An up-close and personal encounter with two of our most beloved Finnish-Australian violinists Satu and Erkki together present a series of works that reflect on their personal creative and cultural identities Now Principal Violin of the Australian Chamber Orchestra she performs on the 1726 “Belgiorno” Stradivarius She has performed globally with artists such as Radu Lupu and Heinrich Schiff Commissioned by major festivals and orchestras He composed orchestral works for Gurrumul’s award-winning album Djarimirri and has arranged music for artists like Archie Roach and Kate Miller-Heidke Veltheim has performed with ensembles including the Australian Art Orchestra Check out our playlists from our latest issue Our free Weekly Newsletter delivers the latest arts news, reviews and features to your inbox each Saturday. Play Duration: 54 minutes 6 seconds54m Brought to you by The Music Show comes to you from Canberra International Music Festival this week Working with sound designer and composer Natasha Dubler and glass artist Caitlin Dubler Niki explores all the different sounds and textures you can get out of glass by scraping We meet the trio at Canberra Glassworks where they're doing a site-specific performance as part of the festival Mark Atkins invites us to sit beside the campfire with him to experience Mungangga Garlagula Co-composed with Finnish-Australian musician Erkki Veltheim the collaborative project blends spoken word electronics and nature soundscapes to create a work that blends the lines between storytelling and music Mark Atkins has had an impressive and wide-ranging career as a musician and he reflects on working with the likes of Black Arm Band ahead of the Canberra performances of Mungangga Garlagula Caitlin Dubler and Ellie Parnell at Glassworks Title: Min Min LightsArtist: Mark Atkins and Erkki Veltheim (Mungangga Garlagula)Composer: Mark Atkins and Erkki VeltheimRecording courtesy of TURA Title: Ocean SongArtist: Ros BandtComposer: Ros BandtAlbum: Soft and FragileLabel: Move Records Title: Concave (extract from to be released album)Artist: Shock LinesComposer: Niki Johnson Natasha DublerRecording courtesy of Shock Lines Titles: Old Man; Yirri; Instrumental 1Artist: Mark Atkins and Erkki Veltheim (Mungangga Garlagula)Composer: Mark Atkins and Erkki VeltheimRecording courtesy of TURA Title: Voices, for organ, speaker, & 2 didgeridoos; Song 1Artist: Michael Reisman, Mark AtkinsComposer: Philip GlassAlbum: Voices for Didgeridoo and OrganLabel: Orange Mountain Music This episode of The Music Show was made on Ngunnawal Country, with sound engineer Tegan Nicholls on Gadigal Country.  Niki Johnson performs Shock Lines(Supplied: Shock Lines) Published: 27 Apr 2025Sun 27 Apr 2025 at 12:00am Published: 26 Apr 2025Sat 26 Apr 2025 at 12:00am Published: 20 Apr 2025Sun 20 Apr 2025 at 12:00am Download the ABC listen app for free music podcasts and playlists Get CityNews in your inbox. Daily. The best local news sent straight to your inbox every workday! Make a donation and support the future of journalism and media diversity in the Queanbeyan. Canberra International Music Festival / Magic Realism, Jane Sheldon, Mark Atkins, Erkki Veltheim. At Street Theatre, until May 2. Reviewed by NICK HORN. Festivals challenge artists and composers to experiment with new sounds, new forms and new modes of presentation.  Erkki Veltheim and his collaborators took up the challenge enthusiastically with two new compositions in this program.  The shorter of these featured soprano Jane Sheldon in Veltheim’s arrangement of O Spectabiles Viri (O men of sight – what a sight!), by 12th century composer, Hildegard von Bingen. The second was an extended collaboration with Mark Atkins, storyteller and didjeridoo player. Each performance was accompanied by a pre-recorded soundbed. This evening’s experiments were not, perhaps, uniformly successful, but the eager audience at The Street Theatre was generous in its reception of these offbeat works of music drama. In the first piece, Sheldon is revealed alone, as if underwater, spotlit against a dark stage, dressed in a gaudy, shamanistic costume. Her discontinuous rendition of Hildegarde’s original mystical song is set against the pre-recorded medieval sounds of portative organ and hurdy-gurdy, layered disconcertingly with bat sonar samples and electronics that represent – according to Veltheim’s notes in the Festival program, only available online – bats as blind transmitters of Hildegarde’s visions.  The purity of Sheldon’s vocal tone is inarguable. She is a fine singer of early and contemporary music. But our experience of Hildegarde’s ecstatic, looping melody was undercut by the disruptive soundscape, and the staging and lighting was too static to enliven the “bat-vision” concept. The main work of the evening was Mungangga Garlagula, a series of tableaux staged to resemble a scene around a campfire, with Atkins’ performance supported by a soundtrack (notably featuring Scott Tinkler’s jazz trumpet and Genevieve Lacey’s recorders) and Veltheim’s live percussion and violin contributions. We were witness to a long homecoming journey, conducted through song, poetry, humorous anecdotes, ghost stories and dream visions, interspersed with extended didgeridoo solos. Those didgeridoo interludes were the highlight. We were in the hands of a master. Moving between three different instruments, Atkins built layer upon layer on top of a growling ground, creating eerie and gorgeous all-encompassing sound-worlds, sympathetically supported by the soundbed and Veltheim’s unobtrusive percussion. They offered a strong and tangible feeling of the experiences evoked in the narrative.  Dramatically, there is room for improvement in this production. Stage movement could be more theatrically aware, with Atkins appearing a little unsure during transitions; momentum was lost as a result. A country-style guitar song as opener seemed at odds tonally with the rest of the show, and a poem about the dispossession of indigenous people might have benefited from a more dramatic delivery, as a break from Atkins’ otherwise effective flat, dry tone of voice. The accompaniment sometimes overwhelmed the narration. Overall, however, the feeling of country intensified through uncanny story, didgeridoo and soundscape, making the final episode deeply moving, an account of Atkins’ dream encounter with an ancestor, telling him: You not lost boy – you home. Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked * Notify me of follow-up comments by email. Δdocument.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Here's arts editor HELEN MUSA's latest Arts in the City column, a round-up of arts news from here and there. Riversong, a gala fundraising concert at the National Museum, will be performed by Canberra choral group The Resonants, reports arts editor HELEN MUSA. Discounted venue fees to international concert tours is part of a NSW government plan to help state's struggling live music industry. Two people who knew Australia’s most successful Indigenous artist best take listeners inside the making of a new Gurrumul collection, 'Banbirrngu—The Orchestral Sessions,' and detail the late singer’s continuing impact. Gurrumul (Credit: Skinnyfish Music/Nick Walker) More Gurrumul Some music is of its time, forever tied to the tastes and fashions of the day. And some music is for all time. Whether it is now or 100 years from now, this kind of music touches our emotions and humanity. It can even change the way we look at the world. The music of Gurrumul has that kind of timeless force. The blind Aboriginal singer and songwriter, born Geoffrey Gurrumul Yunupingu, was from Elcho Island off the coast of North East Arnhem Land in the Northern Territory. He released three studio albums before his death in 2017, aged 46.  Those albums, Gurrumul, Rrakala and The Gospel Album, all showed that musical power doesn’t necessarily need to come from big guitars and thunderous beats. The power in Gurrumul’s soft, tenor voice connects with people wherever they are, whatever their backgrounds, whatever languages they speak. It makes them stop and listen, and that’s quite a gift in a world where so many feel that life is going by in a rush. Two of the people who knew Gurrumul best are his producer, Michael Hohnen, and Erkki Veltheim, who began working with Gurrumul as a violinist in his live band before taking on the role of orchestral arranger for the music on stage and in the studio. Both Hohnen and Veltheim feel a deep responsibility to honour their friend’s legacy and to keep finding ways to take his music to the world. They achieved that with the extraordinary Djarimirri (Child Of The Rainbow) album, with sublime orchestral arrangements complementing the voice. Gurrumul was a musical explorer, not content to make the same record twice, and work on that album began in 2012 before its eventual release a year after his death. A second posthumous album, Banbirrngu – The Orchestral Sessions, is released tomorrow. It takes a different approach to some of his best-loved songs and frames his voice with understated and atmospheric orchestral arrangements. Don't miss a beat with our FREE daily newsletter The music was produced by Hohnen, arranged by Veltheim, and recorded in Prague by the Prague Metropolitan Orchestra conducted by Jan Chalupecký. The result is an album with an elegaic feel, and it will reach many new listeners around the world with its release by the classical music powerhouse label Decca. Hohnen says: “We did a live concert with the Sydney Symphony Orchestra 10 years ago trying out a bunch of different orchestral backings. Now we’ve had the chance to refine that, going back to some of the well-known and less well-known songs in the repertoire. “The word ‘banbirrngu’ has a few different meanings, and one of those is the rainbow python, but it is essentially about the cycle of life; we all come from the ground and return to the ground.” There was a theme for the album to follow. Gurrumul’s music has always been a kind of bridge from the Yolgnu people, from Elcho Island, from an ancient culture, sung in an Indigenous language yet something that could be understood by music lovers anywhere.  