Gondwanaland, originally billed as Gondwanaland Project, were an Australian

ambient music Ambient music is a genre of music that emphasizes tone and atmosphere over traditional musical structure or rhythm. It may lack net composition, beat, or structured melody.The Ambient Century by Mark Prendergast, Bloomsbury, London, 2003. It u ...

al ensemble which combined the

indigenous Australian Indigenous Australians or Australian First Nations are people with familial heritage from, and membership in, the ethnic groups that lived in Australia before British colonisation. They consist of two distinct groups: the Aboriginal peoples ...

instrument the

didgeridoo The didgeridoo (; also spelt didjeridu, among other variants) is a wind instrument, played with vibrating lips to produce a continuous drone while using a special breathing technique called circular breathing. The didgeridoo was developed by ...

with western instruments such as

synthesiser A synthesizer (also spelled synthesiser) is an electronic musical instrument that generates audio signals. Synthesizers typically create sounds by generating waveforms through methods including subtractive synthesis, additive synthesis and f ...

and

guitar The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected stri ...

. In 1981 Gondwanaland Project was formed by Peter Carolan on synthesiser and

Charlie McMahon Charlie McMahon (born in the Blue Mountains outside Sydney, 1951) is an Australian didgeridoo player. The founder of the group Gondwanaland, McMahon was one of the first non- Aboriginal musicians to gain fame as a professional player of the ...

on didgeridoo and vocals. After releasing the lp ''Terra Incognita'' (1984) the duo were joined full-time by percussionist Eddy Duquemin and the group name was shortened to Gondwanaland. Four albums were released under this title ''Let the Dog Out'' (1986), ''

Gondwanaland Gondwana () was a large landmass, often referred to as a supercontinent, that formed during the late Neoproterozoic (about 550 million years ago) and began to break up during the Jurassic period (about 180 million years ago). The final stages ...

'' (1987), ''Wildlife'' (1989) and ''Wide Skies'' (1992). In 1994 McMahon formed a variable line-up band called Gondwana or Charlie McMahon and Gondwana releasing albums ''Travelling'' (1994), ''Xenophon'' (1998), ''Bone Man'' (2002), and ''Didj Heart'' (2012). Peter Carolan released three solo albums ''Windswept'' (1994),''Tides'' (1999),''Overland'' (2006). Ed Duquemin released a solo album ''Crossculture'' in 2002. At the

ARIA Music Awards of 1988 The Second Australian Recording Industry Association Music Awards (generally known as the ARIA Music Awards or simply The ARIAS) was held on 29 February 1988 at the Sheraton Wentworth Hotel in Sydney. Cliff Richard was the host, with Bryan Fe ...

'' won the 'Best Indigenous Release' category, ''Wide Skies'' and ''Xenophon'', were each nominated in the same category in

1993 File:1993 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The Oslo I Accord is signed in an attempt to resolve the Israeli–Palestinian conflict; The Russian White House is shelled during the 1993 Russian constitutional crisis; Czechoslovakia is peace ...

and

1998 1998 was designated as the ''International Year of the Ocean''. Events January * January 6 – The '' Lunar Prospector'' spacecraft is launched into orbit around the Moon, and later finds evidence for frozen water, in soil in permanently ...

, respectively.

History

Sydney musician

formed Gondwanaland Project to combine his love for the

Australian outback The Outback is a remote, vast, sparsely populated area of Australia. The Outback is more remote than the bush. While often envisaged as being arid, the Outback regions extend from the northern to southern Australian coastlines and encompass a n ...

with his

playing and he was one of the first musicians to unite western and traditional indigenous music into the genre of

ambient Ambient or Ambiance or Ambience may refer to: Music and sound * Ambience (sound recording), also known as atmospheres or backgrounds * Ambient music, a genre of music that puts an emphasis on tone and atmosphere * ''Ambient'' (album), by Moby * ...

, world music. To achieve the sound for McMahon's desert tunes, he joined up with synthesiser player, Peter Carolan, in 1981.

Gondwana Gondwana () was a large landmass, often referred to as a supercontinent, that formed during the late Neoproterozoic (about 550 million years ago) and began to break up during the Jurassic period (about 180 million years ago). The final stages ...

is a continental landmass of the prehistoric

Mesozoic The Mesozoic Era ( ), also called the Age of Reptiles, the Age of Conifers, and colloquially as the Age of the Dinosaurs is the second-to-last era of Earth's geological history, lasting from about , comprising the Triassic, Jurassic and Cretaceo ...

era which included

Antarctica Antarctica () is Earth's southernmost and least-populated continent. Situated almost entirely south of the Antarctic Circle and surrounded by the Southern Ocean, it contains the geographic South Pole. Antarctica is the fifth-largest contine ...

