 In 1990 he was commissioned to write several pieces for the Munich-based jazz/contemporary-music group Die Konferenz.One group of these was based on songs of Édith Piaf ("Et les Affaires Piaf"), while a second group was based on songs from German UFA films from the 1920s to 1940s ("Es wird einmal ein Wunder").With the support from its artistic director Richard Wherrett, this led to the formation of the project "Ringing the Bell Backwards" at the Melbourne International Arts Festival and eventually to the Australian Art Orchestra in 1994.