Listeners at home and critics have often described Gurrumul’s music as having a healing, balm-like effect, perhaps because his songs feel so deeply connected to the natural world. His music has been used in kindergartens, schools, hospitals, and countless homes. Hohnen and Veltheim intended for this recording to enhance that meditative aspect without diluting the spirit of the original vocal performances. In preparation for his arranging work, Veltheim listened to vocal-only mixes of the original recordings, which opened up new directions for his arrangements. Veltheim says: “What has always struck me about Gurrumul’s voice is that it already sounds like a choir. There are very few voices that have that kind of quality to them, and I wanted to bring that out even more with the orchestra behind him. “Having done orchestral music with him with the Sydney Symphony Orchestra, we already knew that he loved that sound and that his voice suits orchestral arrangements. Gurrumul’s songs tend to be slow-moving, cyclical, with repetition, and as Westerners, we rarely understand the words, so for us, it is about melody and harmony. All of that combined makes his songs a counterpoint to the 30-second attention span of the social media world. “We have seen before our eyes how it affects people when they listen to it. They feel that it comes from another time and that it creates another sense of time.” Hearing the songs delivered in Yolgnu language also contributes to that feeling for the listener. Veltheim says: “There is a correlation between these orchestral versions and classical arias, where people don’t understand the lyrics, but there is something in the pace and melody that grips them. It’s that intrinsic attraction to the human voice that holds the attention.” The album’s first single was a new setting for one of the world’s best-loved hymns, Amazing Grace, which fans know from Gurrumul’s version sung with Paul Kelly on The Gospel Album. Hohnen says: “Gurrumul was always looking to do different things, so I suggested he do an album for his mother and aunties who brought him up in the church. It wasn’t meant to be like a black American gospel album, more a Uniting Church, Presbyterian, Methodist take on gospel music. “Amazing Grace was in his repertoire at the time. His version says a few things to me. It’s about salvation, including how he worked in the wider world to be this amazing grace for people.” Other highlights on the album include a version of Baru that retains the Spanish classical guitar from the original and gives it a subtle, shimmering orchestral setting. Veltheim says: “People often talk about the shimmering quality in Aboriginal painting. Gurrumul’s voice has that kind of quality too, and we wanted to go deep into that in some of the more ambient arrangements, using the orchestra like an organ or synthesiser.” Hohnen and Mark Grose co-founded the Skinnyfish label in 1999 to showcase the music of Indigenous Australians and artists like Gurrumul.  “Gurrumul has been the perfect messenger,” Hohnen says. “We have worked with many First Nations artists, and we have always wanted to find a way to bring that music to the mainstream here and overseas so people can take in all the deep and rich elements the music has to offer. There is negative activism and positive activism, and this is a creative, positive activism.” The guiding philosophy behind Skinnyfish is to empower Indigenous Australians through their own creative and economic activity. Hohnen has been in close contact with remote communities in the north for three decades. “In remote Australia, there is a lot of policy that has changed in the past 30 years, helping First Nations people get a start, like the Indigenous ranger programs. But the remote Australia that I see is still behind the eight ball. I have been in a number of remote communities lately, and I don’t feel there is much positivity or hope in those places at the moment.” But Gurrumul’s breakthrough to international acclaim has certainly helped break down barriers for other Indigenous artists. “I was in the indie rock world in the ’90s, and some bands would be really envious of other bands breaking through. When an Indigenous artist has success, other Indigenous artists just have that bit more hope of breaking through. “Any society needs some heroes. There is definitely pride and ownership, so East Arnhem Land people can say, ‘That’s part of us.’ These concepts Gurrumul sang about belong to 10,000 Yolgnu people, and any of them can sit down with you and say, this is part of my story. Gurrumul’s success has been a positive force in so many ways.” Banbirrngu – The Orchestral Sessions will be released on November 8 via Decca/Universal. German dressage rider and trainer Eicke von Veltheim passed away on 24 May 2021 in Quitzin After graduating as a certified agriculturisthe studied under Paul Stecken at the famous Riding and Driving school in Munster from 1952 to 1955 The riding school provided a thorough and versatile education in equitation covering dressage From 1955 till 1965 Von Veltheim worked at the German Olympic Equestrian Center (DOKR) in Warendorf He received further training from legendary masters Albert Rother He has trained horses owned by the German Equestrian Federation in Warendorf for its president at the time Von Veltheim was very successful in national and international dressage competitions He was awarded the Golden Riders Badge in dressage the Silver Medal for driving and won the silver medal at the 1958 World Driving Championships he trained more than 42 horses up to Grand Prix horses and more than 60 up to small tour level In 1977 Von Veltheim moved to the United States where he became a very famous dressage rider and influential classical dressage trainer "His ability to correct training problems stemmed from his devotion to classical dressage concepts," said his student David Collins of Centerline Stables in Ossining "He also specialized in teaching piaffe and collected work using and in-hand methods His philosophy was to teach the riders to train their own horses independently." Von Veltheim passed on Whit Monday 24 Mai 2021 He leaves behind his wife Ilse Barbara von Veltheim (née Freiin von Maltzahn) with whom he lived in the hunting lodge of the Quitzin estate with his cousin Burghard Rübcke von Veltheim and his wife Friederike He had no children but cherished his nieces and nephews Amélie His funeral took place on 1 June 2021 in Quitzin Photo © Terri Miller Stalls for Rent at Durondeau Dressage in Peer, Belgium Exceptionally Well Located Equestrian Facility in Wellington, Florida Well-built Equestrian Estate With Multiple Business Opportunities in Sweden Stable Units for Rent at Lotje Schoots' Equestrian Center in Houten (NED) For Rent: Several Apartments and Stable Wing at High-End Equestrian Facility Stable Wing Available at Reiterhof Wensing on Dutch/German border Real Estate: Well-Appointed Country House with Extensive Equestrian Facility in the U.K. Rémi Blot Finnish-Australian composer Erkki Veltheim crafts a shimmering aural tribute to the late Geoffrey Gurrumul Yunupingu in a new album Posthumous album releases don’t always get the best press they often strike as attempts by an artist’s estate to keep the flame (and associated income streams) alive There are projects that transcend that generalisation Banbirrngu – The Orchestral Sessions in which a suite of songs by the late Yolgnu songman Geoffrey Gurrumul Yunupingu have been remixed and given new orchestral accompaniment feels less like a posthumous release and more like a continuation of a life’s work Produced by Gurrumul’s long-time collaborator Michael Hohnen the album’s string arrangements were created by the Finnish-Australian composer Erkki Veltheim whose association with Gurrumul dates back to the early days of the singer’s career before his hit eponymous debut album captured the attention of listeners across the world A blind Gumatj man from Arnhem Land in Australia’s remote north Gurrumul predominantly sung in his native Yolngu