The thought of ageing gracefully was put on the backburner three years ago by this musical group of Aboriginal elders, who decided they had something to sing about.

The idea for the choir came about after a Nambucca community leader attended a conference in Tamworth focused on positive ageing.

Semi-professional singer and entertainer Cheryl Blair was enlisted to hone the choir into shape and lift the group’s confidence for public performances.

After a bit of a shaky start the choir’s ability grew and they were soon getting invitations to perform at functions around the northern rivers district.

In 2007, with their reputation on the rise, the choir was invited to perform at the Deadly Awards at the Sydney Opera House.

By 2008, the choir’s reputation had crossed the Tasman and they were invited by the New Zealand government to perform a number of concerts as part of a cultural exchange with the Maori people.

Aged from 65 to 86, the 20-member choir sing a variety of old-time favourites, traditional language songs and haunting ballads such as Harry Williams’ Blue Gums Calling Me Back Home and Bobby Randall’s Brown Skin Baby.

The Gumbaynggir Elders Choir will be performing twice during the day-long concert at the Red Ochre Festival in Victoria Park on Sunday.