On this International Women’s Day, I thought I might share with you how three very different and extremely successful Australian musicians influenced my musical development over the years in some way or another.
But first, let's go right back to the beginning.
One of my first memories of school is sitting on a carpet and being captivated by the sounds as my Kindergarten teacher sang to us as she played the guitar and later the piano. I was utterly mesmerised.
Mrs H. went on maternity leave after a few months, but I still kept banging on about wanting to learn the piano to my parents. After about two years, they kindly bough a piano for me to learn on and my mother budgeted rigorously for years to ensure that I could always take lessons.
I continued to be influenced by brilliant teachers throughout my school years, all of whom were women, and they exposed me to the full breadth and depth of the diverse world of music and I am forever thankful that they did.
Sarah Hopkins (left)
When I was a member of the prestigious Hunter Singers, we performed a work by Australian Composer Sarah Hopkins, ‘Past Life Melodies’, at the Opera House. The work was uniquely contemporary and unlike anything I had ever heard. It was a very earthy work, with strong indigenous influences. It opened my mind to what the very definition of a 'choral work' could be and it kickstarted a path of exploring 20th Century and contemporary composers that has never stopped.
Past Life Melodies is Sarah Hopkins’ most well known choral piece to date. It’s the most performed Australian choral piece in the world. Past Life Melodies is “a profound musical work which blends European antiquity with Aboriginal songlines and then transports one to Nepal, the roof of the world, where the monks are chanting”.
Sarah also collaborates and co-presents 'Healing Circles for Reconciliation' every year with Ron Murray, Indigenous cultural awareness educator & didgeridoo player at Camberwell Boys Grammar School during their Indigenous Studies Week. Every year this 'Healing Circle...' deepens as it calls the students to "Be the change they wish to see in the world" and to "Heal the past & create a positive future for all...."
Deborah Cheetham (middle)
By the time I got to uni, I had already studied the piano for 11 years and had switched to be a voice major at the Newcastle Conservatorium. I came across Deborah Cheetham, an opera singer and composer and loved the intensity of the passion in her voice.
Deborah composed the first Indigenous opera, Pecan Summer, and a recurring theme in her music is around working towards reconciliation and the creation of Indigenous cultural opportunities. The use of Indigenous language is also a feature. Her latest work, Eumeralla: A War Requiem for Peace, is sung entirely in the Gunditjmara language.
Listen to an excerpt from Pecan Summer here.
In 2019, Deborah Cheetham won the Melbourne Prize for Music and Sir Bernard Heinze Memorial, and she delivered the Peggy Glanville-Hicks Address. Canberra Symphony Orchestra premiered her work, Gulaga.
Kylie Minogue - We were Soooo Lucky! (right)
Love her or hate her, anyone living in Australia in 1987 would be lying if they said they didn’t know the lyrics to Kylie’s infamous song “I Should be so Lucky”. It was released in 1987 and went on to top the charts around the world for weeks, winning many awards. 34 years on and Kylie is still our biggest musical export success, she is still writing and touring and successfully battled breast cancer in 2005.
The influence from Kylie on my musicality was her very raw humbleness. She knew she didn't have the best voice in the world and that it needed training. Kylie could have bashed out a few more Stock, Aitken and Waterman tunes, cashed in on those and retired quite wealthy. However, she ditched Mushroom records and took control of her musical career. Kylie got singing lessons and then proceeded to sing her heart out to often abysmal audiences in pubs and clubs around Australia until she felt had the skills up her sleeve to relaunch herself as a capable musician and performer.
In 1996, Kylie spoke the lyrics of "I Should be so Lucky" at the Poetry Olympics. You can watch that here.
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