo album, one two three, a funny, terrifying, and unpredictable journey that casts him as flautist, singer, amateur mathematician, and supervillain. The album was produced in collaboration with Chicago’s cassette tape label, Parlour Tapes+.

“My three years at UQ were pivotal for my development as a musician. I benefited from the UQ School of Music’s small size, feeding off the energy of its tight-knit music community. I fondly remember long, heated musical debates in the School’s Student Common Room, late-night jam sessions in the practice rooms, and many passionate chamber music performances."

“The training I received, particularly from Malcolm Gillies, James Cuskelly, Patricia Pollett, and Patrick Nolan, provided me with the best possible introduction to a huge, multifaceted, and quite terrifying musical world. There were two Ensembles in Residence during my time at UQ, Perihelion and Elision, and both, in their very different ways, blew my mind and expanded my ears. I loved the intellectual life of the School, sneaking into dozens of fascinating postgrad lectures from visiting professors."

“During my three years at UQ, I was able to really develop and hone the fundamentals of my playing and thinking. I practically lived in the practice rooms, drilling tone and technique until my eyes crossed, and poring over scores and books in the music library. I took full advantage of Brisbane’s steadily growing professional music scene, grabbing cheap tickets for almost every concert I could attend, cramming as much music as I could into my brain.”

“I left UQ uncertain of my future but bursting at the seams with ideas, curiosity, and passion, ready to take on the world!”