IT was a lively crowd that gathered in Queanbeyan on Sunday, February 12 for the opening of a new project, partly funded by the Queanbeyan City Council and partly funded by “Access and Destination NSW”.
The idea is to highlight “arts and culture the Queanbeyan way” through regular broadcasts on the public radio station Artsound FM 92.7 and 90.3.
Artsound hosts Richard Sherer and Barbie Robinson introduced local tourism coordinator Tracy Lamont and the Mayor of Queanbeyan, Tim Overall, who boasted that his was “the fastest growing inland city in Australia”. What was more, he said, with at least two arts studios in the industrial hub of Queanbeyan where a crowd had gathered at the Artists’ Shed and the popular performing arts centre, “The Q” as the “heart of culture” in the town, Queanbeyan was set to lead the area in culture.
It was no idle boast. Under the guidance of local arts officer Ros Hales, herself a long-time muso, Sunday afternoon musical sessions at the programmed into the Artists’ Shed on every session second Sunday. Hales said she had used her contacts in the music industry to get top musicians into town since last April and had been overwhelmed by the response. Even though the artists are only paid by paper note donations from the audience, she had acts programmed until June, she said.
But the highlight of the day was undoubtedly the visit of the German contemporary country/cabaret group, The Beez, who quickly got a bit of audience participation going live on radio and even entertained the crowd to an exotic Middle Eastern version of “Stand by your man”.
The Shed Sessions operate on the second and fourth Sundays each month from 2pm at the Artists’ Shed, 14 Foster St., Queanbeyan.
[box] February 26, Stirred Not Shaken
March 11, Dan Fernandes and The Pretty Boys plus Dan McFeely
March 25, The Guitar Cases and Jasmine Beth
April 15, Amanda Kay plus Alan Blackshaw
April 29, Scatterpuss plus Chris O’Connor
May 13, Craig Simon
May 27, Love Sick Caravan plus Tree Brother and The Muses [/box]
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