Login

Enter your username and password

Forgotten your username or password?

Your Shopping Cart

There are no items in your shopping cart.

22 May 2008

A new ending for the Sorry Song

by Australian Music Centre

A new ending for the Sorry Song

'Sing sorry across this land' wrote the West Australian composer Kerry Fletcher in her 1998 Sorry Song. The inclusion of this song in the ABC songbook, used in government and private schools as a music teaching resource, subsequently provoked some debate about political correctness and whether or not it was appropriate to teach and sing the song in schools.

Since the apology to the stolen generations of Australian Indigenous people by the Australian government in February 2008, the song now has a new verse, and a new ending.

Sing, sing loud, we've broken the silence,
Let 'sorry' start healing our land.

The song, lyrics and sheet music are available for free download on the Sorry Song website at http://www.sgalliance.org.au/ssng.htm

The National Sorry Day, held each year on 26 May, was established after the publication of the Bringing them home report in 1997. This report was the result of a national enquiry into the removal of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children from their families as a matter of government policy from 1869 until 1969.

Further links

National Sorry Day Committee (http://www.nsdc.org.au)

© Australian Music Centre (2008) — Permission must be obtained from the AMC if you wish to reproduce this article either online or in print.

As a national service organisation, the Australian Music Centre is dedicated to increasing the profile and sustainability of Australian composers and other creative artists. The AMC facilitates the performance, awareness and appreciation of music by these artists through: composer and other creative artist representation and assistance; resonate – its online magazine; library and retail services; sheet music publishing; and the management, administration and publication of project-based initiatives. Its library collection holds over 30,000 items by more than 500 artists.

Comments

Be the first to share add your thoughts and opinions in response to this article.

You must login to post a comment.