A multi-instrumentalist, he played drums, keyboards, guitar (a right-hand-strung guitar played left-handed) and didgeridoo, but it was the clarity of his singing voice that attracted rave . Critics have heaped praise on the singer and described his voice as having transcendental beauty. "He was writing these songs and the words just came into his mind and heart. did he go blind from his family torturing him or was he born that way i don't remember if they expanded on it or not. With Manuel Dhurrkay he also fronted Saltwater Band, the group putting out three records in a decade from 1999. He doesnt want to be photographed or talk to anyone. In todays world where the media and the music industries are centred around hype and fashion, Gurrumul is a unique celebrity who has stood the test of time, one who could change the way you breathe (Brisbane Courier Mail, 2008) and forever altered the way people from around the world interact with Yolngu culture. I think there was a big education for him as well with that film, of hearing the respect, and what his uncle would say about him, Hohnen says, his voice catching. Interviews and feature reports from NITV. The oldest of four, he was born blind and never learned to read Braille. It wasn't just Jones Sting, Elton John and Australian musicians Peter Garrett and Paul Kelly all count themselves among the singer's admirers. Djarimirri (Child of the Rainbow) has been more than six years in the making and involves the singer, in Hohnen's words, delving "deeper into the cultural elements of his music". [63] Note: 2020 and 2021 were cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. 0. Even in his death, he's transcended genres and cultural barriers. The cover of Gurrumul's posthumous album, Djarimirri (2018).Credit:Courtesy of ABC. Avoiding the use of a deceased person's first name is part of grieving practice amongst many Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities. There is no cultural or social context for Gurrumul to understand or translate Every Breath You Take into Yolngu Matha to say nothing of the glaring irony of asking him to sing the line Ill be watching you. The first of six children, Gurrumul began his professional musical career in his late teens as a member of the popular Yothu Yindi rock band. Guy Maestris portrait of the musician was conceived after the artist saw Gurrumul perform in Sydney on New Years Eve 2008. Hohnen, who was the singers guide and spokesman, talks to the Guardian in the Skinnyfish Music offices in suburban Darwin. For other uses, see, Posthumous releases and recognition (2018present). Gurrumul and Half a million copies of Gurrumul have been sold worldwide. 46years (19712017)Geoffrey Gurrumul Yunupingu / Age at death. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples. Djarimirri is essentially, an album that sets ancient Yolngu chants against an orchestral background to make them more palatable to the Western ear. Aged only 46, he'd succumbed to organ failure relating to the hepatitis B he'd contracted in childhood. Add a Comment. [8] Yunupingu's friend Michael Hohnen produced the album and was his translator, collaborator and confidant. "Gurrumul had hundreds of songs in his head," says Hohnen. Were sorry, this feature is currently unavailable. But I can play and sing and tell people things through my songs. By his mid-teens he had joined Indigenous rock group Yothu Yindi and a little while later Hohnen convinced him to pursue a solo career. It is a deteriorating, awkwardly silent affair that ends with Hohnen lowering his head to the desk in front of him. In 2014 they finally returned to the US, playing smaller shows with less pressure, but during this tour Gurrumuls father died, just a few years after his mother. The cover of Gurrumuls eponymous studio album (2008). With a voice that captured the heart of millions across the world, Geoffrey Gurrumul Yunupingu was an enigmatic talent. His songs covered themes of identity, spirit, connection with the land and its elements across multiple Yolngu languages as well as English. 1 on the independent chart. Following a long battle with illness, Gurrumul passed away in 2017 at Royal Darwin Hospital at the age of 46. Both men feigned concern about the social plight of the majority of Aborigines and voiced platitudes about Gurrumuls music and indigenous disadvantage. These ritualistic proclamations are thoroughly disingenuous. "Michael had this concept of combining the more traditional songs and chanting and yidaki patterns, with this kind of contemporary minimalist orchestral tradition," explains Erkki Veltheim, the Melbourne-based composer and violinist who arranged the album. By the time Skinnyfish came to release the eponymous Gurrumul in 2008, a year before Saltwater's final album, the man and his music were match fit. In 2009 a portrait of Gurrumul by Guy Maestri won Australias major art prize, The Archibald Prize. "At first I was trying to figure out how these different traditions could work together, but the more I thought about it, the more it made sense. Guy Maestri saw Gurrumul live on New Years Eve last year and says it was truly, an unforgettable experience. ", The cover of Gurrumuls eponymous studio album (2008).Credit:Courtesy of ABC. That killed me, near the end of the film, when his uncle says that he exceeded all our expectations.. The concert is the culmination of an ambitious and difficult project, with the musicians hes working with frustrated and exhausted by the process of developing songs in a language they didnt fully know. He plays drums, keyboards, guitar (a right hand-strung guitar left-handed) and didgeridoo, but it is the clarity of his singing voice that has attracted rave reviews. Geoffrey Gurrumul Yunupingu (born 1970) is an indigenous Australian musician, who sings in the Yolngu language. Blind from birth, he played the guitar upside down with his left hand. Further listening casts new light on what's happening, though. Jasmine YunupinguGeoffrey Gurrumul . He would just love hearing all of the voices in there and all the memories from his days in different bands, and what people were saying about him, says Michael Hohnen, cofounder of the Skinnyfish music label and