, South America, Africa, India and Australia. McMahon learned didgeridoo as a teenager and improved his technique while working in Central Australia. In 1983 Gondwanaland issued a self-financed six-track cassette, ''Didgeridu-Synth''. In 1984 Carolan and McMahon were assisted in the studio by various musicians:

Rob Hirst Robert George Hirst (born 3 September 1955) is an Australian musician from Camden, New South Wales. He is a founding member of rock band Midnight Oil on drums, percussion and backing vocals (sometimes lead vocals) from the 1970s until the band t ...

(

Midnight Oil Midnight Oil (known informally as "The Oils") are an Australian rock band composed of Peter Garrett (vocals, harmonica), Rob Hirst (drums), Jim Moginie (guitar, keyboard) and Martin Rotsey (guitar). The group was formed in Sydney in 1972 by ...

) on percussion, Andrew De Teliga on guitar and violin, and Rob Schad on didgeridoo.. They recorded the first Gondwanaland album, ''Terra Incognita'', which was released on the small independent Hot Records label, together with a single, "Danger", in May. In May 1985 the group advertised for a drummer, "Gondwana Wana Drummer", and received only one response from an energetic multi-format percussionist, Eddy Duquemin. With Duquemin joining Gondwanaland, McMahon decided to make the group his full-time occupation. In November that year, the group supported

on a 26-date national tour starting in

Dubbo Dubbo () is a city in the Orana Region of New South Wales, Australia. It is the largest population centre in the Orana region, with a population of 43,516 at June 2021. The city is located at the intersection of the Newell, Mitchell, and Gol ...

. In 1986 Gondwanaland's second album, ''Let the Dog Out'', was issued by Midnight Oil's Powderworks label.. It contained a bracket of aggressive, up-tempo numbers followed by two extended compositions, the first of which, "Ephemeral Lakes", later became a regular choice for meditative ambient music compilations. The group spent a year of extensive live work in Sydney and then a four-week tour of the Northern Territory. In 1987 the band signed with

WEA The Wea were a Miami-Illinois-speaking Native American tribe originally located in western Indiana. Historically, they were described as either being closely related to the Miami Tribe or a sub-tribe of Miami. Today, the descendants of the ...

, which released their third album, ''

''. It had taken many months to record and while the prolonged touring helped tighten the arrangements some of the groups intense live energy was diluted by the usual studio technique of making a separate recording of each member's instrumental part before a final mix. At the

''Gondwanaland'' won the 'Best Indigenous Release' category. One track, "Landmark", featured the first use of McMahon's invention, the multi-tone, slide didgeridoo he dubbed a ' didjeribone'. Charlie McMahon Sfinks

In November 1988 Gondwanaland performed at the '' Tomita Sound Cloud in Sydney – Hymn to Mankind'', a AUD $3 million,

Japanese government The Government of Japan consists of legislative, executive and judiciary branches and is based on popular sovereignty. The Government runs under the framework established by the Constitution of Japan, adopted in 1947. It is a unitary state, c ...

-sponsored, light and sound, opera spectacular held on

Sydney Harbour Port Jackson, consisting of the waters of Sydney Harbour, Middle Harbour, North Harbour and the Lane Cove and Parramatta Rivers, is the ria or natural harbour of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. The harbour is an inlet of the Tasman Sea (p ...

as part of the

Australian Bicentennial The bicentenary of Australia was celebrated in 1988. It marked 200 years since the arrival of the First Fleet of British convict ships at Sydney in 1788. History The bicentennial year marked Captain Arthur Phillip's arrival with the 11 ships ...

celebrations. The concert attracted an audience of over 120,000: an Australian record for a live music event. Gondwanaland's fourth album, ''Wildlife'', which was released in 1989, was a live recording in a Sydney nightclub, Kakadu. The group "achieved its strongest combination of ambient and avant-garde experimentation on

his album His or HIS may refer to: Computing * Hightech Information System, a Hong Kong graphics card company * Honeywell Information Systems * Hybrid intelligent system * Microsoft Host Integration Server Education * Hangzhou International School, in ...

with tracks like 'Highway' and 'Deja Vu' evoking the vastness and loneliness of Central Australia". Gondwanaland's next album, ''Wide Skies'' (1992) came after touring northern Australia and includes guest performances by Bobby Bunuggurr, Cleis Pierce,

Maroochy Barambah Maroochy Barambah is an Australian Aboriginal mezzo-soprano singer. She is a song-woman, law-woman and elder of the Turrbal people. Early life She was born Yvette Isaacs in the 1950s in Cherbourg, Queensland. She is of the Turrbal-Gubbi Gubbi p ...

