Page 14 - 2024 The Song Room Year in Review

CASE STUDY | Strong Bala Wei: Music at the Heart of Community
in Bulman
In the small, remote community of Bulman in central Arnhem Land, 5 hours’ drive off the bitumen, music education is transforming classrooms, connecting generations, and building a stronger, more united school community.
Since 2018, The Song Room has worked alongside Bulman School and the community to create a music education program designed and led by the local First Nations community. The partnership has grown into something truly powerful.
When the program began, students were shy and reluctant to sing in class. Over the last two years, Teaching Artist, Steve, worked closely with the school community, local musicians and cultural knowledge holders to create a safe space. Students were taught music skills and encouraged to compose simple lyrics about their Country and community, recording their work over basic rapping tracks. Over time, students have become more confident, and the lyrics and instrument playing have become more sophisticated.
The songs have also evolved. Original songs written and recorded by the students and community are reviving endangered First Nations languages through music, including Dalabon and Rembarrnga. By writing, singing, and recording in these languages for the first time, students are not only learning and preserving their heritage but also building resources that will teach future generations. With Steve’s support these songs now include more individual players, more skill, and more community involvement.
The students look forward to The Song Room program as a rite of passage in their school life. The songs have become embedded in daily life in and out of the school, often sung on road trips to outstations and during Learning on Country sessions.
Nathaniel Miller, a proud Gulin Gulin man, is the dedicated community artist engaged by The Song Room to play and teach music at the school on a regular basis. Having expressed a desire to bring local music back into the school in 2022, he teaches both the old songs and new. In 2024, Nathaniel was awarded the ARIA Music Teacher Award for his work.
In 2024 an old lullaby sung by Elder Vivienne Lawrence to her children was revived with students at the school. The student’s song, Strong Bala Wei, is a wonderful example of community-led learning. Vivienne joined students in the classroom to share the song, Elders translated the lyrics in Dalabon, Rembarrgna, Kriol and English, and the students performed it. It celebrates caring for Country and each other.
Over the years the Bulman school’s relationship with community has developed significantly due to strong leadership and collaboration between local Elders, Mimal Land Management, the school principal Adam Cox and his team, and The Song Room. Nathaniel’s presence has deepened community ownership and made music a regular part of school life. Together, they’ve created an environment where the school plays a critical role in the community and
where students find their voice and proudly share it.
Bulman School has won awards across the Northern Territory for their work including the Community Clip of the Year at the National Indigenous Music Awards (NIMA) and in the 2024 Caring for Country Music Competition, and we couldn’t be happier for them.
This work is supported by The Smith Family, Katherine, through the Communities for Children Initiative, funded by the Australian Government Department of Social Services.
Read more about the program in Bulman here:
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The Song Room | 2024 Year in Review