The Lucky Country: NAIDOC Week Panel & Concert

To mark NAIDOC Week 2026, Ensemble Offspring presents a powerful new work for quintet and narrator, by our First Nations Composer in Residence Mark Munk Ross. This world premiere performance traces an arc from tens of thousands of years of First Nations custodianship through the ruptures of colonisation, the resilience of migrant communities, and the rise of hip hop as a voice for marginalised youth. His narration moves between memory and lived experience, confronting racism, authority, community, and the idea of Australia as a “Promised Land”.

Woven through shifting instrumental textures, Munk’s storytelling asks audiences to consider whose narratives are celebrated, whose are silenced, and what belonging means in a nation built on both beauty and contradiction.

Presented alongside a panel discussion on “The Lucky Country?” this program invites reflection, dialogue, and a reckoning with the narratives that shape so called Australia.

“Too Deadly” — Limelight

“The sheer diversity of styles, some incorporating jazz, percussion, repetitive and vocal elements, ensures variety and attraction.” — The Australian

“...when First Nations artists are given space to lead, what emerges is a true reflection of the land." – Happy Mag

Program

Panel with Sonya Holowell, Nicole Smede, Mark Munk Ross and Cianna Walker.

MARK MUNK ROSS (2025–26 First Nations Composer in Residence) - The Lucky Country*

MARLENE CUMMINS – Starting Over

* World Premiere

Event Duration: 70 minutes

Performers

Mark Munk Ross (voice)

Claire Edwardes (Artistic Director, percussion)

Lamorna Nightingale (flutes)

Jason Noble (clarinets)

Rowena Macneish (cello)

Panel

Sonya Holowell

Nicole Smede

Mark Munk Ross

Cianna Walker

Photo: Nicole Smede by Keith Saunders