In this poignant memoir, anthropologist and author David Turner tells of how he played the yiraga --- a musical instrument played by the aboriginal peoples of Australia --- for his friend and former partner Alexa, following her death in 2020. Turner describes the meaning of the yiraga within Australian aboriginal culture, and how he learned to play the instrument over the course of several decades living with and learning from indigenous peoples on Australia's Groote Eylandt archipelago. The result is a profound ...
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In this poignant memoir, anthropologist and author David Turner tells of how he played the yiraga --- a musical instrument played by the aboriginal peoples of Australia --- for his friend and former partner Alexa, following her death in 2020. Turner describes the meaning of the yiraga within Australian aboriginal culture, and how he learned to play the instrument over the course of several decades living with and learning from indigenous peoples on Australia's Groote Eylandt archipelago. The result is a profound meditation on the meaning of life and death. FROM THE BOOK: "Grief might prove debilitating at first and serve to clear the mind of all thoughts and distractions in preparation, except that the act of playing the yiraga induces a becalming state of mind/being in which only the sense of breathing remains. This is effected by the repetitive rhythms of the mouth-sound tempos (which there is no need to sound to oneself once one becomes adept at playing), of which there are three: degul degul , quick; degul-degula-gula , medium; and degula degula , slow. It is in a becalmed but empty state of mind/being that one potentially enters a mediating zone between the "real" and the "transcendent" and is able to open a portal for the departed in their journey." Illustrated with more than 40 full-colour images
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PLEASE NOTE, WE DO NOT SHIP TO DENMARK. New Book. Shipped from UK in 4 to 14 days. Established seller since 2000. Please note we cannot offer an expedited shipping service from the UK.
Choose your shipping method in Checkout. Costs may vary based on destination.
Seller's Description:
PLEASE NOTE, WE DO NOT SHIP TO DENMARK. New Book. Shipped from UK in 4 to 14 days. Established seller since 2000. Please note we cannot offer an expedited shipping service from the UK.