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Michael Atherton, born in 1950 in Liverpool, England, is the eldest of five children. His father has Irish and Welsh roots, while his mother is German. In 1965, the family migrated to Australia, settling at the Bunnerong Migrant Hostel in New South Wales. Atherton attended Matraville High School, where he engaged with the Indigenous community at La Perouse. He taught himself to play guitar and formed bands with friends from diverse backgrounds, including Greek, Italian, and Maltese migrants, while also playing soccer. His interest in the migrant experience and vernacular music led him to study music at the University of Sydney and the University of New England, where he developed a passion for ethnomusicology. Atherton's career in music began in the popular music scene, performing with the Renaissance Players from 1974 to 1980 and with Sirocco from 1980 to 1986. He later founded Southern Crossings, which focused on commissioned repertoire, from 1986 to 1993. In 1993, Atherton became a Professor of Music at the University of Western Sydney, where he established a department dedicated to contemporary Australian music and helped create a music therapy center. He currently serves as an Associate Dean (Research). Additionally, Atherton is a film composer with several nominations, including credits for the feature film Dogwatch (2000) and documentaries like Admission Impossible and Riding the Tiger, for which he received nominations and awards from

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