ABOVE Lydiard Street, the Old Colonists’ Club was alive with personality, live storytelling, and music last week as vibrant creative Geoffrey D\u2019Ombrain shared his latest projects with a local audience.<\/p>\n
The author, composer, singer, multi-instrumentalist, and music educator just turned 91 last month, and launched not one, but two new books he has recently written and published.<\/p>\n
\u201cSomewhere in the Middle <\/em>is full of the stories I need to tell. A long time ago, I started writing down things about my ancestors and family that I thought I ought to pass on, but it became much bigger than that,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n The book includes memories and extraordinary experiences from his childhood and university days, stories from Melbourne\u2019s lively music scene, his connections and friendships with First Nations peoples, leading \u201cprogressive\u201d music education courses, his interactions with birds, and ideas on religion, war, and politics.<\/p>\n \u201cMy other new book, Clear is the Water<\/em> is all about my three journeys around Ireland, and bits of time in Switzerland and Germany, meeting so many people, and singing and improvising with great, famous Irish bands,\u201d D\u2019Ombrain said.<\/p>\n \u201cThe name, Clear is the Water<\/em>, comes from the beautiful song, Red is the Rose<\/em>.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s wonderful to share the stories because so many people have been forgotten that I\u2019ve been able to revitalise, particularly in the music scene. We\u2019re not a very good society at remembering people, so I\u2019ve done a lot of that.\u201d<\/p>\n D\u2019Ombrain said performing his own compositions, covers, and improvised pieces throughout his life has been \u201ca joy.\u201d<\/p>\n At the Old Colonists\u2019 Club, he performed original works, and traditional folk tunes, singing and playing the tin whistle, harp, bass recorder, guitar, and flute along the way.<\/p>\n