Bell Curve is a powerful sonic intervention that places Victoria’s iconic Federation Hand Bells, a gift marking the centenary of Federation, into a symbolically charged national setting. In this reimagined context, the bells become the centre of a spatial work that listens deeply to history, power and possibility.

Composed by Eugene Ughetti, Bell Curve is now being offered to Noongar musician, conductor and composer Aaron Wyatt to be decolonised throughout 2026. Through this process, the work will be re-examined, reshaped and expanded through First Nations knowledge systems, cultural practice and community consultation.

This Canberra International Music Festival performance features twelve local community members, trained by Aaron Wyatt and Speak Percussion, who activate the Federation Hand Bells in a spatial choreography of sound. Surrounding the audience, the performers are guided by networked click tracks and a quadraphonic sound system that enables perfectly calibrated attacks, resonances and timbral shifts.