Camerata & Emily Wurramara
October 6, 2022, The Brisbane Powerhouse
Soulful vocals met soaring strings when award-winning First Nations singer-songwriter Emily Wurramara performed with Camerata.
Held on Thursday night at the Brisbane Powerhouse, this concert took listeners on a powerful journey. It blended personal storytelling with music of country, healing, and heritage.
Emily performed a selection of her original songs, accompanied by Camerata. The program celebrated contemporary Australian music. It featured works by Australian composers including John Rodgers, Robert Davidson, Isabella Gerometta, Alexander Voltz and Emily.
Camerata opened the concert with Robert Davidson’s Elegy from A Short Hour Unseen. This piece shifted between ethereal, floating textures and grounded, pop-influenced chord progressions.
Emily then took centre stage. Her deeply soulful and heartfelt vocals filled the hall. Together with Camerata, she performed John Rodgers’ Hear Me and Remember. This was a moving and memorable moment.
Then, we heard two of Emily’s own songs, Ementha Papaguneray (The Turtle Song) and Ngarrikwujeyinama (I’m Hurting). She sang in her home language, Anindilyakwa, as well as in English. Her voice wove in and out with the strings.
Camerata then performed Isabella Gerometta’s Beams and Waves. This piece was inspired by the Tree of Knowledge memorial in Barcaldine. The memorial is constructed of over 3000 beams of wood, suspended on the inside of a large box surrounding the tree. When the wind passes through, these beams make their own music. The composition was commissioned by Camerata for their regional tour in 2018. Hearing it last night in the Powerhouse was like being transported from the city to the country.
Emily returned to the stage to perform four of her songs, Crusin’, Rain Song, Oh Pretty Baby, and Friend. Emily sang these with authenticity and warmth, sharing her stories. A favourite for me was Crusin’, which took a difficult time of loss and turned it into a catchy and hopeful song. Another special moment was in Rain Song, when Emily asked the audience to sing along.
Camerata then performed the world premiere of a new work by Alexander Voltz. Alex is currently Camerata’s Emerging Composer-in-Residence. His work takes inspiration from myth, politics, history, and the human condition. This was an energetic and dynamic piece.
To finish, Camerata and Emily performed two more of her songs, See Me There and Black Smoke. See Me There was inspired by her experiences of falling in love and moving to Tasmania. Emily said that Black Smoke was written while she was a teenager, sitting on her parent’s roof and dreaming of the future. These songs evoked the landscapes, skies and stories of her home.
The Powerhouse was filled with applause. Camerata and Emily Wurramara received standing ovations and cheers. As an encore, they then performed Rain Song again, with the audience singing along. This was a special way to end the evening.
Photo Credit – Alex Jamieson
