From big bands to big choirs and big disappointments, HELEN MUSA’S Arts in the City column’s got it all. 

Two of Canberra’s liveliest Big Bands will come together for Winter Ways, an afternoon of music at the Polish White Eagle Club, David Street, Turner on August 4. In Full Swing will perform swing tunes along with karaoke songs and numbers that showcase new drummer Steve Jocz, while Blamey Street Big Band and vocalist Leisa Keen will perform arrangements of classic Beatles tunes. 

The choir of King’s College, Cambridge, under the direction of Daniel Hyde, is embarking on a national tour for Musica Viva. Of local interest will be the world premiere of Charlotte by Damian Barbeler, a setting of the poem On Finding Charlotte in the Anthropological Record by writer-artist Judith Nangala Crispin. Llewellyn Hall, August 3. 

Canberra Museum + Gallery is calling for ACT students in years 7-12 to submit photographic work to the 2024 CMAG Secondary School Photography Prize, which boasts a prize pool of more than $700. Connecting with a major exhibition at CMAG, the theme will be, “Materiality… But Not as We Know It”. Winning photographs and a selection of others will be displayed as part of the show. Entries to cmag.com.au by August 25.

Essential Tremors is an exploratory music and art series navigating the nature of sound. Curated by Angus Andrew, of Liars, the series originated at Phoenix Central Park in Sydney during 2022 and has since been seen in Beijing, New York, Tokyo, Akron and Canberra. The project returns to the ACT with performances from ambient jazz artist Hantu and locally based sound and light artist Sally Golding. Ainslie Arts Centre, Braddon, August 3.

It has not escaped our notice that no artists from Canberra, the “cultural capital”, feature in House of Oz’s 12 stand-out Australian shows travelling to this year’s Edinburgh Fringe. Nor are there any among the finalists of the 2024 Art Music Awards in Melbourne on August 14, although there will be regional awards to come.

Soprano Miriam Rose and pianist Hilda Visser-Scott will present German, French and Italian songs in Dreams & Delusions. Wesley Music Centre, Forrest, July 31.