For one night only on October 14, multi-award-winning songwriter Kutcha Edwards and the Sydney Symphony Orchestra will transform the Sydney Opera House into a river of sound and ceremony with Ngarli-Wangu (Our Song).
Coinciding with the two-year anniversary of the Voice referendum, this landmark event celebrates truth-telling, cultural stewardship and voices too often unheard.
A highly respected Elder and Songman, Edwards has curated this special event and will both host and perform throughout the evening alongside leading First Nations artists, including vocalists Dr Shellie Morris AO, Emily Wurramara, Kankawa Nagarra and Ray Dimikarri Dixon, and dancers. He will also premiere My Favourite Drop, a poem he wrote at age 13 inspired by the river that carries his people's story.
With Conductor in Residence Benjamin Northey at the podium, Edwards, guest artists and the Orchestra will bring to life anthems spanning four decades of Blak artistry in a moving musical experience.
"Imagine an eighteen-month-old Aboriginal boy born on the banks of the Murrumbidgee River being wrenched from his mother and father in 1967 and denied his rightful journey in life. The course of the river in him was redirected," he said.
"Imagine now the river in that little boy has made its way to the famous Concert Hall at the iconic Sydney Opera House in a collaboration with the renowned Sydney Symphony Orchestra.
"And ironically two years on from the day of the failed Voice Referendum on 14 October 2023, we present – 'Ngarli Wangu' (Our Voice). He now has his own voice."
Since 1991, Edwards has woven activism and songwriting throughout his career. He has performed with Black Arm Band and Blackfire and cultivated a solo journey that blends his distinctive 'Bidgee' blues with the traditional songs of his people.
His proud Mutti Mutti heritage and his experiences as a survivor of the Stolen Generations have shaped his diverse creative output, which has seen him collaborate with Australian music luminaries including Paul Kelly, the late Archie Roach AC, Judith Durham and Emma Donovan.
Edwards has also pioneered projects such as Beyond the Bars – a live prison radio series that earned a Human Rights Award – reflecting his lifelong commitment to social justice.
The concert promises a multi-sensory journey through Country. A soundscape recording will greet audiences as they take their seats while the Orchestra surges through the Concert Hall, transforming the stage into Lake Mungo. Interpretive dancers perform ceremony around a side- stage bush fire, and projections of Edwards' Country illuminate his storytelling.
Ngarli-Wangu (Our Song) is more than a concert – it is a conversation, a remembrance and a celebration of voices that carry the story of this land.
You can catch Kutcha Edwards and the Sydney Symphony Orchestra from Tuesday the 14th of October – 7pm Concert Hall, Sydney Opera House.
For more fashion, arts, culture and lifestyle news subscribe for free to the Style Up newsletter.
