CHEETHAM Eumeralla, a war requiem for peace (world premiere)
featuring
Deborah Cheetham AO (Soprano) (Yorta Yorta)
Linda Barcan (Mezzo Soprano)
Don Bemrose (Baritone) (Gungarri)
Dhungala Children’s Choir (Gunditjmara, Wadawurrung, Yorta Yorta)
Consort of Melbourne
Port Fairy Spring Music Festival Community Choir
Jennifer Williams (Dancer) (Githabul – Ngarakbul)
Peter Barker Lovett (Dancer) (Gunditjmara)
Gary Lang (Choreographer) (Larrakia)
and PLEXUS COLLECTIVE +
Tickets: $35 adults / $28 concession
In collaboration with Short Black Opera, the 2018 Port Fairy Spring Music Festival presents as its Closing Gala the world première of a major new work from indigenous composer Deborah Cheetham. She writes: “The name Eumeralla is unlikely to be among the theatres of war that you could name. I first walked on this battlefield on Gunditjmara country in 2013 – it woke something in me and my immediate response was music. A song, A Requiem. A War Requiem. It will be called Eumeralla and named in honour of one of the most brutal resistance wars fought on this continent. Sung entirely in the language of the Gunditjmara people, it is designed for non-Indigenous Australians to sing along-side Indigenous brothers and sisters. It is my hope that this song will help the spirits of those who fell – those who resisted and their aggressors, to find a lasting peace and that we their descendants might find our way to deeper understanding of the legacy of these battles.
“One day I hope to walk on that country and feel no restless spirit - just the strength of two thousand generations of lives lived and culture sustained." – DEBORAH CHEETHAM AO
This concert is presented by Port Fairy Spring Music Festival 2018 and Short Black Opera.
portfairyspringfest.com.au
shortblackopera.org.au
Proudly supported by:
Humanity Foundation
Annamila Foundation
Michael and Silvia Kantor
Equity Trustees