Water Pushes Sand is a major new musical work that sees virtuosic Chinese and Australian musicians reinvigorate the endangered music of China's Sichuan Province to create an entirely new sound world. Traditional Sichuan melodies and rhythms are fused with modern jazz improvisation in a wild intercultural celebration.

Composed by Erik Griswold with video shot on location in Chengdu, Water Pushes Sand evokes the tea-houses, streets and rivers of Sichuan and explores the changing faces of Chinese and Australian culture.

The Australian Art Orchestra, led by artistic director Peter Knight, is renowned for creating work that merges musical styles and cultures in a thrilling way. Australian Art Orchestra Associates Erik Griswold and Vanessa Tomlinson have been travelling to Sichuan for 15 years and their collaborations with musicians from Sichuan have produced three large-scale shows – Chengdu Streetsongs, Sichuan Fantasy, and The Wide Alley – that have toured in China, Australia, Canada and New Zealand.