languages His recordings earned multiple ARIA awards and international acclaim for their distinctive “I first worked with Gurrumul back in about 2005 when he did a live-to-air session from the Sydney Opera House Studio,”.. Get unlimited digital access from $4 per month Subscribe Contribute to Limelight and support independent arts journalism Cameron Lam explores the dark side of Classical Jazz and Sound Art in this month’s playlist full of yearning Cameron Lam catches up on the latest music across Classical Jazz and Sound Art in this month’s Australian Art Music playlist The Australian Art Music monthly playlist by composer Cameron Lam reflects on the rich Australian repertoire for the harp The composer discusses a new work that imagines the harmonic series of our solar system and employs magic squares to give each planet a musical colour Genevieve Lacey gives new life to the oldest known piece of notated music for the RISING Festival Composer Leah Blankendaal discusses the Adelaide-based new music ensemble's upcoming concert featuring Allison Bell Our free Weekly Newsletter delivers the latest arts news reviews and features to your inbox each Saturday services and collaboration opportunities for researchers The Finnish Physical Society annually awards the best final project made as part of a basic degree in physical sciences The prize for year 2022 was conferred on Otto Veltheim for his Master’s thesis on quantum tomography Quantum State Tomography with Observable Commutation Graphs Quantum tomography refers to the measurement of an unknown quantum state. It is an important tool in e.g. quantum computing. Senior University Lecturer Esko Keski-Vakkuri describes how he gave Veltheim the task to read up on quantum tomography and its newest methods to prepare for his final project Veltheim did not just learn these methods very quickly but himself developed his very own new method on the basis of different principles,” says Keski-Vakkuri Veltheim studied how to measure the observables of quantum physical states as efficiently as possible He developed a new method for modelling parallel measurements with the help of the graph multicolouring problem “With the help of the graph multicolouring problem we can study which of the state observables can be measured in parallel we can optimise the measurements using the multicolouring problem,” says Veltheim the thesis includes a competent overview of the principles of quantum tomography Keski-Vakkuri points out how rare it is to see the combination of fast learning and cutting-edge new findings in a quickly developing new field that we see in Veltheim’s thesis at this stage of a student’s career Veltheim is continuing to develop his method for his doctoral thesis The prize was awarded at the Physics Day held in Tampere on Wednesday 29 March 2023 Veltheim gave a presentation at the opening ceremony Otto Veltheim, MSc otto.veltheim@helsinki.fi Press Release from the Physical Society: Finnish Physical Society Master Thesis Prize 2022 awarded to Otto Veltheim Otto Veltheim’s blog: Quantum State Tomography with Observable Commutation Graphs Add articles to your saved list and come back to them any time How far would you go to catch a wild brolga Would you consider retrieving a dead brolga from a freezer defrosting it and stuffing it until it looked life-like Ecologist Inka Veltheim did In fact she had two of the statuesque cranes taxidermied for use as "decoy brolgas" in order to catch and study the wild brolgas of south-western Victoria So she dressed head-to-toe in camouflage gear while on stakeouts – crouching in purpose-built hides waiting for the notoriously shy birds to land "Brolgas are surprisingly understudied in Victoria and no-one has attempted to track them before," Ms Veltheim said Inka Veltheim holds one of the taxidermied brolgas A PhD candidate with Federation and Melbourne Universities Ms Veltheim went to extreme measures to attach GPS trackers and identity tags to the 1.5-metre-tall grey birds which are listed as vulnerable in Victoria It's the first time such fieldwork has been done with brolgas Australia's native crane of which very little is known American crane expert Felipe Chavez-Ramirez was also called in to advise on catching and handling the birds not least because their long sharp beak and adult body weight of up to nine kilograms which makes them difficult to handle "We don't know anything about their movement at all," Ms Veltheim said the movement patterns in breeding and non-breeding times – it's all a bit of a mystery." state and local authorities need the information to manage the birds and their environment Ms Veltheim said some planned wind farms in south west Victoria overlapped with areas frequented by brolgas "It is a population potentially in decline and therefore any threat may be of concern," she said Ecologist Inka Veltheim waits in a hide for the notoriously shy brolgas to land.Credit: Birgita Hansen the research team has caught 32 brolgas and attached "GPS backpacks" to 23 of them which weigh between three and four kilograms have also been caught and had colour bands attached to their legs as part of the project Ms Veltheim said this year had proved a productive year with a high number of colour-banded birds re-sighted Inka Veltheim measures the head of a captured brolga "For the first time we are getting a sense of how long brolgas live in the wild," she said "Cranes can live up to 15 years in the wild but we don't yet know about the longevity of wild brolgas." Ms Veltheim said the decoy brolgas were crucial in convincing wild brolgas it was safe to land in a paddock set with noose line traps which tighten around a bird's' leg when stepped on Ecologist Inka Veltheim carries one of the 'decoy brolgas' The decoy brolgas came from a captive population at Serendip Sanctuary a wildlife sanctuary 60 kilometres south-west of Melbourne "They just happened to have two dead brolgas in their freezer that had died of natural causes so they were kind enough to provide them," she said Inka Veltheim says the brolga population is potentially in decline.Credit: Inka Veltheim Defrosted and taxidermied by Museum Victoria senior preparator Dean Smith the birds were then placed in the paddock while brolga calls were played over the loudspeaker apparently giving wild birds the all-clear to land Mr Smith said the birds were a challenge to work with because of their size The freezing of the birds had also dehydrated them slightly "It's like when you're cleaning out the freezer and find an old steak and it's almost freeze-dried," he said glycerin and anti-bacterial solution couldn't fix Feathers bent out of shape were also coaxed back into place using the steam from a freshly-boiled kettle There are between 600 and 650 brolgas living in Victoria with the south-western population accounting for up to 550 while a smaller population in the state's north-east numbers no more than 100 In fact she had two of the statuesque cranes taxidermied for use as \\\"decoy brolgas\\\" So she dressed head-to-toe in camouflage gear while on stakeouts \\u2013 crouching in purpose-built hides waiting for the notoriously shy birds to land \\\"Brolgas are surprisingly understudied in Victoria and no-one has attempted to track them before,\\\" Ms Veltheim said It's the first time such fieldwork has been done with Australia's native crane of which very little is known \\\"We don't know anything about their movement at all,\\\" Ms Veltheim said the movement patterns in breeding and non-breeding times \\u2013 it's all a bit of a mystery.\\\" \\\"It is a population potentially in decline and therefore any threat may be of concern,\\\" she said the research team has caught 32 brolgas and attached \\\"GPS backpacks\\\" to 23 of them \\\"For the first time we are getting a sense of how long brolgas live in the wild,\\\" she said \\\"Cranes can live up to 15 years in the wild but we don't yet know about the longevity of wild brolgas.