Sophie Hutchings Interview
Pavilion Theatre’s WAVESeries has welcomed some incredible performances from world-class international contemporary classical artists throughout 2026. Inspired by the setting of Dún Laoghaire itself, WAVESeries draws on the beauty of the sea and our coastal surroundings, where our landscape influences the sound and atmosphere of the series.The ebb and flow of the waves offer a meditative respite from the everyday world, inviting us to pause, reflect and tune into the world around us. Few artists embody this concept more naturally than ARIA Award-winning pianist and composer Sophie Hutchings, who returns to Dún Laoghaire on Friday 30 October at 8pm. Tickets are on sale now.
Hutchings’ music is profoundly inspired by her surroundings and the landscapes of her native Australia. Her 2023 album, A World Outside, explored the vast expanses of the Australian outback, while her own seaside studio in Sydney provides a space for her to create by the coast. What better setting, then, for Hutchings to perform than a seaside theatre? as she presents audiences with her latest album, Become The Sky, a rumination on change, travel and returning home, we look forward to welcoming her from the Australian coastline to our own beautiful Irish shores.
With this in mind, we caught up with Sophie to delve a little deeper into the inspirations behind her music, the influence of her surroundings and the ideas that shape her latest work.Her ninth solo album, Become The Sky, has garnered critical and audience acclaim, charting across Europe. We recently spoke to Sophie about the influences behind the sound of her latest release and how audiences have been responding to the album so far. Here’s what she had to say:
A Space to Pause — A Moment to Daydream:
"When I began writing Become the Sky, I wanted to create something spacious and atmospheric, a soundtrack for an age where our internal operating systems are constantly running on high alert. In a world that rarely slows down, my main goal was to give people a quiet reprieve away from the continuous noise, a space to pause, breathe, and absorb life in slow motion.
The album grew into a collection of meditative, piano-led pieces ruminating on the subject of change, travel, and returning home. It’s inspired by those life changing journeys where you leap out of your comfort zone, balanced by the sensory magic of landing back on familiar ground. In essence, it’s about rediscovering the comfort of home while carrying the echoes of our journeys within.
I had the honour of recording at the historic Walsh Bay Arts Precinct on Sydney Harbour. The room has a distinct presence in these recordings, vast and echoic. But with microphones placed over my shoulders and close to the felt of the piano, there’s a tangible sense of intimacy, too. I really enjoy recording in a big room because of how infinitely small it makes me feel. There’s just the piano and the gear alongside the natural reverberance of the space, with Sydney’s glittering harbour and iconic Harbour Bridge just outside. We took advantage of those roomy acoustics, layering coaxing piano motifs with soft synth textures and ambient, pedal-driven guitar to build a sense of nostalgic warmth.
Since releasing the record and performing these pieces live, the response from audiences has been incredibly moving. People often tell me after a show that the music gave them a rare moment of stillness, a chance to step out of their busy minds and just sit with their own thoughts and memories.
That emotional connection is what I’m most excited to share on this European tour. Beside selections from Become the Sky, I’ll be weaving in pieces from A World Outside, along with reimagined live renditions crafted specifically for the stage to bring something unique to each performance. Instrumental music has a way of becoming whatever you need it to be in the moment. A companion, a memory, or simply a sanctuary from the noise outside. I hope these evenings offer you that same space to unpack and breathe."
A Message from Sophie:
SOPHIE HUTCHINGS AS PART OF WAVESeries