‘Serendipitous’ sibling act brings live music to Eltham Gallery

A Lismore sibling duo is debuting their musical showcase at Eltham Village Gallery.

Mykaela Jay (pictured), and her brother Liam Baillie, are debuting their musical showcase Imagination at Eltham Village Gallery this Saturday. Credit: Brad Roy Photography

IT WILL be a sibling act at Eltham Village Gallery on December 5 as local musicians and siblings Mykaela Jay and Liam Baillie debut their new show.

Imagination was set to be a fresh version of the duo’s new solo music compositions to incorporate each other’s talents set against the open-air garden backdrop.

Mykaela said while the experience of performing together was not new, being able to work collaboratively on the project was special.

“It was very serendipitous, me and my brother have been playing music around each other for a little while and I got the joy of hearing some of his new stuff that he was working on and I was like, ‘man we should make a gig of all of this material … and design it to be a full musical experience,” Mykaela said.

“It’s really exciting, we get to spend some time together, which we’re always so grateful for, and we bring out different sides of each other’s creativity and creative process which is really special.”

The siblings had a hands-on approach to creating Imagination, having helped design the visual graphics and stage layout which will form a key part of the show.

“It’s the first time since COVID-19 that we’ve had the opportunity to set up a full musical experience for everyone … it’s inside this beautiful garden, there’s an acoustic piano, there’ll be projected visuals which we’ve designed behind us onto this old caravan … we’ve designed the space to encapsulate that feeling of being at home,” Mykaela said.

After the coronavirus pandemic saw many live shows cancelled during the early part of the year, Mykaela said she was excited to be back on the live stage.

“So ecstatic, I can’t even begin to explain how good it feels to be creating again and we had a whole year to focus on what we wanted our art to be like and it’s nice to start to embody that.”

Tickets for Imagination are on-sale now at www.eventbrite.com.au/e/imagination-mykaela-jay-and-liam-baillie-live-eltham-art-gallery-tickets-129273154485