ABC Dig Music

If you can get to Brisbane on Wednesday August 31 and would like to be in the running to win a double pass to see Gurrumul perform at the Queensland Conservatorium of Music for ABC Dig Music and 612 ABC Brisbane, fill in the form below and tell us where you were and what you experienced when you first heard Gurrumul. 

We have ten double passes to give away.

When Gurrumul released his debut CD Geoffrey Gurrumul Yunupingu, he made time to perform to a select audience for ABC Dig Music and 774 ABC Melbourne in the foyer of the ABC Victorian studios.  You can see some songs from that performance here. The emotion in the room was extraordinary and is still talked about in reverential tones - something Brisbane audiences can look forward to this time around. 

In its first week of release, Rrakala debuted at #3 on the National ARIA charts and it has recently gone gold.  The title refers to a sub-group of people within the Gumatj clan.  

ABC Dig Music is proud to be supporting Gurrumul's national tour.  All the dates are here.  

The prize is tickets only.  Winners must be able to make their own way to the venue.

The competition is now closed.

Due to unforseen circumstances, Gurrumul has had to cancel this show.  All winners have received tickets to his performance at the Brisbane Entertainment Centre. 

The winners were:

Mekita Vanderheyde - I can't tell you the exact moment I heard Gurrumul; I can only remember becoming gradually aware of a haunting, ancient voice playing on radio stations and in shops; and sometimes in cafes, restaurants and other public places. One day I caught the name of whom this voice belonged to. I bought the CD Rrakala and for the next hour felt loose, lost, suspended in space and just entranced. This music? - I've heard a lot of world music, but I've never heard this unique spirit before.

Liz Wiffen - I was sitting at my desk designing a cartography book listening to abcdigmusic when I heard the lovely sounds of Gurrumul. I called over my partner and said, this album is a birthday present hint we then went to check out more of his sounds on you tube. Now we are a Gurrumul addict, he is part of our creative day and features heavily in the studio playlists.

Stuart Sanders - I was driving,listening to ABC Radio National. When I heard Gurrumul I had to pull over to listen to the sweet sound and then listen even harder to catch his name.. hard still to try to spell it phonetically writing on the back of a piece of cardboard with a stop/start ballpen. It was worth it though!

Wojtek Tomaszewski - I first heard Gurrumul about a year ago. I was living in London at the time. It must have been spring or summer because I remember it was a sunny and warm day. I was on my lunch break, going to the gym and listening to the BBC Radio 2, as I used to do in London. I remember that Jeremy Vine of the BBC announced a song by someone 'with a voice of an angel' or something similar. I couldn't catch the name though. I heard the song, which I found out later, was 'Wiyathul' and was simply mesmerized. When I returned to the office, I went straight to YouTube trying to search for something that I thought resembled the name of the singer. Fortunately, the YouTube word suggestion algorithm must have been working well and I was able to locate Gurrumul fairly quickly. I've been a big fan since that day. I'm so excited to hear that he is coming to Brisbane, where I currently live. It would be so great to be able to see him at what seems to be a fantastic special event so I wish myself luck in the competition

Nicolette Hill - I was listening to Spencer Howson in the morning a couple of years ago, when space and time just stopped..... the hairs on the back of my arms stood on end, unable to do anything else but immerse in the beauty of a voice that can only come from a deeply spiritual soul. To this day everytime I listen I experience the same.... it makes me smile and cry, grateful that I have had the privilege to listen to something truly sublime.

Beth Anderson - I first heard Geoffrey Gurrumul on DIG Radio a couple of years ago and was completely blown away by his magical voice. Shortly after I read an article Kathleen Noonan (Courier Mail journalist) wrote about seeing him in concert and how extraordinary his performance was with the comment that his voice was the voice of an angel and the audience were mesmerised.  I knew I then had to get his first cd which was brilliant.  Would LOVE to see Gurrumul perform in this small environment and be a part of this experience.

Megan Fraser -  While I first heard Gurrumul's haunting music broadcast from a small portable disc player at the Skinnyfish music stall at Parap markets, it was at the Darwin Festival in 2008 where I was lucky enough to see and hear him live. I was speechless. The simplicity of his music and delivery is incredibly emotional. An added bonus that evening was his set with Blue King Brown. A tropical setting in the Darwin Botanical Gardens, balmy weather and great music - it doesn't get any better than that.

Joanna Bell - I was sitting under the stars on the verandah of my new house, just after buying my first home, and listened to Gurrumul's CD that a friend bought me for a house warming present.  I couldn't believe what I was hearing - one of the most beautiful sounds I had ever heard.  Every time I listen to the CD I am taken back to that moment where I felt so excited and lucky to be alive and living in this beautiful land.  It was a moment that I will cherish forever as I finally realised that anything can be achieved with a dream.  Gurrumul's music encapsulated that moment for me.

Val Partridge - Driving to Toowoomba with my husband to visit my elderly mother I often found this drive very sad since my father had passed away. My husband put on his new favorite CD - Geoffrey Gurrumul Yunupingu- for me to listen to and I found myself weeping uncontrollably. Very beautiful and very emotive.

Russell Ensbey - I try to watch ABC's Message Stick when I can. In 2008 I happened to watch the episode "Gurrumul - Son Of The Rainbow Serpent" and was deeply moved by Gurrumul's story and his beautiful voice and music. I still am.

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