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Canberra Today 20°/24° | Friday, March 29, 2024 | Digital Edition | Crossword & Sudoku

A decade of beautiful music

EVEN if you know nothing about the Wesleyan movement, you’ll know the words to “Hark! the Herald Angels Sing”, just one of more than 6000 (yes, that’s right) hymns written by Charles Wesley.

Founder Garth Mansfield.
In part a tribute to that tradition, Canberra’s Wesley Music Centre in Forrest is about to celebrate 10 years since it opened its state-of the-art recording and performance facilities.

Founder and director of music for the centre, Garth Mansfield, tells “CityNews” that, to date, the centre has hosted “thousands” of concerts, becoming one of the most sought-after spaces for small-scale chamber concerts and top-level recording sessions.

To ACT arts-watchers, here’s something to raise eyebrows – not a cent has come from church or government grants. Financed entirely by the Wesley Music Foundation (ACT), which raised more than $2 million to build the centre, it is home to music courses, private music teaching, U3A courses, music exams, master classes and lectures.

The foundation has also helped 84 brilliant young musicians complete tertiary studies through the Wesley Music Scholarships and joined with the Canberra Classical Guitar Society and the Carillon Society to award young composers.

In short, there’s something to sing and play about, and that’s exactly what the centre plans to do in a program that kicks off at 3pm on Sunday, September 2, with former St Paul’s Cathedral organist John Scott playing.
Then, from 12.40pm-1.40pm on September 5 and 12, there’ll be two special anniversary “Wednesday Live” concerts with outstanding young musicians.

On the actual inauguration date, September 8, there’ll be a slap-up dinner, then at 3pm the next day, Sunday, September 9, 10 Wesley Scholars will perform.

And last, something to dazzle – at 7.30pm on Saturday, September 15, there’ll be a kind of double anniversary, when Wesley hosts a tribute to 25 years of the celebrated quartet Guitar Trek, founded by Tim Kain and now comprising Kain, Minh Le Hoang, Bradley Kunda and Matt Withers.

Bookings to wesleycanberra.org.au or tickets at the door.

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Helen Musa

Helen Musa

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