Australia: 6 Months in 15 Minutes

​I recently made a video montage of my journey through Australia. Distilling the best video clips into one sequence was a great way to process all of the incredible landscapes, wildlife, festivals, sports, historical sites, road trips, and unexpected thrills.

​I also had fun picking music from artists that were connected to the trip in some way. For example, the first piece "Love Token" is written and performed by an Australian guitar duo, the Grigoryan brothers. I learned about them from my host in Perth, and later saw the brothers perform a concert in Melbourne (which included the piece). As it turned out, "Love Token" was part of an album commissioned by the National Museum of Australia, which I had visited in Canberra and absolutely adored. The name of the song is a reference to a category of artifact from the convict era: an engraved coin the convicts would leave with their loved ones as a memento before starting the journey to Australia. A fitting start to the montage.

Other songs had similar connections. The classical piece "Toreadors" (from Carmen) was part of the opera revue I attended at the Sydney Opera House. Musicians Vika & Linda were a recommendation from my Melbourne host, Gail. Together we saw Charlie Needs Braces perform at the Gasworks in Melbourne. While at a guitar jam session in Perth, I was introduced to the Western Australian band The Waifs. And some songs I just liked listening to, like the high energy rap of Aboriginal artist Baker Boy and the Uluru-inspired "Solid Rock" by Goanna.

Most of the video footage comes from my GoPro, with some supplemental footage from my phone camera. I didn't always bring my GoPro, so there are some notable places missing -- Brisbane, the Grampians, and Whitehaven Beach come to mind. But the video's already long enough, so that can be forgiven. Hope you enjoy it.