DR LOU BENNETT AM Wurukur Djuanduk Balag – Ancestors Are Calling Words by Christine Lan
Yorta Yorta Dja Dja Wurrung artist and academic Dr Lou Bennett AM has devoted her life to music and language. Appointed as a member (AM) of the Order of Australia in 2019 for her significant service to the performing arts, music and Indigenous community, Bennett has been instrumental in recovering multiple Indigenous languages through the power of music. “A part of my whole purpose is to teach language through song,” says Bennett. “I sing about 15 different languages because of all the different compositions and different communities that I’ve had relationships with. English has its limitations, so being able to learn languages as much as I can while I’m on this earth – that’s my purpose.”
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Alongside her own languages of Yorta Yorta and Dja Dja Wurrung, Bennett speaks and sings in many other Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander languages as well as Welsh, Spanish, Italian and French. Bennett’s PhD examined the importance of retrieving, reclaiming and regenerating Indigenous languages through songs, stories and performances. Her latest research project explores the use of song composition in rematriating Aboriginal languages to their respective communities. Bennett has revitalised the importance of embracing First Nations values and practices.
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