On the surface, Jaime Torres and William Barton are worlds apart – the former a 77-year-old charango player from Argentina, the latter a didgeridoo virtuoso.
However, the two share a passion and parallel history, using music to communicate themes within their respective cultures.
“There is a connection to country and the landscape in these collaborations, coming through the improvisational music and these wonderful traditional instruments,” Mr Barton told SBS.
As a member of Argentina’s Indigenous community, Mr Torres has made it his life’s work to share traditional Andes music.
"Today we have serious problems of you know, terrorism and you know, lack of social cohesion…our diversity is what is going to contain us together not homogenisation," he said.
"There is a connection to country and the landscape in these collaborations, coming through the improvisational music and these wonderful traditional instruments."
Mr Torres has toured for decades, sharing Andes music with the world, to protect what he sees as a marginalised piece of Latin American history.
“It is crucial to know our origins and defend them,” he said.
“Otherwise the history will only be written by the people arriving in the ships.”
The charango maestro has performed with Mr Barton in Sydney, and will next collaborate with others Indigenous Australian musicians, including Archie Roach.
Mr Roach, himself a celebrated traditional artist, will also take Mr Torres to the mission in Victoria from which he was stolen as a child.
The visit is part of the Stories We Tell initiative, to link Indigenous communities in Latin America with Australia, with the aim to facilitate better cross-cultural understanding.
Mr Torres will join Mr Roach on stage in Castlemaine on December 3.
Mr Torres will then reunite with Mr Barton on December 4 in Melbourne, before a final performance with a mystery guest in Perth on December 12.
