It is a collective of improvising musicians that works in different formations from quintet to 20-piece. Central to the AAO mission is a commitment to collaborate across cultures with key projects including a long-running collaboration with Australian Aboriginal people from remote Arnhem Land 'Crossing Roper Bar'. It also has current projects with Korean p'ansori singer Bae Il Dong and South Indian Mridangam virtuoso, Guru Karaikudi Mani.

The Australian Art Orchestra's work constantly seeks to stretch genres and break down the barriers separating disciplines, forms and cultures. It explores the interstices between the avant-garde and the traditional, between art and popular music, between electronic and acoustic approaches, and creates works that traverse the continuum between improvised and notated forms.