Gurrumuls longtime friend and musical partner. Below the thick overhang of eyebrows, Gurrumul's eyes are concealed in shadow. Many examples of Gurrumuls remarkable work are available on YouTube. In garnering fans like these, Gurrumul sold out venues the world over, won awards and confounded critics with his wide-ranging success. When he was four years old, he taught himself how to play a toy piano and an accordion. The image is made with variously dense, watery and inconsistent brush strokes, creating a allayed three dimensional quality in rich tones of black and gray that construct a voluminous contemplative face. He was one of only two Australian performers at the Queens Diamond Jubilee Concert at Buckingham Palace. The concert was co-presented by music producer Quincy Jones, who has called Gurrumul "unbelievable". It is one of the strongest examples of the worlds oldest continuous culture, and Gurrumul, a Yunupingu from the Gumatj clan, held increasingly important responsibilities. Blind from birth, the proud Yolngu man spoke through his music. Three days later, on July 25, 2017, Gurrumul died in Royal Darwin Hospital. The Most Beautiful Song Ever Written (Australian Aboriginal) This song is called Wiyathul and its by a blind aboriginal man called Geoffrey Gurrumul Yunupingu. The important thing was that, in every step of the process, we've made sure that we haven't done anything that doesn't communicate those songs.". He is from the Gumatj clan of the Yolngu and his mother from the Galpu nation. We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. But the basic incompatibility of this shy, private man with the hype and spotlight of the music industry were . The trick with Djarimirri was in replicating this on Western instruments while leaving them recognisable to Yolngu people. Gurrumul: a man with a strong sense of humour, deep ties to his homelands and little taste for the limelight. "Gurrumul was such a unique and happy person, someone who, no matter how recalcitrant, always made you feel that fun and music and traditional culture were here to be lived and loved.". Through the film we get a glimpse of just how special and integral the bond between Gurrumul and Hohnen was, with the latter often being known as the spokesperson for the acutely shy performer both on stage and in interviews. [35], Yunupingu died at the Royal Darwin Hospital, Northern Territory, at about 5:00pm on 25 July 2017, aged 46. They talk of their. ", A note released with the advance stream of Djarimirri addresses these questions. With his extraordinary voice and hauntingly beautiful album, Gurrumul, Indigenous singer Geoffrey Gurrumul Yunupingu has become something of a cultural phenomenon over the last year. "Our hope for this film is that the people depicted within it, upon watching it, are filled with pride. His second album, Rrakala (2011), made some small inroads into the American market, a notoriously difficult proposition. The album is an ambitious project which continues Gurrumuls habit of marrying together the two worlds he lived in. Filmed over the course of ten years, the documentary feature by Paul Williams gives us a window into the rich and complex Yolngu culture and ceremonial life, a world that informed the singer's music and voice. [5][8][15][16] His first solo album, Gurrumul, was released in 2008, debuting at No. [19][20] He did not generally give interviews, instead relying on Hohnen to speak for him, following a Yolu custom that dictated that Yunupingu's role was only to sing, while his elders spoke publicly. He says the Queen remembered Gurrumul from their last meeting, saying: "Yes, I've met this man before." But Hohnen says Gurrumul was more excited at the chance to meet American music legend Stevie Wonder. 5 comments. "I believe he chose to not go on dialysis, to not stay on it. "It transcends cultural barriers, because music is an international language. The Guardian, Thursday 17 July 2008. **Warning: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander viewers are advised that this content contains images of people who have died. Critics . ", His niece, Miriam Yirrininba Dhurrkay, says Gurrumul's life and music are still inspiring Yolngu people. It was a professional partnership which helped to bring Gurrumul's unique interpretation of the 'manikay' (the songlines of his people) to life. Just ask. Sydney Morning Herald reviewer Bruce Elder recalled the first time he heard the young singer. Word had been going around all day and the rumours were true people really were moved to tears. Believing that this inspiring, amazing man would be an ideal subject for a portrait, Maestri managed to track Gurrumul down in Darwin with the help of a friend in the music industry only to discover that he was flying to New York the following weekend. He had a special place to see, which was his heart. Gurrumul is front facing, his head tilts down until his right. The music kind of suits that being on the edge of two worlds and the feeling of how its not completely comfortable, says Hohnen. [17] Gurrumul peaked at No. He just wants to play music.. Honhen points out the cello mimicking rhythms of the yidaki, and says the Yolngu who came to the studio would immediately recognise and know the corresponding dance. "He was special in so many ways, in Western and Yolngu worlds," his niece, Miriam Yirrininba Dhurrkay, tells me. Geoffrey Gurrumul Yunupingu (22 January 1971 25 July 2017), often known simply as Gurrumul, was an indigenous Australian musician. In 2008, Gurrumul first gained international attention when his self-titled first solo album debuted at #1 on the independent music charts and peaked at #3 on the ARIA charts. "It was a strange way to sign off a conversation," he says. source: http://www.guardian.co.uk/music/2008/jul/17/australia.culture, Your email address will not be published. He was blind from birth and contracted Hepatitis B at the age of three. I was introduced to Gurrumul by Michael Hohnen, his bass player, record producer and close friend, who explained to him about the Archibald and why I wanted to paint him. Maestri did lots of sketches and studied Gurrumuls face intently.
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