Ntaria Ladies Choir
Encyclopedia
Ntaria Ladies Choir are a choir
from Hermannsburg
in Central Australia
. The members are aboriginal women from the area and they sing a mixture of English and Arrente. The choir has its roots in work done by Lutheran Pastors
Kemp and Schwartz in 1887 They created an Arrente language hymn book from which the choir sang in the early years. Other choirmasters have included Pastor Carl Strehlow
, Pastor Paul Albrecht and the current choirmaster Pastor David Roenfeldt. Since 1970 it has been a ladies only choir. Albert Namatjira
may have sung with the choir in the 1950s.
They were the subject of the documentary Cantata Journey which tells the story of their performance with the Sydney Symphony in May 2003.
Choir
A choir, chorale or chorus is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform.A body of singers who perform together as a group is called a choir or chorus...
from Hermannsburg
Hermannsburg, Northern Territory
Hermannsburg is an Aboriginal community in the Northern Territory of Australia, 131 km southwest of Alice Springs. It is known in the local Western Arrernte language as Ntaria....
in Central Australia
Central Australia
Central Australia/Alice Springs Region is one of the five regions in the Northern Territory. The term Central Australia is used to describe an area centred on Alice Springs in Australia. It is sometimes referred to as Centralia; likewise the people of the area are sometimes called Centralians...
. The members are aboriginal women from the area and they sing a mixture of English and Arrente. The choir has its roots in work done by Lutheran Pastors
Lutheranism
Lutheranism is a major branch of Western Christianity that identifies with the theology of Martin Luther, a German reformer. Luther's efforts to reform the theology and practice of the church launched the Protestant Reformation...
Kemp and Schwartz in 1887 They created an Arrente language hymn book from which the choir sang in the early years. Other choirmasters have included Pastor Carl Strehlow
Carl Strehlow
Carl Friedrich Strehlow was a German Lutheran missionary in outback Australia who headed the Finke River Mission in Hermannsburg, Northern Territory from 1894-1922. He learnt and documented the languages of the Arrernte and Luritja people, and published together with Moritz von Leonhardi a...
, Pastor Paul Albrecht and the current choirmaster Pastor David Roenfeldt. Since 1970 it has been a ladies only choir. Albert Namatjira
Albert Namatjira
Albert Namatjira , born Elea Namatjira, was an Australian artist. He was a Western Arrernte man, an Indigenous Australian of the Western MacDonnell Ranges area...
may have sung with the choir in the 1950s.
They were the subject of the documentary Cantata Journey which tells the story of their performance with the Sydney Symphony in May 2003.
Discography
Albums- Tjina Kngarra (the Best of Friends) (2011) - Tracks of the Desert Inc
- Ekarlta nai! (1999) - Tracks of the Desert Inc
- Arrente Christmas Carols (1988) - Imparja
- Hermannsburg Aranda Ladies Choir (1985) - Imparja