\\\" which tighten around a bird's' leg when stepped on The decoy brolgas came from a captive population at \\\"They just happened to have two dead brolgas in their freezer that had died of natural causes so they were kind enough to provide them,\\\" she said \\\"It's like when you're cleaning out the freezer and find an old steak and it's almost freeze-dried,\\\" he said glycerin and anti-bacterial solution couldn't fix with the south-western population accounting for up to 550 while a smaller population in the state's north-east numbers no more than 100 own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment University of Melbourne provides funding as a founding partner of The Conversation AU View all partners Diaspora, a production by Chamber Made sets out to explore the nature of consciousness as society moves closer to the post-human digital realm It is a concept inspired by Australian Greg Egan’s eponymous science fiction novel As creator Robin Fox (who collaborated with artistic director Tamara Saulwick and co-composer Erkki Veltheim) explains “Diaspora is a science fiction revelation which we are already experiencing” A feast for the senses reminiscent at times of an all-night rave or the film Bladerunner the work bathes the entire SUBSTATION space with broad spectrum frequencies of light and sound Fox delivers full sonic immersion through sub-bass pulsations – felt by the audience’s bodies more than heard – using undulating “old-school” synthesizers to represent the past’s vision for our future-present. The moog analog synthesizer and ondes musicales (a 1920s electronic keyboard) are beautifully played by Madeline Flynn Alongside her theremin (an instrument noted for its eerie tones and hands-free playing technique), Georgina Darvidis’ compelling vocals – filtered through synthesizer and a vocoder to reduce their bandwidth – create the sonic illusion of a posthuman melody for Somewhere Over the Rainbow The treatment is reminiscent of Max Matthews’ 1961 synthesised voice on Bicycle Built for Two, made famous in Stanley Kubrick’s 2001: A Space Odyssey Another sonic layer features the extraordinarily virtuosic electric violin of Veltheim, which helps to bridge digital and analogue sound worlds. At one point a Bach partita emanates from his violin but so heavily filtered that only fragments could be heard But despite the impressive sonic techniques the highlight of the performance was the high definition suspended three-dimensional hologram-like image This centrepiece evolves over the course of the show from an embryo to an artificially intelligent consciousness Beginning as nucleus it moves from womb to human brain to the representation of active neural networks engaged in transmitting complex code. Eventually morphs into a single suspended eyeball, reminiscent of Samuel Beckett’s plays or Janet Frame’s short story Solutions in which the body is gradually deconstructed over the course of the work Using a 19th-century theatrical illusion technique known as Pepper’s Ghost Fox alongside video artist and system designer Nick Roux create effective illusions by bouncing images off Perspex surfaces to produce a spectre performer I became aware I was continually drawn to the visual creating a multidimensional sensory environment in which ultimately the visual reigns Other disembodied limbs start to dance, suspended in midair, accompanied by an upbeat jig on the fiddle, drum machine, and synthesised vocals reminiscent of Paul Lansky and Laurie Anderson. Finally, out of a lit galaxy of zeros and ones, a lifelike apparition emerges, set against a raw, palpably human vocal canon, poignantly singing No Place Like Home. Is this the artificial, genderless, multitudinous consciousness singing from its soul? And where is this “home” they speak of? Is it made of the stars from which we all ultimately emerged? The audience might feel the urge, as I did, to plunge hands and feet into real soil, to feel firm ground. As our society frets about the potential power of artificial intelligence, Fox urges us not to “overlook the prospect that technology could not only save us, but could also be a beautiful moment in the evolution towards an ethereal and non-body consciousness”. Diaspora is quixotic, atmospheric, visually and sonically spectacular. It is a powerful immersion for the senses, a meditation on a posthuman future that is upon us. Does this work’s digital dream represent the promised utopia that it sets out to portray? This rendition seems chillingly apocalyptic. The work aims to show the evolution of a new lifeform, but ultimately, through sensory saturation, it is the audience themselves who achieve the altered state of consciousness – a profoundly moving out-of-body experience. Diaspora is at The SUBSTATION until 6 October this audio is not yet available or has expiredBrought to you by Wata means many things: it is a part of a ceremonial song cycle part of the manikay (public song) tradition of the Northern Territory Ngukurr people One translation is simply 'the wind' but it is also a purification ritual Paul Grabowsky has been making music with the Wilfred clan from Ngukurr for the last 20 years He has composed 'a landscape' of orchestral music for this performance of manikay led by master musicians Daniel Ngukurr Boy Wilfred and David Yipininy Wilfred.(The Wagilak Boys) an ancestor figure and creator being from the lore of Daniel Wilfred's mother's people Daniel's performances in the Yolngu language are overseen by David Wilfred one or more of the soloists: Paul Grabowsky Peter Knight and Aviva Endean provide a linking improvisation The seven-part song-cycle covers the course of a day as Djuwalpada the wild blackfella ancestor figure as Daniel Wilfred describes him manikay is far more than just collaboration: and if you're brought into that circle then all you're really doing is adding to what is essentially this incredible value proposition about interconnectedness It's just an expression of that one thing from their point of view Recorded live in concert at the Sydney Opera House on 24 July 2024 by ABC Classic Composed by Paul Grabowsky for a Wägiluk Djuwalpada Manikay shared and performed by Daniel Ngukurr Boy Wilfred (voice and bilma) and David Yipininy Wilfred (yidaki) piano)Daniel Ngukurr Boy Wilfred (vocals and bilma — clapsticks)David Yipininy Wilfred (yidaki – didjeridu)Erkki Veltheim (electric violin)Helen Svoboda (double bass voice)Peter Knight (trumpet and electronics)Aviva Endean (bass clarinet umtshingo: Japanese overtone flute)Benjamin Northey (conductor)Sydney Symphony Orchestra Read the program New short film tells the story of Yolŋu songman Daniel Wilfred - ABC Classic The Yolngu people of East Arnhem Land in the NT - ABC News Daniel and David Wilfred, with Aviva Endean and the Sydney Symphony Orchestra(SSO: Jordan Munns) Classical Music, Orchestral, Indigenous CultureTracklist08:03Played at 08:03Wata: A Gathering for Songmen, Improvising Soloists And Orchestra [67'30]Composer Sydney Symphony Orchestra + Erkki Veltheim (violin) + David Yipininy Wilfred (yidaki) + Peter Knight (trumpet & electronics) + Paul Grabowsky (piano & director) + Aviva Endean (clarinet) + Daniel Ngukurr Boy Wilfred (voice & bilma) + Helen Svoboda (double bass & vocals) Cult of the Lamb (Original Game Soundtrack) Sublime Mozart: Works for Clarinet, 301122 Il Pomo d'Oro + Zefira Valova (violin & director) Violin Concertos: Benda, Graun, Saint-Georges, Sirmen, AP291 Monteverdi Choir + English Baroque Soloists + Charles Daniels (tenor) + Daniel Taylor (alto) + Gillian Keith (soprano) + Stephen Varco (bass) Bach Cantatas, Vol. 23: BWV 42, 67, 85, 104, 112, 150 & 158, SDG 131 Szymon Krzeszowiec (violin) + Krzysztof Lasoń (violin) + Małgorzata Wasiucionek (violin) + Arkadiusz Kubica (violin) Bacewicz: Piano Quintets Nos. 1 & 2, Quartet for 4 Violins and Quartet for 4 Cellos, CHAN 10976 S.C. Eckhardt-Gramatté 100: A Centenary Celebration, PBM 303 Ewa Kowalski (flute) + Anna Rutkowska-Schock (piano) HER JOURNEY: Flute and Piano Works by Women, CO0957 Published: 29 Apr 2025Tue 29 Apr 2025 at 9:00am The Sacred Table of Venus, composed for Ensemble Offspring in 2020/21 a cycle of seven movements based on German Renaissance polymath Heinrich Cornelius Agrippa von Nettesheim’s planetary magic squares or ‘sacred tables’ as outlined in his Three Books of Occult Philosophy These seven movements can be performed either as separate standalone works or as simultaneous overlays in a complete set for 36 musicians and 6-channel electronics Each movement is based on a specific planet with the size of the ensemble reflecting the order of the associated magic square in Agrippa’s text Three Books of Occult Philosophy is from a time before a clear demarcation between science and magic and though Copernicus had by then proposed the heliocentric model of our solar system Agrippa subscribed to Ptolemy’s geocentric theory and freely combined established astronomical facts with mystical astrological numerology which arrange a sequence of numbers in a way that produces identical.. Jazz polymath Vanessa Perica discusses her first-ever string quartet about to receive its world premiere with the Australian String Quartet Log in to read the flipbook version of Limelight's May 2025 magazine Peggy Polias is this year’s Composer in Connection with the Canberra Symphony Orchestra She takes us inside her new orchestral work – a melody-driven meta piece which plays with the mathematical idea of self-similarity Ensemble Offspring joins new music giants at Bang on a Can’s 2025 Long Play festival Claire Edwardes tells Maddy Briggs why she’s so thrilled Olivia Bettina Davies explains how her new work for piano four hands for the Canberra International Music Festival stands out from her recent works Composer Melody Eötvös talks about her new piece for Ensemble Q inspired by Roman ruins in Spain and her "incredibly nerdy" hobby Cameron Lam returns to musical adventures from Western Australian composers performers and improvisers in this month’s Australian Art Music playlist When the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra talked to Elena Kats-Chernin about performing Fast Blue Village What do our small to medium ensembles have on offer in the year ahead Composer Carl Vine discusses his latest