Manifesto:

The human voice is the most immediate instrument we possess — intimate, vulnerable, and unavoidably honest.

A Fist Full of Wits Inc is a vocal ensemble grounded in musical rigour and animated by curiosity.

We seek connection: between singer and singer, text and colour, performer and audience. Our work may be playful or profound, luminous or unsettling — but it is always deliberate.

We sing because the human condition demands expression.

Philosophy:

Wit is the meeting point of intellect and instinct.

Innovative manipulation of the five inner wits of common sense, imagination, fantasy, instinct, and memory, along with the five outer senses of sight, touch, taste, smell, and hearing, shapes how we interpret text, how we structure programs, and how we inhabit performance spaces.

As our audience grows with us, we will explore expanded modes of presentation — spatial, visual, collaborative — always anchored in vocal integrity and ensemble excellence.

Vision:

To be recognised as a distinctive Australian vocal ensemble known for artistic excellence, interpretative insight, and thoughtful innovation.

To redefine what a vocal ensemble can be — creating immersive, sensate performances that reveal the emotional core of the human condition.

And position Hobart as a laboratory for bold vocal art.

Mission:

A Fist Full of Wits Inc creates daring, interdisciplinary vocal programs that dissolve the barrier between audience and performer and activate poetic text with reverence and imagination.

We aim to:

Commission Tasmanian composers

Curate repertoire that resonates with contemporary audiences

Develop immersive yet disciplined modes of presentation

Contribute to Hobart’s identity as a centre of artistic curiosity and courage.

Voice remains our core medium; any interdisciplinary elements are integrated with intention and restraint.

 Core Values

Collaboration

We aim to commission Tasmanian composers and work synaesthetically with local artists, integrating sound, image, movement and olfactory elements to create unified artistic experiences.

Excellence

We pursue the highest standards of musicianship, ensemble cohesion, and interpretative integrity establishing A Fist Full of Wits as a distinctive voice in the contemporary choral landscape.

Relevance

We curate programs that speak to our time — exploring the wondrous and the woeful, the intimate, and the political, complexity, beauty, fragility and resilience.

Community

We create meaningful artistic encounters that welcome and challenge audiences from across our community. We cultivate an engaged and growing audience.

Innovation

We deliver the unexpected. Drawing on wit — imagination, instinct, memory, insight and common sense — our work may confront, comfort, unsettle, delight, or provoke. It will never be passive.