Drifting Clouds

An Indigenous man in sunglasses is casually helped with a tie. The background is a purple, iridescent swirl, looking like water.
  • Contemporary Music
  • Vivid LIVE
  • Utzon Room

Euphoric Yolŋu artist makes his Sydney Opera House debut

Dubbed “the most chill band in Arnhem Land”, Drifting Clouds is the unique musical project of Yolŋu singer, songwriter and keyboardist Terry Guyula, boasting an ethereal sound that combines synth pop and ’80s rock with ancient Songlines sung in his first language, Liyawulma’mirr-Djambarrpuyngu.

Conceived in the homelands of Bunhungura/Gapuwiyak, Drifting Clouds – named for the Yolŋu Matha word Dhumbarpar – reflects Guyula’s eclectic musical upbringing, blending traditional Dreamtime Stories with ethereal funk grooves, big saxophones, rock and even country. The resulting sound is quite unlike anything else on the Australian musical map. The band’s gorgeous June 2025 debut, Bawuypawuy, adapts a millennia-old Songline passed down through generations, wrapping an ancient tale of the Arnhem Bay ocean in an infectious groove and infectiously dreamy vocals.

This is their Sydney Opera House debut.

Presented by Sydney Opera House

Event details

Drifting Clouds brings the ancient Songlines to the now.

triple j

Unlike anything else.

Backseat Mafia

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Attending this event

Plan your visit

Address

Sydney Opera House
Bennelong Point
Sydney NSW 2000
Australia

Getting to the venue

The Opera House is a 7-10 minute walk from Circular Quay, and is easily accessible by car, train, ferry, lightrail, bus, bike and on foot.

Location and access

Utzon Room

The Utzon Room is located on the Eastern side of the Opera House, in front of the Joan Sutherland Theatre. Best accessed through the Box Office Foyer or the Covered Concourse. All Sydney Opera House foyers are accessible, with lifts to the main and western foyers. The public lift to all foyers is accessible from the corridor near the escalators on the Lower Concourse and also in the Western Foyer via the corridor on the Ground Level (at the top of the escalators).

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