Gatehouse hosts Tibetan songs

THE sounds of traditional music from Tibetan nomads will ring though the Gatehouse Ballarat on Sunday, 26 January.

Known as droklu, the songs tell the stories of life from the steppe to the Himalayas and can be accompanied by a bamboo flute called a lingbu.

The performance is led by Tenzin Choegyal, a Brisbane based singer and songwriter who’s inspired by his father’s flute playing and his mother’s singing.

Choegyal is also an artist, composer and activist and will be joined by Japanese musicians Taro Terahara and Ayako Ikeda.

Terahara is an accomplished master of the Indian flute, the bansuri, while Ayako plays the Indian tabla. Both are leaders in the thriving and highly competitive Indian classical music scene in Japan.

The event, titled Raga Shambhala – Bridging the Himalayas, is set for the Gatehouse Ballarat, 1201 Lydiard Street North, from 4pm on 26 January.