This entry was posted on 2/3/2007 9:55 PM and is filed under Australia.
During the celebration of Australia Day there was also a "busker's trail", where the street performers set up
and did their acts for donations from the crowds. Many of them were
quite talented.
"Busking" and "Buskers" were new words to us - but we did find them later in the Merriam Webster dictionary:
Etymology: busk, probably from Italian buscare to procure, gain, from Spanish buscar to look for.
Chiefly British : a person who entertains in a public place for donations.
We see buskers throughout the city almost every day, but they were
really out in force on Australia Day. Here are some of the better
examples:
Here's an aboriginal playing the didgeridoo...
Play
the movie to hear what the didgeridoo sounds like. For those of
you unfamiliar with this very Australian instrument, it is unusual in
that it is played with "circular breathing"- a very difficult technique
whereby you breath in through your nose and play out through your mouth
at the same time. Bowie can do it, but don't ask us!
Here's a group of four Aboriginal sisters who have a group called
Freshwater. We really enjoyed them and the flavor of their
music. We sat on the steps by the harbour listening to them for
quite some time, with the tall ship in the background and the view of
the Opera House beyond.
And one of the wide street malls (Market St) held this old fashioned
street organ playing tune after tune to the delight of all. It
reminded us of Papa OJ's music box collection, with the mechanization
of the ladies playing the cymbals and the automated drums. The
movie we have shows it from the front and the back, so you can enjoy
the mechanics of it too. The sound quality was wonderful....
We particularly thought of Joss and Bowie when we met up with this band
in the Pitt Street Mall - they were really great, and had a large and
enthralled gathering for quite some time...
Further down along Pitt Street we encountered this tuba player.
Though he looked a wee bit scruffy, he sure had a nice tone. And
hey - it ain't easy playing solo tuba out on the streets! Be sure
to listen to the movie too..
This guy's busking act was getting people to hold ropes that balanced a
pole he had a bike on top and then was balancing and juggling on top of the
bike...Very tricky...
And then to cap it all off - here's one more movie that really gives
you a sense of Australia Day. This busker
played all the musical instruments as sound effects, through his mouth
and nose all at once. He went from the Australian Anthem (you'll
notice a lot of happy young Aussies joining in on this one) straight
into a bit of hip-hop break dance music. The drum beat we think
happened in his nose, although we're not sure of this. A weird talent, but certainly worth a few
coins in the hat...