, Andrew de Teliga (

Sirocco Sirocco ( ), scirocco, or, rarely, siroc (see below) is a Mediterranean wind that comes from the Sahara and can reach hurricane speeds in North Africa and Southern Europe, especially during the summer season. Names ''Sirocco'' derives from ...

), Blair Greenberg,

Pee Wee Ferris Peewee Ferris is a DJ from Sydney. Ferris began mixing at an early age, being inspired by his older brothers Stephen and John who are also DJs. Ferris has headlined numerous events including the Big Day Out and Ministry of Sound and the Australi ...

and Carl Zhang. It was produced by

Martin Armiger John Martin Armiger (10 June 1949 – 27 November 2019) was an Australian musician, record producer and composer. He was one of the singer-songwriters and guitarists with Melbourne-based rock band the Sports from August 1978 to late 1981, which ...

, recorded from 1990 to 1992 in both Sydney and the Northern Territory, and was released by WEA.. Gone were the earthy good time romps and quiet moments of reflection, now complex panoramic chord clusters enveloped the arrangements in an almost overwhelming evocation of the sky and all that happens in and under it. This album's multi-layered textures and moods earned the band even greater critical respect. ''Wide Skies'' was nominated at the

ARIA Music Awards of 1993 The Seventh Australian Recording Industry Association Music Awards (generally known as the ARIA Music Awards or simply The ARIAS) was held on 14 April 1993 at the Entertainment Centre in Sydney. Note: User may be required to access archived i ...

for 'Best Indigenous Release'. Note: User may have to 'Select a year' to access further information. By 1994 McMahon formed another band, Gondwana, with an emphasis on rhythm and increasingly dominant bass and experimental didgeridoo sounds. This group released three albums: ''Travelling'' (1994), ''Xenophon'' (1998), and ''Bone Man'' (2002). The latter two albums feature another McMahon innovation: the mouth-held use of a geologist's seismic sensor to amplify the growling subsonic didgeridoo dynamics. This gave McMahon a new audience: the trance, dance crowd. ''Xenophon'' was nominated at the

ARIA Music Awards of 1998 The 12th Australian Recording Industry Association Music Awards (generally known as the ARIA Music Awards or simply The ARIAS) was held on 20 October 1998 at the Sydney Convention & Exhibition Centre. Presenters, including Democrats deputy l ...

for 'Best Indigenous Release'. Note: User may have to 'Select a year' to access further information. Gondwanaland composer/arranger Peter Carolan 4died on 28 July 2012 from a respiratory illness.email from charlie mcmahon to editor In 2012 Charlie McMahon and Gondwana released album ''Didj Heart''

Members

, vocals, didjeribone (1981–1992, 1994–present) * Peter Carolan - synthesiser (1981–1992) * Eddie Duquemin - drums, percussion (1986–1992)

Discography

Studio albums

Compilation albums

Awards and nominations

ARIA Music Awards

The

ARIA Music Awards The Australian Recording Industry Association Music Awards (commonly known informally as ARIA Music Awards, ARIA Awards, or simply the ARIAs) is an annual series of awards nights celebrating the Australian music industry, put on by the Austr ...

is an annual award ceremony event celebrating the

Australian music The music of Australia has an extensive history made of music societies. Indigenous Australian music forms a significant part of the unique heritage of a 40,000- to 60,000-year history which produced the iconic didgeridoo. Contemporary fusions of ...

industry. , - ,

, ''Gondwanaland'' ,

ARIA Award for Best Indigenous Release The ARIA Music Award for Best Indigenous Release was an award presented at the annual ARIA Music Awards. It was presented from 1987 through to 1998. Originally titled Best Indigenous Record in 1987. It was renamed Best Aboriginal/Islander Release i ...

, , - ,

ARIA Music Awards of 1990 The Fourth Australian Recording Industry Association Music Awards (generally known as the ARIA Music Awards or simply The ARIAS) was held on 26 March 1990 at the Darling Harbour Convention Centre in Sydney. Australian host Glenn Shorrock of L ...

, ''Wildlife'' , ARIA Award for Best Indigenous Release , , - ,

, ''Wide Skies'' , ARIA Award for Best Indigenous Release , , - ,

, ''Xenophon'' , ARIA Award for Best Indigenous Release , , -

References

External links

Charlie McMahon's website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gondwanaland Ambient music groups ARIA Award winners Australian world music groups Indigenous Australian musical groups Musical groups established in 1981 Northern Territory musical groups