CONTENT COURTESY MSO
The award-winning sound and song collective Spinifex Gum returns to Melbourne in NAIDOC Week to perform with the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra.
The stunning program will feature the extraordinary Marliya Choir, alongside Australia’s Queen of Soul Emma Donovan, The Cat Empire’s Felix Riebl and Ollie McGill, and the 60-strong Gondwana Voices, accompanied by the MSO and members of Melbourne Youth Orchestras.
Featuring brand new songs by Felix Riebl, this part-protest, part-celebration, choral-orchestral re-imagining of the stirring works of the renowned collective will bring new sonic depth and dimension to the Spinifex Gum experience.
Hamer Hall will be filled with the vibrant young voices driven by the powerful Cairns-based ensemble Marliya of Gondwana Choirs through their compelling blend of harmony and protest, singing in both English and Yindjibarndi while trailblazing a new pop-choir genre.
On bringing this epic show to Melbourne, Felix Riebl said: “Spinifex Gum, fronted by the all-female, all-Indigenous, all-powerful voices of Marliya Choir is the most moving musical project I’ve ever been involved in.”
“That it’s now performing with the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra, supported by Gondwana Voices, featuring Emma Donovan, visually accompanied by the cinematic backdrop of the Pilbara, and showcasing some incredible new material, makes this show an absolute must-see. I can’t wait to share this with new audiences and fans alike.”
The work of Spinifex Gum addresses pervasive issues from the social disparity present in the Pilbara to deaths in custody, disproportionate incarceration, and land rights, with lyrics and song that have the power to disarm, inspire, and speak to us in a way that no individual voice can.
MSO + Spinifex Gum is conducted by Benjamin Northey and composed by Felix Riebl. Orchestration by Ross Irwin and Ollie McGill, choreography by Deborah Brown, and choir direction by Lyn Williams AM.
Meet the team behind this powerful collaboration at Introducing Spinifex Gum, 6.30pm July 7, Iwaki Auditorium, ABC Southbank Centre.
MSO + Spinifex Gum takes place at 2pm and 7.30pm July 9 in Hamer Hall, Arts Centre Melbourne.
