School Workshops-Shellie Morris: Home
Welcome to the Shellie Morris Music & Literacy Workshop Homepage.
Shellie Morris is an indigenous Australian and has been conducting childrens music and literacy workshops in Aboriginal communities for ten years. In Shellie's school workshops children write, perform and record their own stories and songs. Shellie Morris has worked in over 50 indigenous communities in Australia and is dedicated to raising the self esteem, creativity and literacy of Aboriginal people. A well known singer songwriter in Australia, Shellie is also an ambassador for the Fred Hollows foundation an international development organisation, focusing on blindness prevention and Australian Indigenous health.
During Shellie's indigenous workshops children are taught literacy by participating and communicating their ideas and beliefs in creative groups. Children write their own songs and stories and then sing and record these on Protools (a professional music program). After the songs have been mastered the children often perform these in concerts in their communities and schools. Children are also provided with a CD of their song and depending on the time frame a full CD and Video is produced complete with artwork provided by the children.
While Shellie mainly works with age groups from transition through to High school, many projects and recordings have also been completed for young adults, bands & choirs. Shellie loves working on remote aboriginal communities and has built up many strong friendships and relationships with the people she has met during the past nine years. Her own aboriginal family being from the Northern Territory and Kakadu. "I am very proud of all the songs featured on this website. They have been written by the children about their lives in their communities. Some tracks also feature individuals with disabilities or victims of domestic violence. it is very inspiring and humbling to work with these amazing people and we hope you enjoy the songs." (Shellie Morris)
ABOUT SHELLIE
Shellie Morris is an Australian Indigenous singer who performs earthy and honest songs. The Australian newspaper described her as ‘an aboriginal chanteuse of rare seriousness and grace’. She has performed everywhere from rural outback Australia to London Festival Hall and the Sydney Opera House with great reviews. Shellie is currently a featured artist with the Black Arm Band. (a collaboration of Australia’s top indigenous artists and jazz musicians) Her song Swept Away was orchestrated and performed in 2008 with the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra. A documentary film on Shellie’s life and music was commissioned and broadcast nationally in 2009 as well as her concert at the Sydney Opera house with Gurrumul Yunupingu. She has released two albums to date and is currently writing the music for her third CD. In addition to this Shellie performed and co-wrote the music Liberty Songs a collaboration between refugees from Liberia and indigenous Australian women. Shellie works with Indigenous communities and youth throughout Australia, helping young people to write music about their experiences. She is an ambassador for the Fred Hollows Foundation (an organisation undertaking community-based work with blindness prevention in Australia, Asia, Africa and the Pacific) and an ambassador for The Jimmy Little Foundation (established to help improve kidney health in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities). In 2004 and 2005 Shellie was awarded the Female Musician of the Year at the N.T. Indigenous music awards. Her album Waiting Road was nominated for album of the year at the 2007 Deadly Awards. In 2010 Shellie performed her song Swept Away at the opening of the Winter Olympics in Vancouver with the Black Arm Band. In 2010 Shellie Morris sang with the international music stars Sinead O’Connor, John Cale, Meshell Ndegeocello, and Rickie Lee Jones, for the show "Seven songs to leave behind". Performing to over twenty thousand people with the Black arm band and orchestra. Shellie has performed at WomadUK and WomAdelaide and has also shared the bill with touring artists of the calibre of Yothu Yindi, Archie Roach, Grinspoon, Vicka and Linda Bull, You am I, Tiddas, Jimmy Little, Bluehouse, Rebecca's Empire and Magic Dirt, Chris Bailey (The Saints) Shane Howard (Goanna).
Glen Heald - Producer, Guitarist, Songwriter
Glen Heald is a qualified music teacher with 12 years of teaching experience, he produced, engineered and edited the music and videos presented on this web site. Glen established the first fully contemporary music course in Darwin Australia in 1992 and in 2001 started performing with Shellie Morris, recording and producing her CD "Waiting Road". Glen composed the acoustic music for the Aboriginal film "Merrepen" in 2005. Toured Europe with Shellie Morris in 2007 and performed at the Sydney Opera House in 2008. Glen produced the music for the Aboriginal film "In a League of their own" in 2009 and produced and released his debut album and his second album in 2010.
People of Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander descent should be aware that the indigenousworkshop website may contain images and names of people who are deceased or images of places that could cause sorrow.