The second Gold Coast Acoustic Music Festival was held at Glennon Park Nerang on the 18th and 19th September this year. Numbers were almost double that of last year.
The line up featured artists from as far away as Victoria, Tasmania, Far North Queensland and Canada. Melbourne based Coolgrass made musical mischief as usual, keeping everyone in stitches with their bent bluegrass versions of tunes from Mozart to Queen. The Stetson Family, also from Melbourne, dug deep into their bluegrass, folk and country background. From Canada, Phyllis Sinclair sang heartfelt songs inspired by fishers and indigenous stories from her country. Daniel Champagne delivered an impressive one man show demonstration energy and capability beyond his years. From Ireland, Mick McHugh’s uplifting lyrics and trusty harmonica captivated his audience with songs and stories in true balladeer spirit.
The Brisbane Ukulele Music Society (BUMS) were a real hit with a dozen uke players doing Nutbush City Limits.
Cheynne Murphy and Karl Farren were favourites from Northern NSW. From Port Douglas, the dynamic duo of Bryce and Mahney from the Hillbillygoats teamed up with Dave Luxmoore and others to combine bluegrass with rock n roll favourites.
Locals Tracey and Rob Davis had the whole family on stage including 15 year old twins Robbie and Dylan. Other local bands included Steve Carter, Mark Cryle and the Redeemers, Bushfire and Balyana.
Music workshops were also a feature of the weekend with guitar and mandolin workshops was led by members of Coolgrass, the banjo workshop by Tim Saunders from Seagrass (Tas) and fiddle by Dave Luxmoore from Bushfire. Karl Farren’s song writing workshop was particularly popular. The jam sessions were great and the open mic sessions filled up quickly on Sunday afternoon, providing a great opportunity for a jam with the guest artists.
Like many events the festival would not be possible without the support of sponsors. The Club enjoyed support from Billy Hyde Music, Gold Coast City Council and AllSports Community Club. Some comments from those who attended says it all:
Thanks again for having me at Coast Acoustics. As always, I was made to feel very welcome. I had fun, especially with a great group of people in the workshop. As someone who has been running a similar monthly venue to yours, I understand how much time and energy it takes for you guys to put on an event like this. I appreciate your support, and I wish you all the best – Karl Farren.
We really enjoyed the scene and caught some great acts…you do a great job – Cheynne Murphy.
Thanks for creating a great space for artist, I loved the gig, had a great time with your audience. Great success for the festival i would say, and fantastic artist line up – Mick McHugh.
Thanks to you and the team for organising the event on the weekend. We had fun – Mark Cryle.
What a wonderful, intimate and friendly festival you have. It was my pleasure performing at the Coast Acoustic Festival. Thank you for having me – Phyllis Sinclair.
Performer applications for the 2011 festival are now available for download from the Coast Acoustics Website.
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