Meet the Inuit throat singers revitalizing the tradition and engaging new audiences

Sisters Tiffany Ayalik and Inuksuk McKay were children when they first learned the Inuit cultural practice of throat singing.

Throat singing is a musical tradition, a bonding activity and a game that involves two women, standing face-to-face, testing their vocal agility and improvisation skills.

Like many other Inuit and Indigenous traditions, throat singing almost went extinct due to colonialist pressures from the Canadian government and the Catholic Church.

"Now people are doing some of the things that we're doing like bridging or weaving throat singing with Celtic music or with rock'n'roll, country, folk and electronic stuff," Ayalik said.

In the early 1900s, Christian missionaries set up a formidable presence in the North, banning cultural practices such as drumming and throat singing in schools and public spaces.

Ayalik and McKay hope to see that happen as younger generations continue to explore and find joy in throat singing and other Inuit traditions.