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Cygnet Folk Festival 11 - 13 January 2008 'Music and Movement' |
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Festival choir 2008
With the help of a Festivals Australia grant, for the first time ever the Cygnet festival followed the lead of other festivals and provided a platform for a wonderful, ephemeral Festival Choir. Stephen Taberner, charismatic Spookmeister of the Spooky Men's Chorale and renowned choral leader (in NZ, the UK and Australia), took on all comers to create a mighty Cygnet Festival choir. From a seemingly innocent series of three rehearsals, a formiddable choral force emerged and swept through Cygnet like a Visigoth Army on the march to open the Sunday afternoon concert in the town hall.
Beatles Singalong: Bob Fox, Bernard Carney, Liz Frencham, Jeremy Sibson
It was clear that the Beatles singalong was going to be big, guaging by the crowd that was already packed expectantly into the Middle Pub by 10.30 on Saturday night but as the bands and audio set up, the room just filled and filled until there was solid Beatles-fan bio-mass. The four ersatz Beatles - Bernard Carney, Bob Fox, Liz Frencham and Hobart based drummer Jeremy Sibson, drove the show along with their seemily ineshaustible supply of Fab Four tunes and there were guest appearances from many local and visiting performers including David Hyams, Stephen Taberner and the Spooky Men, Fred Smith, Ian Paulin and the singing went on into the night until everyone was exhausted. But there are plenty of songs that didn't get a look in so there's plenty left for future Beatles singalongs.
Ceilidh is the Gaelic word for a musical party and a roomful of people of all shapes and sizes and all ages, appeared to have fun and a bit of sociable exercise with easy, lively, traditional Irish and Scottish dances to the inspiring music of Dancer’s Delight. Dave Wanless ably taught and called all the dances and everyone danced until their feet couldn't take it anymore and they wandered off for a well earned lunch at the end.
A Tale of Ale - Michael Manhire
A singing session mainly with instrumental interludes that explored the wealth of material exploring beer and beer drinking with historical antidotes and commentaries about beer. Many chorus songs for audience participation. What better venue than...
The Bottom Pub on Saturday at 2.30 - 4.30pm.
Terri Lukacko is an American fiddler now living in Hobart and one of the Hobart Old Time String Band. She held a workshop in Appalachian style fiddle tunes last year that was so popular we scheduled it again. The old-timey repertoire is a cousin to traditional Australian music. Fiddles, banjos, mandolins, ukes and guitars were all welcome and players learned some new tunes, tips and techniques for playing appalachian style tunes.
Tribal Dance - Denise McMaster
The Tribal Dance movement originated in the US and is a fusion of folk dances from the Silk Road with a nature-based approach that incorporate Flamenco, North African, Kathak and Rom styles. The dances are based on learned sequences that allow for group improvisation. Denise McMaster has been studying dance – including Belly Dance, Tribal and Middle Eastern dance - since the early 1990s and she is the Director of the Tribal Dance Company in Hobart and her workshop is open to all shapes and sizes, ages and fitness levels. Denise's workshop in the
Town Hall Sunday morning was an interesting introduction to Tribal Dance for all the attendants.
Spoons and Washboard - Jeremy Sibson
Jeremy has been playing drums and pop/rock, jazz, big band, folk, and Celtic styles of percussion and erforming professionally with many local, national, and international acts as well as in pit orchestras for over 50 musicals and was recently Musical Director for the rock opera “Rent”. In the last 10 years his focus has been mainly on Folk/Irish/Celtic Rock culminating in a recent visit to Ireland where he was classed with the best players from Ireland and Europe. He now plays with Hobart Celtic group the To’rags. The RSL had a good turn out of budding spoons players who will never be without an instrument if there is a kitchen nearby.
Estonian Dance Workshop - Maarja Niiman and Dave Wanless
Maarja is an exchange student from Estonia who is a member of a folk dance ensemble and show dance group in her homeland. In this workshop participants were introduced to the dances of Estonia in the very atmospheric timberlined St Marks Hall on Sunday afternoon.
