Designer of Hubbub Music

Steve Langton grew up in India where early impressions of music and architecture, virtuoso busking beggars, tombs, shrines and devotional singing influenced his present musicality and craft. With sound as the guiding element in most of his work, Steve formed Hubbub Music has been actively involved in community music making with the Sound Playground. He presently spends his time working on playable theatre sets, permanent vandal resistant sound installations and inventing new acoustic instruments.
Community music-making with Hubbub's Sound Playground, playable theatre sets, permanent vandal resistant sound installations and inventing new acoustic instruments occupies the majority of his time.

Steve's many and varied projects include thong-a-phone building in Western Australia's central desert, the "S.S Singe", a barge borne pyrophone for Brisbane's Centenary of Federation and inventing, installing and performing on musical installations in the "Forbidden Forest", for the Biennial Festival of Music 2001 and 2003. He has also worked as a "Work for the Dole" music mentor and set designer and musician, for Frank and La Boite Theatres

In May 2002, Hubbub was funded by the Australia Korea Foundation to work in South Korea, constructing a Sound Playground and performing with local cultural groups. As a recipient of an Asialink grant, Hubbub returned to Korea in March 2004, to conduct a 3 month residency in instrument making and performance at the Haja Centre in Seoul.

Past project highlights include:

o Darwin City Council 2006 - built a mobile Sound Playground for Palmerston

o Prize winner of MIT (Massacheusetts Institute of Technology, Boston) annual Ideas competition 2006 submitting a revolutionary wheelchair design.

o Brisbane Festival 2006 - commissioned to build a Musical Shipwreck and a Hopscotch Barge for permanent installation at two Brisbane parks

o QLD Music Festival 2005 - commissioned to build a Musical Railway Line for the Belyando Shire Council. Also completed first of 3 new pieces commissioned by Bellyando Shire Council "Interleaved", a musical park bench and table setting.

o Belyando Shire Council Commission 2005 - 4 large permanent outdoor musical installations for Moranbah Town Square and a playable water sculpture for Clermont billabong.

o Mitchell Fire and Water Festival 2005 - Performance of "Aleatoric Chants" on the Pyrophone Juggernaut, a multi-octave fire organ.

o Haja/Hubbub Collaboration 2004/05- hosted 15 Korean youth performers for 5 weeks at the Hubbub Studio. An instrument making and playing residency which culminated in street performances at the Woodford Folk Festival.

o The Moomba Festival Commission 2004/05 Design and construction of a musical futuristic float to be played by professional musicians and indigenous youth at the annual Moomba parade VIC.

o Kings Beach Redevelopment program 2004 - building the Soundwave, a combination park bench thongaphone and surfboard marimba to be permanently installed as an interactive instrument and art piece on the foreshore of Caloundra's Kings Beach.

o Young Drums Rhythm Immersion Project 2004 - Artist in Residency in Lismore to build Sound Playground instruments and develop a show with youth groups.

o Sound Playground Building Pormpuraaw 2004 - a govt funded project to build a permanent sound playground as a resource for students in Pormpuraaw State School (a remote Aboriginal school on the QLD Gulf). Conducted making and playing workshops with a performance outcome.

o Sound Playground Building Kowanyama 2003 - a PCAP sponsorship to build a permanent sound playground for students in Kowanyama State School (a remote Aboriginal school on the QLD Gulf). Conducted making and playing workshops with a performance outcome.

o QLD Bienniel Festival of Music 2001 and 2003 - produced 5 interactive musical installations for Forbidden Forest 01 and Sound Forest 03. Coordinated community bell making workshops. Devised, built and rehearsed The Fantastic Plastic Orchestra in Thuringowa, NQ.

o Permanent Park Installations 2001 - 2003: Nambour Adventure Playground - 3 instruments installed in the Fun Mill and a musical hopscotch in the gardens. Rockhampton Botanic Gardens - Park Bench Marimba installed in the Green Cathedral. Barcaldine Railway Park - Park Bench Marimba, Park Bench Thongaphone and Hubdingers (musical hopscotch) installed. Armidale Civic Park - Park Bench Marimba installed. Thuringowa Pioneer Park - Park Bench Thongaphone and Tai-Kwon-Doof installed.

o Terrace Grammar Arts Immersion Unit 2002, 2003: Artist in residence, musical sculpture and performance for year 9 and 11 arts students

o REV 2002 - Real Electronic Virtual experimental music festival at the Brisbane Powerhouse. Led community workshops in making Airbells, a musical installation based on my newly invented inflatable PET plastic drink bottles. Performed bottle percussion with Hubbub. Designed, constructed and performed on the Pyrophone, a mechanical multi octave, three storey high fire breathing organ. Presented Sprocket!, an acoustic musical trash percussion trolley with that Australian icon, the hills hoist attached, which whirls performers around the contraption. Totally human powered music!

o Woodford Folk Festival 2000: New Instrument Development/Performer: Junkstaposition - Stage & street theatre troupe. Designed and constructed Bass Banjo and one octave Submarimba for this performance. Coordinated TRASH [The Recycled Art Show] - interactive street theatre float. Performer and assistant musical co-ordinator Rhythm Festival 1999 and Multicultural Concert New Year's Eve 2000

o Music Installation Co-ordinator 2000: tour funded by Ngaanyatjarra Lands Council - Aboriginal Corporation. Constructed three concrete one tonne Thong-a-phones and toured Sound Playground