# William Barton (musician)

William Barton is an Aboriginal Australian multi-instrumentalist, known principally for his didgeridoo (yidaki) playing, particularly with classical orchestras. He is also a singer-songwriter and composer.

## Early life and education

William Barton was born in Mount Isa, Queensland. His mob are from the Roper River area, and he is a Kalkadunga man.
He learned to play didgeridoo at the age of 11 from Uncle Arthur Peterson, an elder of the Wannyi, Lardil, and Kalkadungu peoples of Western Queensland.

## Career

By the age of 12 Barton was working in Sydney, playing for Aboriginal dance troupes. At the age of 15 he toured America, after which he decided he wanted to become a soloist rather than a backing musician and started to study different kinds of music. In 1998, he made his classical debut with the Queensland Symphony Orchestra, and became Australia's first didgeridoo artist-in-residence with a symphony orchestra.
Barton moved to Brisbane at the age of 17, where he became a soloist with several classical orchestras.
Barton has said, "The yidaki embodies everything of the land, because it's from the tree, it’s the breath of life and the land, of sustenance to us as human beings. It embodies the history of those old trees. The yidaki has memories, it's the breath of our ancestors, particularly when the instrument is passed on physically from one person to the next." He has also expressed his wish "to take the oldest culture in the world and blend it with Europe's rich musical legacy".

### Performances

Barton has appeared at music festivals around the world and has also recorded a number of orchestral works. He featured in Peter Sculthorpe's Requiem, a major work for orchestra, chorus and didgeridoo, which premiered the Adelaide Festival of Arts in 2004 with the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra and Adelaide Voices conducted by Richard Mills. This was reputedly the first time a didgeridoo has featured in a full symphonic work. The work has since been performed in the UK at The Lichfield Festival with The City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra and Birmingham's choir Ex Cathedra, conducted by Jeffrey Skidmore.
In May 2004, ABC Classics released Songs of Sea and Sky, an album of works by Peter Sculthorpe revised for didgeridoo and orchestra. Performed by Barton and the Queensland Orchestra conducted by Michael Christie.
In 2004 he, along with poet Samuel Wagan Watson and composers Stephen Leek, devised the operatic piece "Die dunkle erde", for the Brisbane Festival. The piece blended German Gothic horror and Aboriginal culture, and was performed by Watson and Barton on The Music Show in 2011.
In 2005, Barton performed at the 90th anniversary Gallipoli at ANZAC Cove, Turkey, and in debut concerts with the London Philharmonic Orchestra at Royal Festival Hall in London. In 2005/2006, Barton collaborated with orchestras, choral directors and composers in Australia, America and Europe, developing new commissions for the didgeridoo.
On 5 November 2014, Barton performed at the memorial service for former Prime Minister Gough Whitlam in the Sydney Town Hall.
In 2015, Barton performed at the 100th anniversary opening Gallipoli at ANZAC Cove, Turkey for dawn service.
In 2019, Barton played with the Sydney Symphony Orchestra an orchestral rendition of Down Under at the memorial service for former Prime Minister Bob Hawke at the Sydney Opera House.
In 2023, Barton performed at the AFL Grand Final.

## Media appearances

Barton featured on the ABC television program, Australian Story in 2007.
In 2011, he performed and was interviewed by Andrew Ford on The Music Show, along with poet Samuel Wagan Watson.

## Recognition and awards

In November 2022, Barton was named Queensland Australian of the Year.
In 2023, Barton become the first Indigenous artist to receive the Richard Gill Award for distinguished service to Australian music.
Barton was jointly selected with pianist Tamara Anna Cislowska for the 2004 Freedman Fellowship for Classical Music by the Music Council of Australia.
In 2004, he was awarded the Brisbane Lord Mayor's Young and Emerging Artists' Fellowship, and the following year he was a metropolitan finalist for the Suncorp Young Queenslander of the Year Award.

