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By updating a tradition, these six Inuit women are amplifying the power of throat singing

Usually Inuit throat singing is performed as a duet between two women facing one another and holding arms — but for these six women, it's a communal experience.

iNuit Blanche's special performance transformed the act into a communal experience

Lise Hosein · CBC Arts ·

These six women are changing the way we think about throat singing

8 years ago
Duration 1:48
Jenna Broomfield and her fellow throat singers are taking the best part of the genre, and making it even bigger.

Tanya Tagaq has made throat singing part of mainstream Canadian music culture, but the tradition's been around for quite a while. Tagaq performs solo, but usually throat singing is performed as a duet, two women facing each other and holding each other's arms.

A few singers from across Canada have come together to expand the scope of throat singing. For iNuit Blanche — held in St. John's earlier this month — six singers performed in unison to celebrate the emotive power of the genre and its importance to Inuit culture.

In this video, singer Jenna Broomfield tells you some of the things you may not know about throat singing and lets us in on why this particular performance was so special. Throat singers at iNuit Blanche included Broomfield, Tama Ball, Jennie Williams, Kathleen Merrit, Malaya Bishop and Pauyungie Nutaraaluk.

Watch Exhibitionists Sundays at 4:30pm (5 NT) on CBC.

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