Possessing an interest in music of all genres and origins, Australian percussionist and composer Steve Falk embraces the process of creating new work with artists of varied disciplines and traditions. Such work predominantly features the marimba.
Steve is a member of Nunique Quartet and Ensemble Density and has appeared with the Melbourne Guitar Quartet, Speak Percussion, Chamber Made Opera, Bolt Ensemble and with numerous leading contemporary improvisers both in Australia and Japan, where he lived between 2005 and 2011. Steve has been commissioned by Museums Victoria to write for the Federation Handbells and his piece ‘Welcome’ has been performed in Melbourne at Federation Square as part of the Light in Winter Festival and for the arrival of the Inflatable Refugee - an enormous travelling artwork highlighting the global refugee crisis. At the Dance Triennale Tokyo 2009, he performed Drumming by Steve Reich in the production La Vie Qui Bat by Canadian dance company, O Vertigo. Along with fellow Australian Andy Bevan, Steve formed the world music duo ‘Duality’ and performed at Kamigamo Shrine, a world heritage site in Kyoto in 2010. They subsequently collaborated with Shonosuke Okura (master Otsuzumi player of the Noh Theatre tradition) and Slava Grigoryan (guitar) to create Four Winds for the OZAsia Festival at the Adelaide Festival Centre.
Steve has played percussion with the Melbourne, Queensland and Tasmanian Symphony Orchestras, Orchestra Victoria and Orchestra Ensemble Kanazawa (Japan). He has worked for many musical theatre productions, including Mamma Mia! and We Will Rock You. As musical director of the popular Australian dance show Tap Dogs, he travelled to New Zealand, Japan, China, Korea and India.
He attended the Victorian College of the Arts Secondary School, Victorian College of The Arts, Queensland Conservatorium of Music and Toho Gakuen College of Music (Tokyo) where he studied with Keiko Abe. Steve currently teaches percussion at The University of Melbourne and Monash University. He chooses to play Yamaha percussion instruments and proudly performs on a YM6100 Marimba with Encore Mallets.