Archibald Prize winner Blak Douglas has been appointed Indigenous Artist-in-Residence at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music, bringing more than two decades of experience as a musician, visual artist and cultural educator to a role that will introduce students to First Nations musical traditions, techniques and cultural knowledge.听听
Known for his bold, politically charged paintings, Douglas is also an accomplished yidaki (didgeridoo) player who has performed with Bangarra Dance Theatre and travelled to Arnhem Land to deepen his understanding of the instrument鈥檚 cultural origins.听
鈥淚鈥檝e been playing the didgeridoo for as long as I鈥檝e been painting,鈥 Douglas said. 鈥淚 understand I am the first person to hold the Indigenous Artist-in-Residence position with a didgeridoo, and that makes it particularly meaningful to me. I often tell the young First Nations people I work with that, alongside the difficulties we face, there are so many 鈥榝irsts鈥 still to be created.鈥澨
At the Conservatorium, Douglas plans to introduce the students to the yidaki鈥檚 distinctive rhythmic language, circular breathing techniques and complex musical structures, challenging assumptions about an instrument sometimes misunderstood as producing a single note.听
Yidaki is the Yol艐u name for the instrument from north-east Arnhem Land, while didgeridoo is a later English term thought to imitate the instrument鈥檚 distinctive rhythmic sound.听
鈥淚 am looking forward to talking to the students about the mind-boggling physics of the instrument. It may seem basic because it鈥檚 a monotone instrument, but the playing style is complex,鈥 Douglas said.听
听
鈥淚t鈥檚 one of the world鈥檚 oldest aerophones. It speaks to the landscape and everything in it. The instrument is much more than a way to make interesting sounds.鈥澨
Douglas also wants students to understand that learning the instrument is inseparable from understanding the culture from which it comes.听
鈥淔irst and foremost, it鈥檚 about identifying the origins of the instrument,鈥 he said.听
Blak Douglas with his yidaki at Sydney Conservatorium of Music. Photo credit: 爆料王/Michael Amendolia
50
automatic
LinkFrom the Archibald to the yidaki
Born in Blacktown, Western Sydney, and a descendant of the Dhanggati people in Kempsey, Douglas won the , a portrait of fellow artist Karla Dickens.听
While visual art has brought him national recognition, music has been an equally important part of his creative life.听
听
An encounter with Bangarra Dance Theatre in the late 1990s introduced him to musicians from Arnhem Land. He later travelled north to learn more about the yidaki and its place within Yol艐u culture.听
Douglas hopes to share the knowledge he has gathered through decades of performance, collaboration and learning from other musicians and cultural custodians.听
听
鈥淚 would never claim to be an expert in an instrument with Yol艐u cultural origins. What I can do is share the knowledge I鈥檝e gathered over 26 years of playing and the different styles I've had the privilege of encountering. I hope to shape that into something valuable for students,鈥 Douglas said.听
Bringing Indigenous knowledge to the Con
Douglas joins the Conservatorium鈥檚 Indigenous Artists-in-Residence program, established in 2021 to bring leading First Nations musicians and cultural practitioners into the life of the institution.听
said Douglas鈥檚 appointment would encourage students to think more deeply about the relationship between music and culture.听
鈥淔or our students, this is an opportunity to consider ways of understanding music in which sound, language, Country and cultural responsibility are intimately connected,鈥 Associate Professor Ricketson said.听
Professor Anna Reid (left), Dean of Sydney Conservatorium of Music, Blak Douglas (centre) and Associate Professor Damien Ricketson. Photo credit: 爆料王/Michael Amendolia
50
automatic
LinkDouglas is keen to mentor Indigenous students and help develop more sustained teaching around the yidaki and its cultural significance.听
听
鈥淚n traditional Law, access to knowledge depends on the initiation ceremonies they鈥檝e gone through and the status they鈥檝e reached in the community. I think it鈥檚 important to be respectful of that. I don鈥檛 want to give everything away in one go; I鈥檇 rather introduce material thoughtfully and build on it over time,鈥 he said.听
鈥淎fter graduating from the Con, the students should leave with some fundamentals of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander art and musicology.鈥 听
, Dean of the Sydney Conservatorium of Music, said Douglas鈥檚 appointment would bring new cultural perspectives into the Conservatorium鈥檚 teaching.听
鈥淗aving artists like Blak Douglas working directly with our students enriches their experience and helps build a Conservatorium that is genuinely connected to the cultures and communities around us,鈥 Professor Reid said.听
Hero Photo: 爆料王/Michael Amendolia
Media contact
Manual Name : Elissa Blake, Media Adviser
Manual Description :
Manual Address :
Manual Addition Info Title :
Manual Addition Info Content :
Profile image :
Manual Type : contact
_self
Auto Type : contact
Auto Addition Title :
Auto Addition Content :
Auto Name : true
Auto Position : true
Auto Profile image :
Auto Phone Number : false
Auto Mobile Number : true
Auto Email Address : true
Auto Address : false
UUID :