work for the Sydney Symphony Orchestra in which he explores musical ideas one would least expect at a traditional symphonic concert Artistic Director of Darwin’s Arafura Music Collective on collaborating with Ensemble Offspring and commissioning a new work Percussionist-composer Thea Rossen's new ocean-inspired work is performed on flowerpots Orchestral, Classical MusicTracklist09:02Played at 09:02Wata: A Gathering for Songmen, Improvising Soloists And Orchestra [67'30]Composer Howells & Wood: String Quartets, SOMM0692 Paul Agnew (tenor) + Amsterdam Baroque Choir + Amsterdam Baroque Orchestra + Klaus Mertens (bass) + Deborah York (soprano) A Life in Reverse: The Music of Minna Keal, LNT100 Raphaëlle Moreau (violin) + Célia Oneto Bensaïd (piano) Riga Saxophone Quartet + Herta Hansena (piano) Daylight Declines: Choral Music by Paweł Łukaszewski, SIGCD 521 Kun Woo Paik (piano) + Warsaw Philharmonic Orchestra Complete works for piano & orchestra (Paik & Wit), 475 169-2 Tine Thing Helseth (trumpet) + Kåre Nordstoga (organ) Magical Memories For Trumpet and Organ, LWC1216 Gurrumul's parting gift is a "hugely significant" contribution to Australian music It's closely related to modern orchestral minimalism – think Philip Glass and Koyaanisqatsi Peter Greenaway's films with Michael Nyman scores and the music of composers such as Steve Reich and Arvo Part It was a sudden flash of inspiration that led Michael Hohnen the producer/arranger behind the work of the late Yolgnu singer Gurrumul Yunupingu to contemplate bringing these two traditions together "What if we tried to match the highest sophisticated levels of our musical expression – which for the last several hundred years has been orchestral – with the traditional," Hohnen says The result is Djarimirri (Child of the Rainbow) It is the result of five years of work and unlike any previous Australian recording It's a synthesis of ancient Aboriginal chants modern orchestral minimalism and the complex rhythmic patterns of Elcho Island's yidaki (the Yolgnu word for didgeridoo) playing It is a unique and hugely significant contribution to Australian music In the process of recording Gurrumul's vocals (there are 12 traditional Yolgnu chants all improvised by Gurrumul and set against orchestral compositions performed by members of the ACO and SSO) Hohnen and composer/arranger Erkki Veltheim found they did not have to plaster one culture onto another – they discovered a uniquely Australian rhythm a sound that seemed to be coming up from the land "We tried some of these pieces live and there was a big element missing," Hohnen says "These songs in isolation are not as complete as when they have a yidaki We brought the yidaki into the recording for the tuning reasons for the Aboriginal sound reasons … I went to Elcho Island and firstly I worked with G on a whole lot of yidaki Then I went and played those recordings to other members of the Yunupingu family … one of the members of the family is a master didgeridoo player in his own right I got the pattern that these players would play to these songs "We don't think that we have musical riffs that come from Australia … Aboriginal people from the Northern Territory create amazing musical patterns that go with these songs and once we got a player who could play the pattern according to what G had recorded then Erkki transcribed them and we got Julian Thompson "If you listen to some of the ballads you will hear this rhythm underneath the singing You hear it more in the ballads – Marrayarr (Flag) is one; Njarrpila (Octopus) is another – they are unique Australian bass riffs I would love it if they became part of the Australian musical vernacular These pieces are legitimately and uniquely ours." a Finnish-Australian musician who has been involved with Gurrumul since 2005 "They are my compositions but the inspiration for all the orchestral compositions came from G's initial chanting "The other thing that Michael and the rest of us insisted upon was that the yidaki lines which are dedicated to each of those chants had to be the starting point for the orchestral compositions," Veltheim says "I have to credit Michael for the connection between the chants and minimalism When Michael explained the idea to me it clicked immediately It has been a rewarding journey to try and find this new language that combines these two traditions "It is a humbling thing for someone like myself to try and understand through my western education what is going on in yidaki patterns which are incredibly complex … when you do get it right and you see G and his family and the people of that tradition on Elcho Island responding .. that's when you know you have created something "I think Michael's idea … has been to insist on representing the songs as the classical tradition of Australia This is the great classical canon of Australia." Djarimirri (Child of the Rainbow) is released on Skinnyfish Music today "The beat goes on" – Good Weekend Elders on Elcho Island have given permission for Gurrumul's name to be used Michael Hohnen and Erkki Veltheim prefer to use "G" It's closely related to modern orchestral minimalism \\u2013 think Philip Glass and Koyaanisqatsi Peter Greenaway's films with Michael Nyman scores \\\"What if we tried to match the highest sophisticated levels of our musical expression \\u2013 which for the last several hundred years has been orchestral \\u2013 with the traditional,\\\" Hohnen says It's a synthesis of ancient Aboriginal chants modern orchestral minimalism and the complex rhythmic patterns of Elcho Island's yidaki (the Yolgnu word for didgeridoo) playing In the process of recording Gurrumul's vocals (there are 12 traditional Yolgnu chants all improvised by Gurrumul and set against orchestral compositions performed by members of the ACO and SSO) Hohnen and composer/arranger Erkki Veltheim found they did not have to plaster one culture onto another \\u2013 they discovered a uniquely Australian rhythm \\\"We tried some of these pieces live and there was a big element missing,\\\" Hohnen says \\\"These songs in isolation are not as complete as when they have a yidaki for the Aboriginal sound reasons \\u2026 I went to Elcho Island and firstly I worked with G on a whole lot of yidaki Then I went and played those recordings to other members of the Yunupingu family \\u2026 one of the members of the family is a master didgeridoo player in his own right \\\"We don't think that we have musical riffs that come from Australia \\u2026 Aboriginal people from the Northern Territory create amazing musical patterns that go with these songs \\\"If you listen to some of the ballads you will hear this rhythm underneath the singing You hear it more in the ballads \\u2013 Marrayarr (Flag) is one; Njarrpila (Octopus) is another \\u2013 they are unique Australian bass riffs These pieces are legitimately and uniquely ours.\\\" \\\"They are my compositions but the inspiration for all the orchestral compositions came from G's initial chanting \\\"The other thing that Michael and the rest of us insisted upon was that the yidaki lines had to be the starting point for the orchestral compositions,\\\" Veltheim says \\\"I have to credit Michael for the connection between the chants and minimalism \\\"It is a humbling thing for someone like myself to try and understand through my western education what is going on in yidaki patterns which are incredibly complex \\u2026 when you do get it right and you see G and his family and the people of that tradition on Elcho Island responding .. that's when you know you have created something \\\"I think Michael's idea \\u2026 has been to insist on representing the songs as the classical tradition of Australia This is the great classical canon of Australia.\\\" \\\"The beat goes on\\\" \\u2013 Good Weekend Elders on Elcho Island have given permission for Gurrumul's name to be used Michael Hohnen and Erkki Veltheim prefer to use \\\"G\\\" "It's kind of a 70s folk rock soundtrack to the pretend musical of my current life" Melbourne’s Laura Jean has announced she will preview a forthcoming album with a full band show at the Ukaria Cultural Centre in the Adelaide Hills next month The songwriter took to social media to detail the follow up to 2018’s ‘Devotion’ explaining that she’d been “recording… very slowly for the last year or so with producer Tim Bruniges and string arrangements by Erkki Veltheim” “It’s… kind of a 70s folk rock soundtrack to the pretend musical of my current life me and full band (will introduce them soon) and strings are previewing the whole album plus some hits,” she said Laura Jean will preview ‘Amateurs’ at the Ukaria Cultural Centre on June 26, with tickets on sale now via the venue emailed Jean regarding the collaboration while he was detained on Manus Island He then recorded the song from inside the Melbourne Immigrant Transfer Accommodation (MITA) in Broadmeadows Jean also contributed backing vocals to songs on Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever‘s 2020 album ‘Sideways To New Italy’, appearing on US radio station KEXP from home to perform ‘Falling Thunder’ with them In her last shows