Australia’s first orchestral performance to combine Auslan poetry, live chamber music and vibro-tactile haptic technology is poised to ask audiences to rethink what music is.

Presented by Orchestra Victoria and Newmarket Collective at Blackwood Box, Meat Market in Melbourne on 8 August, Across Silence brings Deaf and hearing artists together in a performance that centres Auslan not as translation, but as artistic expression in its own right.

The production combines newly commissioned music, signed poetry and wearable haptic technology that uses vibrations and physical sensations to communicate information through touch.

In this setting, haptic vests convert elements of sound such as rhythm, dynamics and texture into carefully designed vibrations that can be felt across the body.

Rather than replacing hearing, the technology offers an additional sensory pathway, enabling Deaf and hard of hearing audiences to experience music through touch while also creating a richer, multi-sensory experience for all audience members.

Across Silence: Andrea Keller and Walter Kadiki. Photo supplied

At the centre of the creative process of Across Silence are Deaf artists Walter Kadiki and Marnie Kerridge, working alongside composer-pianist Andrea Keller, vocalist Gian Slater, conductor Nicholas Buc and musicians from Orchestra Victoria and...