Meditations on Australia is a deep, personal journey. Throughout my life, I’ve had the privilege of performing all over Australia, from large cities to remote Outback. Presenting on Nine’s Getaway in 1994 was a special experience, which opened my heart further to this land’s vast beauty. As a child my father took me on rugged bush walks. We spent countless hours exploring the majestic shores of Tathra Beach, the Bega River and the terrain of Mumbulla Mountain. These early encounters with nature profoundly influenced how I create music, inspiring me to capture the raw beauty and spirit of the Australian outdoors in my flute playing.
The album is my way of honouring the traditional custodians of this land and the profound cultural connection they have to country. I embrace Dadirri, a concept shared by Dr Miriam Rose Ungunmerr-Baumann, whose blessing and wisdom have touched my creative heart. Dadirri means deep listening, stillness, awareness—an inner practice that resonates with how my French flute teachers approached music. Here I blend classical flute with elements of Indigenous music to create sounds that evoke the whisper of wind through eucalyptus trees, the rhythmic crash of ocean waves, and the haunting calls of native birds. Many tracks are improvised. I invite you to join me in a sonic exploration of the land I know and love—a place of contrasts, beauty, and enduring inspiration. This album is a musical homecoming, a tribute to Australia’s landscapes and stories: a call to listen deeply, to find peace in stillness, and to open our hearts to the sacred stories that link us across time and space – Jane Rutter Flutes
Spotify URI: spotify:album:037PtBmKtZSIA4oR5mCczC
Apple ID: 1846007232
Fan Link: https://ffm.to/meditationsonaustralia
2MBSFM ‘Album of the week’ December 1-7
Meditations on Australia Prerelease playlist: 6 videosPlay all
More on Meditations on Australia
“Meditations on Australia” is more than an album; it is a spiritual journey into sound, stillness, and oneness. In this newest creation, internationally acclaimed flautist Jane Rutter offers a deeply personal tribute to the vast beauty of the Australian landscape, weaving together her lifelong connection to country with her signature French flute artistry.
Guided by her love for the Australian land—its luminous coastlines, ancient mountains, and timeless skies—Jane takes the listener on a sonic pilgrimage from the sweeping shores of Tathra Beach to the sacred hush of the Outback. Each note evokes the whisper of wind through eucalyptus trees, the rhythmic surge of ocean waves, and the breath of spirit that lingers beneath it all.
The album’s soundscape carries the essence of Dadirri—deep listening, stillness, and awareness—an inner practice that unites the wisdom of Indigenous Australia with the meditative philosophy of Jane’s French flute mentors. Her instrument becomes a voice of universal harmony, one that invites the listener to dissolve boundaries and enter the quantum field of oneness.
Jane’s creative vision is profoundly shaped by the esoteric influences of Zen monks, Rumi, Deepak Chopra, Joe Dispenza, and her mentor Diane Cilento, with whom she studied meditation and the mystic arts at Karnak Playhouse and Rainforest Retreat in Far North Queensland. These experiences infuse her music with an otherworldly tenderness and a rare sense of spiritual alignment.
Her flute has a pure, unifying sound that envelops listeners, allowing them to relax, feel deeply loved, and sense their connection to all life. Meditations on Australia captures the mysterious thread that binds nature, consciousness, and music into one harmonious whole. You are invited to listen deeply, attune to stillness, and awaken to the music of the universe within.
MEDITATIONS ON AUSTRALIA TRACKS
• Yaloo! (A Valediction Forbidding Mourning)
Inspired by John Donne’s timeless poem, this piece was written in the stillness of the Covid years. In D major, it reflects constancy of love amid change — a quiet surrender the triumph of life, and the soaring of the spirit.
• Botany Bay Irish Whistle Flute Meditation
A lyrical meeting of cultures. Growing up in Sydney’s Mosman Bay — once an early whaling site — the track is accompanied by whale song and the creak of old wooden boats. I lament the loss of those gentle whales. This piece nods to Old England while recognising that the First Fleet arrived at a land already rich with hundreds of Indigenous nations. I reflect on our shared history, acknowledging both the hardships endured by First Nations peoples and their enduring generosity. What unites us all is being Australian and our deep love for the country we call home.
• Brolgas Dancing Flute Meditation
Inspired by Sydney Long’s paintings Pan and Out on the Plains, and my time as a Channel 9 Getaway presenter, the flute follows the graceful movement of brolgas dancing across the plains — a celebration of nature’s balance and beauty.
• Rainforest Meditation Kuku Yalanji
Honouring the Daintree’s sacred energy and the 99 Names of God, this piece celebrates divinity in nature. Morning birds, creeks, and rainforest sounds recorded at Karnak accompany melodies built around the flattened fifth — a tone that musically embodies mystery and reverence.
• We Are Australian Flute and Didgeridoo Meditation
Connecting with the reflection in “Botany Bay,” this piece expresses unity and shared belonging. As Hugh Mackay once observed, long before European arrival, this continent was already home to many thriving cultures. Here, flute, didgeridoo, and voice intertwine in longing and harmony — a musical meditation on what it means to live together on this ancient land.
• Camels in Munga-Thirri
Inspired by Robyn Davidson’s Tracks, the Afghan cameleers, and the mud mosques they built in the desert. This piece carries the steady rhythm of a camel’s stride and the sun-soaked mystery of the Red Centre, honouring those who journeyed across its vast expanses.
• Pied Butcher Bird
A serendipitous collaboration with nature. The birdsong — recorded by listener Paul Millington and shared via Dr Ann Jones on ABC Radio National — perfectly matched the melody I had already written, as if the bird itself had guided the tune.
• Dadirri: Deep Listening
With blessings from Senior Australian of the Year Miriam Rose Ungunmerr-Baumann, this track honours Dadirri — the spiritual practice of quiet, deep listening. Sparse yet lyrical, played on soprano recorder, it explores the breath that connects humanity and Country.
Recorded in a bush cave, this piece evokes the joy of giving birth to my son and honours 60,000 years of First Nations women’s birthing wisdom — the unbroken thread of life through millennia.
• Time on Island: Wallaby Trail
A joyful reflection on rhythm, discovery, and belonging. Inspired by the journeys of early explorers, including James Cook, this piece looks with humility and gratitude toward the ancient custodians of the land and celebrates our shared connection to it.