Black Arm Band is an

Aboriginal Australian Aboriginal Australians are the various Indigenous peoples of the Australian mainland and many of its islands, such as Tasmania, Fraser Island, Hinchinbrook Island, the Tiwi Islands, and Groote Eylandt, but excluding the Torres Strait Isl ...

and

Torres Strait Islander Torres Strait Islanders () are the Indigenous Melanesian people of the Torres Strait Islands, which are part of the state of Queensland, Australia. Ethnically distinct from the Aboriginal people of the rest of Australia, they are often groupe ...

music theatre organisation.

History

The organisation was founded in late 2005 by Steven Richardson and has produced seven large-scale productions since its debut performance at the Melbourne Festival of the Arts in 2006 in addition to ongoing educational and development work in remote Aboriginal communities. The organisation's name comes from a speech by former Australian prime minister

John Howard John Winston Howard (born 26 July 1939) is an Australian former politician who served as the 25th prime minister of Australia from 1996 to 2007, holding office as leader of the Liberal Party. His eleven-year tenure as prime minister is the ...

, who referred to a " black armband view of history". Their first show, '' murundak'' (meaning "alive" in Woiwurrung), debuted at the 2006

Melbourne International Arts Festival Melbourne International Arts Festival, formerly Spoleto Festival Melbourne – Festival of the Three Worlds, then Melbourne International Festival of the Arts, becoming commonly known as Melbourne Festival, was a major international arts festi ...

and afterwards played around Australia and internationally in London. Their second show, ''Hidden Republic'', debuted at the 2008 Melbourne International Arts Festival. Both the 2006 and 2008 festivals were under the artistic direction of Kristy Edmunds. In 2009 the new artistic director of the renamed

Melbourne Festival Melbourne International Arts Festival, formerly Spoleto Festival Melbourne – Festival of the Three Worlds, then Melbourne International Festival of the Arts, becoming commonly known as Melbourne Festival, was a major international arts festi ...

, Brett Sheehy, continued the relationship with Black Arm Band. This saw the commissioning and presentation of the world premiere of ''Dirtsong'', a piece of musical theatre conceived and directed by Steven Richardson, in 2009. With words written by Miles Franklin Award-winner

Alexis Wright Alexis Wright (born 25 November 1950) is a Waanyi (Aboriginal Australian) writer best known for winning the Miles Franklin Award for her 2006 novel '' Carpentaria'' and the 2018 Stella Prize for her "collective memoir" of Leigh Bruce "Tracker" ...

, ''Dirtsong'', included both contemporary and traditional songs, and was a celebration of preservation of

Indigenous languages An indigenous language, or autochthonous language, is a language that is native to a region and spoken by indigenous peoples. This language is from a linguistically distinct community that originated in the area. Indigenous languages are not neces ...

. The show was reprised for the 2014

Adelaide Festival The Adelaide Festival of Arts, also known as the Adelaide Festival, an arts festival, takes place in the South Australian capital of Adelaide in March each year. Started in 1960, it is a major celebration of the arts and a significant cultural ...

, with performers including

Trevor Jamieson Trevor Jamieson (born 7 March 1975) is an Aboriginal Australian stage and film actor, playwright, dancer, singer and didgeridoo player. Early life Trevor Jamieson was born on 7 March 1975 in Subiaco, Western Australia (WA). He grew up in t ...

(who was not in the 2009 version),

Archie Roach Archibald William Roach (8 January 1956 – 30 July 2022) was an Australian singer, songwriter and Aboriginal activist. Often referred to as "Uncle Archie", Roach was a Gunditjmara and Bundjalung elder who campaigned for the rights of Abori ...

, Lou Bennett,

Emma Donovan Emma Donovan (born 1981) is an Aboriginal Australian singer and songwriter. She is a member of the renowned musical Donovan family. She started her singing career at age seven with her uncle's band, the Donovans. In 2000, she became a founding m ...

Paul Dempsey Paul Anthony Dempsey (born 25 May 1976) is an Australian musician. He is best known as the lead singer, guitarist and principal lyricist of rock group Something for Kate. Dempsey released his debut solo album, '' Everything Is True'', on 20 A ...

, and many other singers and musicians. Some of the songs were sung in Aboriginal languages. ''Seven Songs to Leave Behind'' (2010) was also conceived and directed by Richardson. ''Seven Songs'' was an international collaboration by contemporary Indigenous singers and musicians, including

Gurrumul Yunupingu Geoffrey Gurrumul Yunupingu (22 January 1971 – 25 July 2017), commonly known as Gurrumul and also referred to since his death as Dr G. Yunupingu, was an Aboriginal Australian musician of the Yolŋu peoples. A multi-instrumentalist, he played ...

, joined by Sinéad O'Connor, John Cale,

Rickie Lee Jones Rickie Lee Jones (born November 8, 1954) is an American singer, songwriter, musician, and author. Over the course of a career that spans five decades, she has recorded in various musical styles including rock, R&B, pop, soul, and jazz. A two ...

and

Meshell Ndegeocello Michelle Lynn Johnson, better known as Meshell Ndegeocello (; born August 29, 1968), is a German-born American singer-songwriter, rapper, and bassist. She has gone by the name Meshell Suhaila Bashir-Shakur which is used as a writing credit on so ...

. ''Notes From the Hard Road And Beyond'' (2011, also by Richardson) saw Mavis Staples, Joss Stone,

Emmanuel Jal Emmanuel Jal (born Jal Jok 1 January 1980) is a South Sudanese-Canadian artist, actor, former child soldier, and political activist. His autobiography, ''War Child: A Child Soldier's Story'', was published in 2009. Childhood Jal was born to ...

and

join Black Arm Band to celebrate protest music from the 1960s through to contemporary Indigenous songs of activism.