### AIR Awards

The Australian Independent Record Awards (commonly known informally as AIR Awards) is an annual awards night to recognise, promote and celebrate the success of Australia's Independent Music sector.
| Year | Nominee / work | Award | Result | Ref. |
| 2023 | Heartland (with Véronique Serret) | Best Independent Classical Album or EP | Won | |

### APRA Music Awards

The APRA Awards are held in Australia and New Zealand by the Australasian Performing Right Association to recognise songwriting skills, sales and airplay performance by its members annually.
| Year | Nominee / work | Award | Result | Ref. |
| 2022 | "Spirit Voice of the Enchanted Waters" from River (William Barton, Piers Burbrook de Vere & Richard Tognetti) | Best Original Song Composed for the Screen | Won | |

### ARIA Music Awards

The ARIA Music Awards is an annual awards ceremony that recognises excellence, innovation, and achievement across all genres of Australian music. They commenced in 1987.
| Year | Nominee / work | Award | Result |
| 2004 | Sculthorpe: Songs of Sea and Sky (with The Queensland Orchestra) | Best Classical Album | Nominated |
| 2012 | Kalkadungu | Best Classical Album | Won |
| 2014 | Birdsong at Dusk | Best World Music Album | Nominated |
| 2021 | Restless Dream (with Bob Weatherall & Halfway) | Best World Music Album | Nominated |
| 2022 | Heartland (with Véronique Serret) | Best World Music Album | Nominated |
| 2022 | History Has a Heartbeat (with Joseph Tawadros) | Best World Music Album | Won |

### Art Music Awards

| Year | Nominee / work | Award | Result | Ref. |
| 2023 | William Barton | Richard Gill Award for Distinguished Services to Australian Music | awarded | |

### Don Banks Music Award

The Don Banks Music Award was established in 1984 to publicly honour a senior artist of high distinction who has made an outstanding and sustained contribution to music in Australia. It was founded by the Australia Council in honour of Don Banks, Australian composer, performer and the first chair of its music board.
| Year | Nominee / work | Award | Result |
| 2021 | William Barton | Don Banks Music Award | awarded |

### Environmental Music Prize

The Environmental Music Prize is a quest to find a theme song to inspire action on climate and conservation. It commenced in 2022.
| Year | Nominee / work | Award | Result | Ref. |
| 2022 | "Your Country" (William Crighton featuring William Barton & Julieanne Crighton) | Environmental Music Prize | Nominated | |

### National Live Music Awards

The National Live Music Awards (NLMAs) commenced in 2016 to recognize contributions to the live music industry in Australia.
| Year | Nominee / work | Award | Result | Ref. |
| 2023 | William Barton | Best Live Instrumentalist | Nominated | |

### Queensland Music Awards

The Queensland Music Awards (previously known as the Q Song Awards) are an annual awards ceremony celebrating Queensland's brightest emerging artists and established legends. They commenced in 2006.
| Year | Nominee / work | Award | Result | Ref. |
| 2023 | "Kalkani" | Indigenous Award | Won | |

## Discography
### Albums

| Title | Details |
| Songs of Sky and Sea (with Peter Sculthorpe, Michael Christie and the Queensland Orchestra) | Release date: 2004 Label: ABC Classics (476 192-1) Formats: CD |
| Earth Cry / Piano Concerto (with Peter Sculthorpe, Tamara Anna Cislowska, New Zealand Symphony Orchestra and James Judd) | Release date: 2004 Label: Naxos (8.557382) Formats: CD |
| The Journey | Release date: 2004 Label: William Barton Formats: CD |
| Ancient Souls, Ancient Land (with Sean O'Boyle) | Release date: 2007 Label: William Barton Formats: CD |
| Desert Stars Dancing (with Anthony Garcia) | Release date: 2010 Label: Vitamin (MMLL-003) Formats: CD |
| Kalkadungu - Music for Didjeridu And Orchestra | Release date: 2012 Label: ABC Classics (476 4834) Formats: CD |
| Birdsong at Dusk | Release date: 2014 Label: ABC Classics (481 0962) Formats: CD |
| The Art of the Didgeridoo (with Matthew Doyle) | Release date: 2015 Label: ABC Classics (481 1909) Formats: CD |
| Restless Dream (Bob Weatherall & Halfway with William Barton) | Release date: August 2021 Label: Halfway, ABC Formats: CD, DD, streaming |
| Heartland (with Véronique Serret) | Release date: 22 July 2022 Label: Halfway, ABC (ABCL0017) Formats: CD, DD, streaming |
| History Has a Heartbeat (with Joseph Tawadros) | Release date: 12 August 2022 Label: Joseph Tawadros Formats: CD, streaming |