before the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, Jean supported Aldous Harding at The Forum in Melbourne she played austere versions of new material with Rory Stenning of Honey 2 Honey on keyboard The world’s defining voice in music and pop culture: breaking what’s new and what’s next since 1952 The songwriter's latest – a reflection on "being an overachiever in spirit and an underachiever in practice" – from upcoming album 'Amateurs' Laura Jean has shared ‘Too Much To Do’ the second single to be lifted from the singer-songwriter’s forthcoming sixth album “This song is a reflection in miniature about being an overachiever in spirit and an underachiever in practice,” Jean says of the new track which steadily grows from a sparse arrangement of keys and strings to a soaring “Despite my saintly efforts I am stuck in a piano loop of unrealised hedonism refusing fun and fame when it’s offered and gaining a strange catholic bliss from the pursuant purgatory.” ‘Too Much To Do’ arrives alongside a Jasmin Tarasin-directed video filmed at Phoenix Central Park in Sydney “The video shows different parts of myself ignoring each other scaring and thrilling myself one minute and boring myself the next,” Jean explains Laura Jean announced ‘Amateurs’ last month alongside lead single ‘Teenager Again’ Set to arrive on November 4 via Chapter Music the follow-up to 2018’s ‘Devotion’ was recorded with producer Tim Bruniges It features string arrangement from composer Erkki Veltheim recorded by ‘Devotion’ producer John Lee, and also includes guest appearances from Aldous Harding and Marlon Williams. “How do I talk about this intense kid? She’s weird, generous, loving, brilliant,” Jean said of ‘Amateurs’ when announcing the album last month. “She’s the tragicomedy of being a 40 year old songwriter in Australia. “I cannot wait to send her down the stairs in her self-made ballgown… of course she is going to the dance alone. I love her and am scared for her. I hope you love her too, she has a lot to give.” The world’s defining voice in music and pop culture: breaking what’s new and what’s next since 1952. The incomparable Genevieve Lacey – performer, composer and creator of poetic, sensual worlds – joins with internationally acclaimed Australian harpist Marshall McGuire to explore the unique power of music to offer comfort and renewal. “During this time of isolation, people the world round are yearning for shelter, both physical and spiritual. So I assembled a cast of people whose work I love, some of whom I’d never met and together, we set out to create a sense of shelter: a nest, woven with memories, heart, hope,” Lacey says. The exquisite album artwork, created by Gracia Haby and Louise Jennison, reflects the beauty and richness of the musical soundscapes presented on this album: sublime new music by Lou Bennett, Andrea Keller, Madeleine Flynn and Tim Humphrey, John Rodgers, Lachlan Skipworth, Bree van Reyk and Erkki Veltheim, side by side with musical treasures reaching back across six centuries. Genevieve Lacey (recorder)Marshall McGuire (harp) Play Duration: 22 minutes 58 seconds22m Brought to you by When he died last year the man known as Dr G Yunupingu left an unparalleled musical legacy. A gifted multi-instrumentalist with a resonant voice who was born blind, G interpreted ancient songlines in new ways. His final studio album Djarimirri - Child of the Rainbow has been hailed as a masterpiece by more than one music critic. G and his bandmate Michael Hohnen had been working for years on the album with composer Erkki Veltheim interpreting the epic stories of the manikay tradition for an orchestra. Djarimirri is destined to become a classic - and not simply because G can no longer make music. The late Yolngu singer performs at the 2008 AIR Awards at the Corner Hotel in Melbourne.(Kristian Dowling/Getty Images) Published: 26 Apr 2025Sat 26 Apr 2025 at 8:00am Published: 19 Apr 2025Sat 19 Apr 2025 at 8:00am Published: 12 Apr 2025Sat 12 Apr 2025 at 8:00am Download the ABC listen app to hear more of your favourite podcasts The 7-year old Hanoverian licensed breeding stallion St Owner Ethel Opländer decided on the castration for the best interest of the sport career of the horse Bred by Helmut Krentzel and owned by the Opländer family He descends from the first crop of foals by St Moritz (by Sandro Hit x De Niro) and became a premium stallion at the 2009 Hanoverian Stallion Licensing in Verden Moritz Junior was the high scorer for dressage at the 2010 30-Day Stallion Performance Testing in Neustadt/Dosse scoring 8.88 for trot and canter and 9.25 for walk to total 8.19 points The black stallion stood up for stud for two seasons at Gestut WM in Reessum Eckhard Wahlers rode the stallion in riding horse tests and one A-level dressage horse test at four local shows between May and August 2011 and that is all the stallion has produced in the show ring so far At the end of 2011 the stallion moved in training with Ingrid Klimke but he left her yard in April 2012 "Because the horse experienced back problems with a rider on top we got in touch with Monty Roberts," Ethel Opländer told Eurodressage "Moritz was flown to California in December 2012 and returned to us in October 2013 We picked up his dressage training from there This affected Moritz more than we expected Because the rule says that stallions only up to 6 years olds can do the 70-day performance test and afterwards have to get their breeding certificate via sport Moritz Junior is now being trained by Opländer together with Eicke von Veltheim "For us the best interest of Moritz and all our horses is a top priority Thanks to the help of Monty  and the castration Moritz Junior can now have a worry-free life Now his offspring will have to enchant the world," Ethel stated Moritz Jr produced two licensed sons: the 3-year old Hanoverians St George (out of a Lord Sinclair dam) and 580,000 euro auction price highlight St Related LinksSt. Moritz Junior in Training with Ingrid KlimkeStrong Crop and Big Prices at 2013 Hanoverian Stallion Licensing Play Duration: 20 minutes 20m Brought to you by A convoy of troubadours is currently on the road travelling across the West Australian outback as a part of Tura's 2016 Reflection2 Tour Over three weeks the group will cover over 4000km from Darwin, across the Kimberley, stopping off in Kununurra, Warmun, Derby, Broome and Beagle Bay, visiting remote schools and communities along the way for concerts, workshops and demonstrations. Cellist Judith Hamann and Tura's Artistic Director Tos Mahoney call in in from the principal's office at Wangkatjungka Remote Community School, 130km south of Fitzroy’s Crossing, to let us know what they've been up to. Tracks heard in this segment:An excerpt from Wilburu written by Erkki Veltheim in collaboration with Stephen Pigram. Peformed by the Narli Ensemble with Erkki on violin, Stephen on vocals and Mark Atkins on didgeridoo. Performed as part of the Tura New Music 2016 Reflections2 tour around the Kimberley. Saltwater Cowboy performed by Stephen Pigram and the Narli Ensemble as part of last year's Reflection tour. Stephen Magnusson with a student from Beagle Bay Primary School during the Tura Reflection 2015 Tour (Tura New Music) Looking through photos provided by Philip Heenan’s niece Mary Oakley Philip casually holding Clover Hill outside his stable while nephew John has a wheelbarrow of fresh straw at the ready; Ballinvella standing beside the landmark water tank where the goldfish swam in; his bay son Ardcroney Lad is Ballaghmor Class’ damsire; a group of people smiling for the camera they came to see Philip back in the 1990s and gave him these albums.” A handwritten note with the names ‘Silvia Röösli-Merz and Myrtha Ellenberger’ Switzerland and old landline number are the only clues They had come from Switzerland to see the famous Clover Hill as Silvia had an exceptional jumping mare by the stallion and wanted to see him in the flesh They stayed several days in Tipperary visiting Philip and helping out they came to visit us in Redcross and stayed a few days.” Google Maps show it’s just 35 kilometres from Laufenburg the town on the German-Swiss border where my sister and family work a longtime Swiss customer of Ned and Jim Kavanagh’s Clover Hill and Master Imp-breds enquiring if she can help trace a namesake Silvia results in a reply of “I am the one!” from the lady herself past the rolling Swiss hills and a majestic 12th-century castle to “the last house in the village,” where the Merz family live a first cousin of Max and Heidi Hauri and her equally vivacious twin daughters born on Christmas Eve: Annette “I’m the oldest by 10 minutes!” and Silvia The original photo albums include a lovely photo of a beaming Philip with the sisters Standing in front of the trio is Annette’s curly-haired young daughter Chantal Huwiler-Müller Silvia too has her own daughters – Jana and Lynn Röösli – now Those Irish visits are special memories with the story beginning 14 years before that photo taken in 1998 1984 was a memorable year for the Hauri family Heidi and the Irish-bred Jessica V won a bronze medal at the Los Angeles Olympics Waiting amongst the crowds in Seon to welcome the hometown hero were her Merz cousins She didn’t know it then but her own Irish-bred mare of a lifetime was foaled that same summer 1,650 kilometres away on Seamus Hughes’ farm in Cuffesgrange My father would say ‘Samantha could read and write!’” Silvia said recalling the intelligent grey mare she and her much-missed late father Heinz had selected as a three-year-old at Max Hauri’s yard We just let her free in the indoor and saw her jumping We bought her for 15,000 Swiss francs - Max did the Irish handshake - then we brought her home Her “brilliant” mare repaid one-third of her price by winning the Berne Cup in 1995 the cup for amateur riders in the whole of Switzerland and the final was held in Interlaken I got 3,000 Swiss francs which is a lot but in other years the first prize was a car and of course everybody said ‘You won a car!’ when they heard I’d won that competition!” Silvia Röösli-Merz in the indoor school with some of the plaques won by her Irish-bred mare Samantha IX \ Susan Finnerty Missing from Samantha’s reading material was her paperwork this little mare that they bred and because Annette was in Ireland in 1987 that she may remember her then “I had no papers for Samantha and because I was so interested in the pedigrees I asked ‘why does Samantha have no papers?’ Seamus was an amazing man He said she was by Clover Hill - that was the first time I’d heard of Clover Hill - and that he had forgotten the passport for Noble Lady There was only one solution: go to Tipperary “I was not even 20 and I said ‘I’ll go there one day and get her papers!’ I had one week off so I went to Ireland with my friend Myrtha [Ellenberger] and my mission was to go to Philip Heenan It was about four o’clock on a Sunday evening and we arrived at the Half Door restaurant They started to talk to us and ask ‘Where are you from?’ when they heard our accents “’Just over there’ they replied and I said ‘Great It’s Sunday evening now.’ And they all said go now!’ I think we took a drink and off we went.” I parked the car and we went over to the bench the family Fleming was next in line and we started to talk to them ‘What do you want?’ I had pictures of Samantha and said ‘I’m from Switzerland she’s the best in the whole world I promise you but I don’t have the papers promised me the passport for her mother Noble Lady must still be here I always had Swiss chocolate with me and we became friends Philip came to me and handed me her passport “My second wish was to have a look at Clover Hill Instead John Oakley phoned nearby Ashley Park House to arrange accommodation for the Swiss guests that’s when I met Mary and saw the first picture of Clover Hill The next day we went back and a real friendship between Philip and I began I drew a map of the yard and made a list of the stallions he had people were coming with mares and we were talking together about which stallion would suit which mare Myrtha said people were whispering ‘Who is that His wife or his secretary?’” said an amused Silvia “He was such a special man with a special gift He was part of the family by the time I went back with Annette and Chantal I went back with the book of photos for Philip and to ride with the Wicklow Hunt.” Henry Fleming recalled: “I brought them hunting and to the hunt ball They were fascinated and thrilled with Irish hunting and brought back exciting memories to Switzerland,” adding: “We remained friends since and have visited them in Switzerland to enjoy their hospitality and winter sports.” Another long-lasting friendship built up from the railway sleeper bench The reason for tracking down Noble Lady’s passport was the Merz family wished to register her daughter Samantha with the Zangersheide studbook “Because Silvia wanted to breed from Samantha I didn’t know the breeder,” Annette remarked I came to Dublin as I had to go to the Horse Board but I got the papers” said her determined sister Another photographic legacy of those visits are photos of Flo Jo grazing in the field; hostess Anne Hughes cooking for her guests; Cavalier Royale the Swiss export to Ireland and another Kodak moment at Williamstown Stud of Chantal meeting Jessica V in retirement the King of Diamonds-sired Noble Lady produced Cavalier Tiffany competed at the European young rider championship in 2000 by Thomas Hauri A fellow Swiss team member was Steve Guerdat Samantha’s half-sister Noblina (Cavalier Royale) is the dam of HHS Noble Call (Heritage Fortunus) long-listed for the Tokyo Olympics with event rider Padraig McCarthy Samantha bred seven foals over nine years for the Merz family: the full-brothers Carl Z and Casper Z (Chellano Z) Aquila (Aquilino) and her last foal in 2009: Katie (Quo Vados) “My father thought the Holstein was a good cross with the Irish horse.” Samantha IX's characterful grandson with Marielle \ Susan Finnerty Samantha foaled down at their sister Barbara’s farm in Holstein the traditional heart of German horse breeding we can’t buy even a little piece of land if you are not a farmer only a farmer can buy land,” stated Annette Each of her daughter’s four horses has its own individual turnout area outside their stable “We have really nice hacking up the mountain too,” said Annette pointing upwards at the nearby heights a bale of shavings costs 12 to 14 Swiss francs (practically on a par with the euro) and a set of shoes about 200 francs The one feature missing is the ubiquitous lorry “John Ledingham was there at the warm-up arena I said ‘Own breed - horse and rider!’ Since that We bred the mare and nobody else jumped her but Chantal.” Not only did Annette jump ‘Täbi’s dam Galaxy (Coriolan) her husband Hans Peter Müller selected the Capitol I son Cassini as the covering sire and the Holsteiner mare then foaled at Barbara’s farm in 2004 U Tabasca and Chantal were on the Swiss gold medal team at the European young rider championships in Vejer de la Frontera together with Ireland’s Bertram Allen and Greek rider Monika Martini were also the original members of the Rolex Young Rider Academy in 2014 Fourth place at Aachen (which resulted in a substantial seven-figure offer for the mare we did but we always said she’s a member of the family and not for sale,” Annette confirmed) and a gold medal in the Swiss young rider championships Chantal Huwiler-Müller with the home-bred U Tabasca winner of the opening round in the 2014 World Cup final at Lyon with Pius Schwizer is another horse Chantal rode when she helped out at the Hauri stables She is now busy working in the veterinary clinic in Auw while last year ‘Täbi’ produced a filly foal by leading sire Chacco-Blue “We don’t know why but he is big!” said Adrienne last year I did some shows and I ride him every day,” she added about the chesnut gentle giant “I won the Junior Grand Prix in Lamprechtshausen in Austria in 2014 and the bronze medal at the Swiss junior championships Zurich’s indoor show has vanished from the international calendar and Basel was a late-minute cancellation this year Now the only Swiss indoor international is Geneva,” Annette said How did Swiss shows fare during the pandemic “They were cancelled but now we have 2G (vaccinated or recovered status) rules in place so shows are back now it is open to all horses from four to eight years and the young horse finals are held in Avenches,” replied Adrienne The two resident half-brothers are Cuche (Connor) and Culapalu (Cristallo) out of Samantha’s daughter Carleen Both compete up to 1.40m and are now in Marielle’s capable hands then maybe I will do veterinary,” explained the youngest daughter intent on following her brother-in-law Fabian’s example with Switzerland’s seven year-long Veterinary Degree course Sometimes I have school at 9.30am or I get up early to do the horses My sister Chantal and Rolf-Göran Bengtsson are my heroes.” Back in her grandmother’s cosy kitchen beside the yard Adrienne’s boyfriend Jonatan Bachmann joins the family for Sunday lunch Excerpts from “Jessica und mein Leben” (“Jessica and my Life”) she’s just 15 minutes away now,” added Annette brothers Robert and Peter and parents was part of the “Familienkapelle Merzenblüemli” Swiss folk group as another loose end of the Heenan story is neatly tied up About us Contact us Advertise with us Company information Careers Privacy statement Terms of service Commenting policy Change cookies settings THE first Sunday on Shields event has been met with praise from city businesses but time will tell if the project will continue Please call us on 1800 070 535 and we’ll help resolve the issue or try again later Any Questions? Please call 1800 070 535. Monday to Friday 7:30am – 6:00pm, Saturday & Sunday 7:00am – 11:30am (AEST) ABC Classic FM is proud to present Gurrumul's final album introduced by his long-standing collaborator Michael Hohnen Recorded with musicians from the Australian Chamber Orchestra and Sydney Symphony Orchestra the album creates an other-worldly soundscape bringing western tradition to Yolngu culture in a true artistic representation of togetherness and respect Over four years in the making and completed just weeks before his passing in 2017 ‘Djarimirri (Child of the Rainbow)’ is Gurrumul’s gift to the world: a final message a recording of an iconic artist at his creative peak Presented by ABC Classic FM's Damien Beaumont with Michael Hohnen Translated by Dhapanbal Yunupiŋu and Ishmael Marika. Introductions by Michael Hohnen, interviewed by Damien Beaumont. Manikay is “Song” 1. Waak (Crow) Moiety - Dhuwa Clan – Gälpu (Dr G’s Mothers Clan); Language - DhaŋuWäk is the sound of the crow crying, it is also the name for the crow. In this manikay the Wäk is falling from the heavens towards the place called Djapaŋuruana. “The song […] is about the crow gliding down from the sky or the heavens. It gets close to the coastline. You hear the sound of the crow crying [...]