Family Concerts, Sunday 5 May arts in the valley

As part of its May 2019 Arts Festival, Arts in the Valley is mounting two spectacular family concert events from midday on Sunday 5 May.

First, the Royal Australian Navy Band, conducted by Lieutenant Brian O’Kane, will present an outdoor concert of popular classics and Broadway hits from 12.30pm at Osborne Park Showground. This family concert is a free event and we are hoping for a large turnout of families to come along and enjoy hearing one of Australia’s leading service bands perform.

You could make a family picnic of it: bring a picnic rug and hamper and the whole family to what will certainly be a spectacular and entertaining musical event.

Many of the local food providers have told me that they will prepare hampers for anyone who is interested in pre-ordering food from them. So, if you don’t want to go to the trouble of putting together your own picnic hamper, why not approach your favourite Kangaroo Valley food provider and ask if they will help you out?

Following the Navy Band concert will be a performance of Nick Enright’s charming and witty poem, The Maitland and Morpeth String Quartet, which has beenset to music by composer Vincent Plush. Our performance will feature Jillian O’Dowd as narrator, the Acacia Quartet and myself creating dozens of sound effects. My production of this wonderful and very ‘Australian’ story will follow the format of the live-to-air radio plays that were extremely popular in the 1940s and 50s. Readers who are over the age of 65 will probably remember listening to plays and serials on the ‘wireless’ in this era.

Adult tickets are $60 and children between 7-12 are free if accompanied by a ticket-holding adult.

Nick Enright’s poem tells the story of the formation of a local amateur string quartet in the city of Maitland in the lower Hunter region. Through their various adventures with music-making plus the power of love, they save the town of Maitland in its hour of greatest need: the terrible flood which occurred in 1955. Watch out for an appearance by the RAN Band at the end of the performance.

In addition to these family events, the Arts Festival will run for 3 days and features six concerts in private residences (hausmusik), a sculpture exhibition at Cedar Grove on Jarrett’s Lane, and gala evening concerts on Friday and Saturday in the Kangaroo Valley Community Hall.

The 2019 Festival has a stunning line-up of leading national and international performers and will also feature two remarkable and spectacular-looking Stuart and Sons pianos along with their maker, Wayne Stuart.

This is a festival not to be missed.

Visit our website for more information, 3 day schedule and to buy tickets, (no tickets required for the free Navy Band concert!) www.artsinthevalley.net.au