The Australian Melodies

The Australian Melodies are a representative nationalist fusion of pre-exisiting musical traditions written by Isaac Nathan in Colonial Sydney between 1841-1863. They consist of several subsets including Australian Aboriginal Melodies, National Songs and Anthems and songs about current affairs or luminaries. The songs are defined by overarching themes of emancipation/freedom which are aspirations of both the Jewish Haskalah movement and the English chartist movement. The entire cycle is tied together with the final piece: "The Origin of Freedom" written in 1863. The song combined the last earthly contribution of Eliza Nathan nee Worthington (Isaac Nathan's first wife, 1812-1824) and is also Nathan's own last earthly contribution before his death on 15 January 1864.