Members

Members are drawn from around Australia and include both blackfella and white musicians with diverse musical backgrounds. *

David Arden David Arden is an Australian guitar player, singer and songwriter. He has performed with Archie Roach, Ruby Hunter, Tiddas, Bart Willoughby, Mixed Relations and with members of Shane Howard, Paul Kelly, Not Drowning Waving and Hunters and ...

* Mark Atkins * Lou Bennett * Deline Briscoe * George Burarrwanga *

John Butler John Butler may refer to: Arts and entertainment *John "Picayune" Butler (died 1864), American performer * John Butler (artist) (1890–1976), American artist *John Butler (author) (born 1937), British author and YouTuber *John Butler (born 1954), ...

* Liz Cavanagh * Sally Dastey *

Kutcha Edwards Kutcha Edwards is an indigenous Australian singer and songwriter. He was born in Balranald, New South Wales, in 1965. A survivor of the Stolen Generations, he was removed from his parents at the age of 18 months. He is a Mutti Mutti man. He was ...

* Dewayne Everettsmith *

Leah Flanagan Leah Flanagan is an Australian singer-songwriter and arts administrator from Darwin, Northern Territory. based in Sydney. She has released several albums and has toured Australia with her music and as a part of festival ensembles. Early life ...

* Carole Fraser * Joe Geia *

Shane Howard Shane Michael Howard (born 26 January 1955) is an Australian singer-songwriter and guitarist, he was the mainstay of folk rock group Goanna (1977–85, 1998) which had hit singles with " Solid Rock" (September 1982, No. 3) and " Let the ...

Ruby Hunter Ruby Charlotte Margaret Hunter (31 October 195517 February 2010), also known as Aunty Ruby, was an Aboriginal Australian singer, songwriter and guitarist, and the life and musical partner of Archie Roach . Early life Ruby Hunter was born on 31 ...

* Paul Kelly * Bunna Lawrie * Jimmy Little *

Rachael Maza Rachael Zoa Maza is an Indigenous Australian television and film actress and stage director. Early life and education Maza is of Dutch, Torres Strait Islander and Aboriginal Australian heritage, the daughter of Bob Maza, also an actor. She is ...

* Djolpa McKenzie * Lee Morgan *

Shellie Morris Shellie Morris is an Indigenous Australian singer/songwriter who plays a mix of contemporary folk music and contemporary acoustic ballads. Biography and career Shellie Morris was raised in Sydney and began singing at an early age. She often perf ...

* Stephen Pigram *

* Peter Rotumah *

Amy Saunders Amy Saunders also known as Miss Behave, is a British-born producer, performer, comedian and curator. She is a self-taught sword swallower and performs in cabarets. Career Saunders is mostly known as a sword swallower. She has broken the G ...

* Greg Sheehan *

Dan Sultan Daniel Leo Sultan (born 1983) is an Australian alternative rock singer-songwriter and guitarist, actor and author. At the ARIA Music Awards of 2010 he won Best Male Artist and Best Blues & Roots Album for his second album, '' Get Out While Y ...

* Bart Willoughby *

Ursula Yovich Ursula Yovich is an Aboriginal Australian actress and singer. Early life and education Yovich was born and grew up in Darwin, Northern Territory, Australia. Her father, Slobodan Jović, was a Serbian immigrant who anglicised his name to Stan ...

* Gabanbulu Yunupingu

Productions

*''murundak'', 2006 *''Hidden Republic'', 2008 *''Dirtsong'', 2009 *''Seven Songs to Leave Behind'', 2010 *''Notes from the Hard Road and Beyond'', 2011 *''Mamiaith - Mother Tongue'', 2012 *''Ngangwarra means heart'', 2013 *''Nyami'', a collaboration with the

Bangarra Dance Theatre Bangarra Dance Theatre is an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander dance company focused on contemporary dance. It was founded by African American dancer and choreographer Carole Y. Johnson, Gumbaynggirr man Rob Bryant, and South African-born C ...

, in production 2018

Discography

Albums

Awards

*In 2013, the group won the Building Health through the Arts Award.

The Deadly Awards

The Deadly Awards The Deadly Awards, commonly known simply as The Deadlys, was an annual celebration of Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander achievement in music, sport, entertainment and community. The event was held from 1995 to 2013. Description T ...

, commonly known simply as The Deadlys, was an annual celebration of Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander achievement in music, sport, entertainment and community. The ran from 1995 to 2013. ! , - , Deadly Awards 2008 , Black Arm Band , Band of the Year , , , -

Helpmann Awards

The Helpmann Awards is an awards show, celebrating live entertainment and performing arts in Australia, presented by industry group ''Live Performance Australia'' since 2001. Note: 2020 and 2021 were cancelled due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identi ...

. ! , - , 2010 , ''Dirtsong'' (with Steven Richardson and Alexis Wright) ,

Helpmann Award for Best New Australian Work __NOTOC__ The Helpmann Award for Best New Australian Work is an award presented by Live Performance Australia (LPA), an employers' organisation which serves as the peak body in the live entertainment and performing arts industries in Australia ...

, , , -

Sidney Myer Performing Arts Awards

The

Sidney Myer Performing Arts Awards The Sidney Myer Performing Arts Awards were created in 1984 by the trustees of the Sidney Myer Fund to mark the 50th anniversary of the death of Sidney Myer Sidney Myer (born Simcha Myer Baevski (); 8 February 18785 September 1934) was a Ru ...

commenced in 1984 and recognise outstanding achievements in dance, drama, comedy, music, opera, circus and puppetry. ! , - , 2010 , , Black Arm Band , , Group Award , , , , , -

References

External links

Official site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Black Arm Band, The Indigenous Australian musical groups Indigenous Australian theatre