Womad EARTH STATION today unveiled more details of the prominent performers and speakers headlining its inaugural festival, to be held in the Belair National Park Adelaide from 21–23 October.
Complementing the exceptional array of artists already announced, including the world-renowned Kronos Quartet, the Congo’s hypnotic Konono No 1 and Swedish singer-songwriter The Tallest Man on Earth, will be American music icon Rickie Lee Jones in her only South Australian show. Jones will present an intimate solo performance on the Sunday evening of Womad EARTH STATION.
“An American original, Rickie Lee Jones has that rare ability to transfix the listener with her intensely personal songs while fearlessly blazing a trail through the worlds of folk, rock and pop.” Detroit Free Press (USA).
The Sunday line-up will also include the celebrated South African pianist and composer, Abdullah Ibrahim, returning to Australia for the first time since his acclaimed WOMADelaide 2004 appearance with his trio.
Saturday night’s line-up will be led by the extraordinary Indian percussionist, Zakir Hussain and his ensemble featuring the athletic dancing drummers of Manipur. As well as being a star in his own right, Hussain has collaborated with artists such as George Harrison, John McLaughlin, Bela Fleck and more.
They will be joined at Womad EARTH STATION by China's first large-scale modern Chinese orchestra, The Shanghai Chinese Orchestra, some of Australia’s finest indigenous artists including vocalist Emma Donovan and Iwantja Band, who were recently nominated for a 2011 Deadly Award for Most Promising New Talent for Music. Sassy Melbourne songstress Paris Wells has also been included in the line-up, along with multi ARIA-award winning band The Audreys and seven-piece jazz ensemble The Catholics.
Leading the new additions to the Planet Talks program and joining the likes of Cate Blanchett, Andrew Upton and Chief of Staff for former US Vice President Al Gore Roy Neel, is renowned sustainability campaigner Hunter Lovins(USA) who was named TIME Magazine’s “Hero of the Planet” in 2000. Also included is celebrated Australian author Paul Gilding, recipient of the Eureka Prize and the Prime Minister’s Environment Award, President of the Australian Conservation Foundation Professor Ian Lowe, panelist on the ABC’s New Inventors program Bernie Hobbs and Founding Executive Director of the University of Adelaide’s Environment Institute Mike Young.
The Planet Talks program will include 18 sessions which will look closely at a range of key environmental sustainability issues with topics including; ‘Welcome to the Anthropocene: Humanity’s Impact on Earth’ ‘Greening Australia’s Economy’, ‘Populate and Perish?: The Limits to Growth’, ‘River, Estuary, Sea – Who Cares about the Coorong?’, ‘The Price of Inaction’ and ‘Building Sustainable Businesses’.
Running in conjunction with the sustainability and music program, Womad EARTH STATION will host a range of exciting, active spaces throughout the festival grounds aimed at encouraging involvement, learning and fun for everyone in attendance over the weekend, including -The Market – an intimate area featuring a range of invigorating, inspiring and enlightening displays, discussions anddemonstrations of sustainable practices which can be applied within the home and on a community level. The Market will also be the place to indulge in ethical retail therapy.
Further complementing the onsite experience will be the British theatre company Stan’s Café, with their thought-provoking installation, “Of All The People In All the World”. Using 1.3 tons of rice, they make abstract statistics tangible, placing them in careful relation to each other to create a powerful, political and deeply moving work of art.
Womad EARTH STATION acknowledges the contribution and support of event sponsors Jayco as Camping Partner, The City of Mitcham as Event Partner and the University of Adelaide as Education Partner.
The line-up for the performance program is –
- The Kronos Quartet (USA)
- Abdullah Ibrahim (SOUTH AFRICA)
- Rickie Lee Jones (USA)
- Zakir Hussain (INDIA)
- Toumani Diabate (MALI)
- Konono No. 1( DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO)
- The Tallest Man on Earth (SWEDEN)
- The Audreys (AUS)
- The catholics (AUS)
- Emma Donovan Band (AUS)
- Frank Yamma & David Bridie (AUS)
- Iwantja Band (AUS)
- Ellis Pearson – “Man Up a Tree” (SOUTH AFRICA – site artist)
- Mark Atkins (AUS)
- Mista Savona (AUS)
- Pacific Curls (NZ)
- Paris Wells (AUS)
- Shanghai Chinese Orchestra (CHINA)
- Stan’s Cafe “Of All the People in All the World” (UK – site piece)
- Vika & Linda Bull (AUS)
- Wu Man (CHINA)
- The Yearlings (AUS)
The Planet Talks program includes –
- Bruce Thom AM (Wentworth Group of Concerned Scientists and Emeritus Professor University of Sydney)
- Cate Blanchett & Andrew Upton (Sydney Theatre Company)
- Giselle Weybrecht (USA) (Author of The Sustainable MBA)
- Hunter Lovins (USA) (Founder of Natural Capitalism Solutions)
- Samantha Mostyn (Founder of the ‘1 Million Women' movement)
- Robyn Williams (ABC: The Science Show)
- Ian Lowe OA (President of Australian Conservation Foundation)
- John McTernan (UK) (Global expert on public service leadership, adviser to Tony Blair)
- Matthew Wright (Director, Beyond Zero Emissions)
- Rod Quantock (Australian Comedian)
- Mike Young (Director, Environment Institute Adelaide University)
- Mike Sandiford (Director, Melbourne Energy Institute & Professor of Geology Melbourne University)
- Paul Gilding (Author of The Great Disruption, former Head of Greenpeace International)
- Peter Cosier (Director, Wentworth Group of Concerned Scientists)
- Prof Lesley Hughes (Head of Biological Sciences, Macquarie University and Climate Change Commissioner)
- Roy Neel (USA) (Vice President Al Gore’s Chief of Staff)
- Paul Willis (Director, RiAus)
- Stephen Pekar (USA) (Assoc Professor School of Earth & Environmental Science, Queens College New York State)
- Tim Stubbs (Wentworth Group of Concerned Scientists)
- Bernie Hobbs ( ABC: The New Inventors)
- Associate Professor David Paton
- Dominic Skinner (Freshwater Ecology Expert)
- Associate Professor Keith Walker
- Dr Graham Turner (Senior Research Scientist, CSIRO Sustainable Ecosystems)
- Fiona Heinrichs (Author, Sleepwalking to Catastrophe)
For tickets and more information go to www.earthstationfestival.com.au
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