Impossible Orchestra Australian Government
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What’s it feel like to care for a loved one who’s disabled, 24 hours-a-day, every-day, without a break?
Impossible.
Australia has 2.6 million unpaid family carers. They care for their disabled children, their ageing parents and their partners 24 hours a day.
And they do it with almost no recognition.
With no media budget, our task was to honour the nation’s carer’s and draw attention to the significant role they play, with an idea befitting their nonstop tireless efforts.
The idea was to tell the story of what it’s like to care nonstop through a 24 hour, nonstop orchestral concert.
We assembled 260 of Australia’s finest classical musicians and challenged them to play for 24 hours in one of Australia’s finest concert halls. But the concert was about more than music. Brutally honest and moving short films about individual carers were shown during the event, with the orchestra providing a live score.
During the event, carers and those they cared for were rotated in and out of the orchestra as guest musicians and conductors. Many of the musicians themselves were also carers, and also told their stories throughout the 24 hours.
The entire concert was to become a living celebration of the difficult yet beautiful and ultimately human act of caring. For those who couldn’t attend the concert in person, the entire event was streamed live online for the full 24 hours.