. It smells the file snake. That smell belongs to the crow and the song refers to the lightning snake, which is an ancient ancestor, which sprays and speaks and it strikes a certain tree with its tail like lightning.” 2. Gäliku (Flag) Moiety - Yirritja Clan – Gumatj; Language – DhuwalaThe raising of the flag as it dances in the wind. “This is a Gumatj song quite proudly sung and performed in lots of different contexts I’ve heard over the years. This is taken from—culturally from—the Macassan trading that happened with Yolngu over hundreds of years. One of the items the Macassans traded with Yolngu people was material and Yolngu and other cultures in the Northern part of Australia have developed quite a strong flag tradition from the Indonesian people.” 3. Ŋarrpiya (Octopus)Moiety - Yirritja Clan - Gumatj; Language - DhuwalaThis manikay is about the Octopus coming out from a place deep in the sea. “The song talks about the movements and the patterns of the octopus and the relationship to the clans and it moves across the country and talks about, in different forms, North, South, East, and West, and the eight arms and it talks about language groups that it covers in a beautifully poetic way.” 4. Djarimirri (Meaning: Colourful and also the Child of the Rainbow Serpent) Moiety - Dhuwa Clan - Gälpu (Dr G’s Mothers Clan); Language - DhaŋuRainbow coloured light which shines from the rainbow serpent’s scales. The mother is calling to her child “you are the child of the rainbow serpent.” "Child of the Olive Python or Rainbow Serpent, one of the big creation spirit totems. He always spoke about this and he sings a completely different lyric and song on his first album, 'Djarimirri' also." 5. Djolin (Musical Instrument)Moiety - Yirritja Clan – Gumatj; Language – DhuwalaThis manikay celebrates the sounds of the instruments “Madhukin” and the “Djoliŋ” created by a Djinarra (gifted musician) when playing. Dil dil dil dil – the sound of the Djoliŋ (Makassan One Stringed Instrument) "Yolngu spent hundreds of years trading with Macassans and apart from tobacco, money, boats in some capacity, they also traded the idea of musical instruments beyond singing and yidaki, didgeridoo playing. And this manikay is about the different instruments." Moiety - Yirritja Clan – Gumatj; Language DhuwalaMariyarr is a mast for a sailor to hold a flag strong. "It's probably my favourite track on the whole record. And apart from what it means, which is quite sad and full of sorrow, it is an extremely powerful song and whilst you hear the single melodic voice, the way we recorded the album was to get G to overdub lots of different voices, which happens in ceremony where one old man will start singing and another man will sing almost in a contrapuntal way to the lead vocal." Moiety - Dhuwa Clan – Gälpu (Dr G’s Mothers Clan); Language - DhaŋuManikay about Djulararri Gäpu, the beautiful crystal clear, fresh water. Moiety - Yirritja Clan – Gumatj; Language – DhuwalaThe Djilawurr clears the ground to make their nests. This manikay is a metaphor for Yolngu, clearing the ground to prepare for ceremonies and building of shelters. "If you've ever lived in the north part of Australia from North Queensland across you see this animal that seems to be quite a kind of annoying animal, but the Yolngu and especially the Gumatj hold this as one of their biggest totems and they see it as a bird that was reformed from a spirit that came a long way back and looks after a certain part of Arnhem Land." Moiety - Yirritja Clan- Gumatj; Language - DhuwalaThe song Bäru is about the crocodile and the crocodile spirit ancestors. "The crocodile in this is sung about, it's moving and swimming and it's a very powerful crocodile. Yolngu have a lot of names for a lot of different things and there's a lot of different names for the crocodile. Deep, deep historical names that he's using and also some other, modern names." Moiety - Yirritja Clan- Gumatj; Language - DhuwalaThe gopuru is jumping through the sea, splashing, in the distance. Moiety - Yirritja Clan – Gumatj; Language DhuwalaThe sunset is getting red bright and beautiful in the evening. The sunset is getting brighter in the areas called Nawingu, Milarr and Gundjamir. The sunset is sitting over those places. Here it is, the sunset, sitting down. "The way he sings about [the sunset] is like a painting, in the way that Yolngu describe things in such poetic or picturesque ways it makes sense. But for him, being blind and never being able to see it's curious as well." Moiety - Dhuwa Clan – Gälpu (Dr G’s Mothers Clan); Language - DhaŋuManikay about the clouds getting darker. "Rain and dark clouds gathering and getting darker. That's almost the full translation. A bit like a painting that you don't understand you can listen to it and with that in mind, conjure up a lot of things in your own mind about it. He also sang a song by the same name "Wulminda" on the Rrakala album, which he described as being 'very deep.' That's all he said to me, 'it's a very deep song.'" Vocals: GurrumulProducer: Michael HohnenComposer / Arrangers: Gurrumul, Erkki Veltheim, Michael HohnenMusicians from the Australian Chamber Orchestra and Sydney Symphony OrchestraOrchestra Leader: Veronique SerretLead Cellist: Julian Thompson Musicians Stephen Pigram (left) and Stephen 'Baamba' Albert, with Tura artistic director Tos Mahoney, will perform at UWA. (Supplied: Tura New Music) Link copiedShareShare articleA quarter of a century after acclaimed Aboriginal musical Bran Nue Dae premiered in Perth, two of its original members have come together to perform again on the same stage. The performance is the finale of The Reflection Tour, which has spent the last three weeks performing across the Kimberley and Pilbara regions. Renowned West Australian musician Stephen Pigram has been leading the tour, in partnership with internationally renowned didgeridoo player William Barton from Mount Isa in Queensland. Mr Pigram was the music director of Bran Nue Dae, a musical that had its premiere at the University of Western Australia 25 years ago. Along with his brother Alan, Mr Pigram was the first Indigenous artist to be inducted into the WA music industry's hall of fame. Mr Pigram and Mr Barton have been guiding the Narli Ensemble on the tour, taking a team of classically trained musicians on a cross-cultural tour of the state's North West. The music the ensemble created was unique, Mr Pigram said. "It's written in a kind of ... avante garde obscure sort of way, and we also try new ideas on more contemporary songs," he said. The musical repertoire was created in collaboration with the ensemble, a team including guitarist Stephen Magnusson, violinist Erkki Veltheim, percussionist Ron Reeves and cellist Tristen Parr. "It's great to hear your songs played differently, played with different instrumentation," Mr Pigram said. "For the audience that might have heard songs that are normally done in a band, hearing it with classical instrumentation sort of takes it to another level," Mr Pigram said. Narli Ensemble musicians Errki Veltheim, William Barton and Ron Reeves have toured the North West. (Supplied: Tura New Music) The ensemble has performed 11 concerts in three weeks, including in town centres such as Newman and Kununurra and remote communities like Beagle Bay, Lombadina, Yule River and Munjina. The music shares stories of country and connection through Broome Creole, jazz, classical and traditional genres. Organised by not-for-profit organisation Tura New Music, the troubadours have also held music workshops in Aboriginal communities and composed new music as a group. After weeks on the road, the show will culminate in a performance at the Octogon Theatre at the University of Western Australia (UWA) on Tuesday night, the venue that hosted one of the first and most popular Aboriginal musical theatre productions. Mr Pigram will be joined by special guest Stephen 'Baamba' Albert, known as the grandfather of Broome music and an original cast member. He said Mr Albert's Perth performance was a rare event. "The tour gives people a chance to hear this legend of a man tell historical stories that go way back, and listen to his new ones," he said. CNN and the BBC World Service which is copyright and cannot be reproduced AEST = Australian Eastern Standard Time which is 10 hours ahead of GMT (Greenwich Mean Time)