Details

Latitude

-13.704

Longitude

133.936

Start Date

2007-06-02

End Date

2007-06-02

The original recording was made by Allan Marett at Beswick, Northern Territory on 20070602, from Jimmy Weson (sometimes spelled Weason), who was the half-brother of Djorli Laywanga and performed with him on many occasions. The context for the recording was a fieldtrip to Katherine, Barunga, Beswick and Weemol, made by Marett, Linda Barwick and Nicholas Evans, recording song materials from knowledgeable performers (including JW) but also playing back to them recordings of Djorli Laywanga and other Bongolinj-Bongolinj practitioners made by Allan Marett in the 1980s. In this recording Jimmy Weson tells of how his brother Djorli had gone to the graveyard and lay down next to the grave of a newly-buried woman from the Arafura coast in order to hear, and learn, the songs of the spirits as they sang out to her spirit to join them. The following year NE made a first-pass transcription 14-15/7/2008, checked with Queenie Brennan 17/7/2008, then given a final check with Manuel Pamkal in Katherine, March 2022.

Sources