Songline

Within the animist belief system of Indigenous Australians, a songline, also called dreaming track, is one of the paths across the land (or sometimes the sky) which mark the route followed by localised 'creator-beings' during the Dreaming. The paths of the songlines are recorded in traditional songs, stories, dance, and painting.

A knowledgeable person is able to navigate across the land by repeating the words of the song, which describe the location of landmarks, waterholes, and other natural phenomena. In some cases, the paths of the creator-beings are said to be evident from their marks, or petrosomatoglyphs, on the land, such as large depressions in the land which are said to be their footprints.

By singing the songs in the appropriate sequence, Indigenous people could navigate vast distances, often travelling through the deserts of Australia's interior. The continent of Australia contains an extensive system of songlines, some of which are of a few kilometres, whilst others traverse hundreds of kilometres through lands of many different Indigenous peoples — peoples who may speak markedly different languages and have different cultural traditions.

Songlines (disambiguation)

Songlines are paths crossing the countryside in Australian mythology

Songlines or songline may also refer to:

Songlines (magazine)

Songlines is the name of a British based magazine launched in 1999 that covers music from traditional and popular to contemporary and fusion, featuring artists from around the globe.

Songlines is published eight times a year and contains CD reviews, artist interviews, guides to particular world music traditions, concert and festival listings and travel stories. Every issue comes with an accompanying compilation CD featuring sample tracks from 10 of the best new releases reviewed in that issue and 5 additional tracks chosen by a celebrity. A podcast containing highlights of each issue is available to download through iTunes or through the Songlines website.

The magazine is edited by Simon Broughton, co-editor of The Rough Guide to World Music.

The name was chosen based on the aboriginal mythological concept of Songlines.

History

In 2008 Songlines Magazine was expanded to include 'Songlines Music Travel' a music tourism service offering excursions to renowned world music locations and festivals.