The Gadigal
City Recital Hall acknowledges the Traditional Owners of the land on which the venue now stands – the Gadigal people of the Eora Nation.
Acknowledging Country
International guests to the Hall are often curious about the Acknowledgement of Country that occurs before each event at the Hall. The simple but meaningful custom pays respect to the Aboriginal people that called Sydney home for thousands of years before colonisation and still visit and perform at the Hall today. These First Nations people are known as the Gadigal, who were one of 29 clans of the Eora Nation who occupied what is now called metropolitan Sydney.
Anybody can Acknowledge Country. The format of the Acknowledgement at the Hall varies, with some event presenters performing an acknowledgement live, whilst others use a recording voiced of a person that has a connection to land or the work being performed.
Visitors may also witness a Welcome to Country at the Hall, which is delivered by a representative of the local Traditional Owners of the land – the Gadigal people.
For events presented by the Hall, the voice of Yvonne Weldon AM can be heard. Yvonne is a proud Wiradjuri woman connected to the area we now know as the Riverina and Cowra. Yvonne also has the distinction of being the first Aboriginal Councillor in the City of Sydney's 180+ year history. Yvonne is an independent on the Council, with the City of Sydney being the Principal Sponsor of City Recital Hall.
Yvonne also serves on the Cultural, Creative and Nightlife Committee for the Council, so is a vital part of the City’s team championing live music and storytelling in CBD.
Yvonne was awarded the 2019 NSW Volunteer of the Year for the South Sydney Region and in 2022 was recognised as the NSW Aboriginal Woman of the Year and appointed a Member of the Order of Australia for her service to the Aboriginal community.
The Tank Stream
The construction of the City Recital Hall in the late 1990s revealed new information about the lives of not only the early European settlers in Sydney, but also the Gadigal people who inhabited the land.
Sydney city is built in the Tank Stream valley, referring to a literal stream of fresh water that once flowed through the area and was one of the key reasons Europeans settled Sydney Cove in 1788. The stream drained swampy areas that existed around what is now Hyde Park and flowed north into Circular Quay, through what was once an abundant wood land.
The Aboriginal name for the stream is unknown, but the ‘tank’ reference is related to the collection of the fresh water in the early colony. The Tank Stream path still flows as essentially stormwater today, including under the City Recital Hall. An artwork in the foyer of the Hall acknowledges this historical point today.
The excavation of the site to build the Hall revealed clear proof of Aboriginal inhabitation of the land, with a total of fifty-four flaked-stone artefacts recovered during the investigation of Angel Place.
Further Reading
Barani – Sydney’s Aboriginal History
Sydney University - Angel Place Project 1997 Archaeological Excavation Final Report
City of Sydney - Tankstream into the head of the cove artwork