Echoes of the Land

Exploring the Integration of First Nations Australian Musical Gestures in Contemporary Bass Clarinet Repertoire
Master’s Research Thesis – Hanze University of Applied Sciences, Prins Claus Conservatorium (2025)

Abstract

Echoes of the Land is a practice-based research project that explores how First Nations Australian musical gestures and ethical frameworks can be integrated into contemporary bass clarinet repertoire. Centered on Felicity Wilcox’s People of This Place, the study examines how cultural awareness, compositional ethics, and performance interpretation interact in the process of creation and realization.

After consulting Gadigal Elders and First Nations colleagues, Wilcox chose to rename the work from Yurabirong (meaning “People of This Place”) to its English title. This decision embodies an act of truth-telling and reflection on the ethics of language use and cultural permission. Her approach reframes artistic creation as a cross-cultural dialogue grounded in listening, reciprocity, and respect.

The bass clarinet, with its wide range and deep resonance, becomes a medium that bridges sound and land. Through different type of multiphonics, tonguing, air sounds, and vocalizations, the instrument evokes layers of natural, spiritual, and ancestral imagery—transforming technique into a vehicle for cultural and emotional expression.

Conclusion

The study concludes that the essence of intercultural music-making lies not in technical innovation but in the cultivation of relationships, humility, and ethical awareness. People of This Place serves as a model for future creative practices that honor First Nations worldviews through sincerity, dialogue, and shared responsibility.

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〈土地的迴響〉

探索澳洲第一民族音樂語彙於當代低音單簧管作品中的整合
荷蘭漢斯應用科技大學（Hanze University of Applied Sciences）克勞斯親王音樂院 音樂碩士研究論文（2025）

摘要

《土地的迴響》為一項以實踐為核心的研究計畫，探討如何在當代低音單簧管作品中，以倫理與尊重為基礎，融入澳洲第一民族的音樂語彙與文化觀點。研究以 Felicity Wilcox 的〈此地之人〉 (People of This Place) 為核心案例，分析作曲與演奏過程中文化意識與詮釋實踐的關係。

Wilcox 在與 Gadigal 長者及第一民族同儕諮詢後，決定將原名 Yurabirong 改為英文名稱，象徵對語言使用與文化授權的反思，亦展現「真相述說」（truth-telling）的倫理實踐。她的創作態度將藝術行為轉化為關於傾聽、互惠與尊重的跨文化對話。

低音單簧管以其廣闊音域與深沉音色，成為連結聲音與土地的媒介。多層次的複音、運舌、氣息聲與人聲的聲響轉化，不僅展現技術，更喚起自然、靈性與祖靈的象徵層次。

研究結論

研究指出，跨文化創作與演奏的核心不在於技巧的突破，而在於關係的建立、謙遜的態度，以及持續實踐的倫理意識。〈此地之人〉作為典範，啟發未來在尊重第一民族世界觀的前提下，發展真誠對話與共同責任的音樂創作。