In the bottom of their hollows (now filling up with water), the Ancients shifted one leg, then another leg. They shook their shoulders and flexed their arms. They heaved their bodies upwards throught eh mud. Their eyelids cracked open. They saw their children at play in the sunshine.

The mud fell from their thighs, like placenta froma baby. Then, like the baby's cry, each Ancestor opened his mouth and called out, 'I AM!' 'I am – Snake . . . Cockatoo . . .  Honey-ant . . . Honeysuckle . . .  And this first 'I am!', this primordial act of naming, was held, then and forever after, as the most secret and sacred couplet of the Ancestor's song.

Each of the Ancients (now basking in the sunlight) put his left foot forward and called out a second name. He put his right foot forward and called out a third name. He named the waterhole, the reedbeds, the gumtrees – calling to right and left, calling all things into being and weaving their names into verses. The Ancients sang their way all over the world. They sang the rivers and ranges, salt-pans and sand dunes. They hunted, made love, danced killed: wherever their tracks led they left a trail of music.

They wrapped the whole world in a web of song.

Aboriginal Creation Story (from Bruce Chatwin, Songlines)

The Gorgeous Voices Festival is inclusive. Our aim is to celebrate the gorgeous voices of everyone, to celebrate song.

Since we want to encourage broad, community participation in the Festival, and to make men and boys feel welcome and invited, we are taking out the word 'women' in all the Festival advertising.

As the new Director of the Gorgeous Voices Festival I want to be clear on the reasons for this, because I want to be sure to honour the Feminist spirit and roots of this Festival. It seems to me, in 2008 and with two festivals behind us, that we have reached a point where the specific labelling and marketing of the festival for women would send the wrong message and actually be marginalising. Forty years ago, a similar festival (maybe Woodstock?) would never have been advertised as a “men's” Festival, yet the writers and musicians involved would have overwhelmingly been men. Today women’s involvement in singing, especially choral singing, is massive. When it comes to community singing, women are in the majority. We believe that our Festival will continue to be predominantly female in its appeal, without the need to be labelled a women’s festival.

With our contemporary feminist awareness we will continue to practice positive discrimination, or affirmative action, for women, acknowledging that women have particular needs and challenges and recognising that in some areas of the musical arena all is not yet equal. In terms of its program the festival will continue to promote women performers, writers and conductors. Childcare continues to limit women’s participation in events such as ours and we will attempt to address this through applying for specific funding for children's workshops, family workshops, but also for childcare for pre-schoolers to enable women with young children to attend workshops and concerts.

As for the song content of program, the Festival will also promote affirmative content and will not tolerate misogyny.  What constitutes “affirmative” can be a thorny problem. For instance, I have been appalled to find myself singing songs such as 'Oh my man I love him so . . . he beats me too, what can I do' and 'can't help lovin dat man . .  . .  tell me I'm crazy; maybe I know . . . I even loves him when his kisses got gin'. These lyrics express the confusion of one woman who is caught in domestic violence and another who is a victim of the affects of alcohol abuse. Some might interpret the songs as reinforcing women’s victim roles. But, as a singer, and as a woman, it has been important to be able to express those sentiments that can be very real and to feel the weight of Billie Holliday, Bessie Smith and millions of other women behind them, in the current climate where we have the sole parent pension and women' refuges and help centres and other institutions of support. On the other hand, 'An ugly woman told me no,' sung by a young man going out to pick up at the pub, I find deeply offensive. The song was supposed to be funny, but there was not much laughter from the audience. Another contemporary lyric I find offensive is 'I bet you wish your girlfriend was hot like me' - lines calculated to inflame competition between women and divide them. We will not prescribe what kinds of songs must be sung, but performers at the Festival will be informed that their repertoires should not include songs which are sexist, racist or offensive to other social groups. Context counts. Contentious lyrics need careful awareness from the singer and the listener for them to be a positive contribution to the world.

It also seems appropriate, given the state of the world and the fragility of relationships between men and women, that we all sing together. Many more women in our culture sing than men do, and we would be wise to welcome men – and children - into our space. We want a safe place for all.

We seek to be united and inclusive and if we find a song or a lyric or a performer or a workshop that serves that end, we will have it, thank you very much.

The Gorgeous Voices Choir after their stunning performance at the Commonwealth Games Arts Festival in Bendigo, March 2006

All the family, and indeed all of the community, is welcome to come along and help celebrate voices.

After the success of our 2006 Gorgeous Voices Festival, we are set to run the third Festival, creating inspiring and welcoming spaces for singing and sharing of stories and music.

THE GORGEOUS VOICES FESTIVAL IS:

• Part Conference
  -sharing your songs and resources
• Part Workshop
  -learning new skills
• Part Performance
  -performing to each other and to the community