Renowned for her spell-binding stage presence and emotional expression, Belgian chanteuse Micheline inhabits the poetry and passion of Jacques Brel’s music, singing in French, Flemish and English. Rather than just performing them, Micheline inhabits each of the songs.

Belgian-born Brel, one of the 20th century’s greatest chansonniers, died in 1978. He channelled the light and dark of the human soul, writing memorable songs such as Ne Me Quitte Pas, The Port of Amsterdam, Seasons in the Sun, Mathilde, Marieke, Bruxelles and many others.

Micheline has played to packed houses at the Edinburgh Festival and the Sydney Opera House, has had two sell-out seasons at the Adelaide Cabaret Festival, and in 2009 completed a 60-day European tour with Jacques Brel’s nephew, and keeper of the flame, Bruno Brel.

Behold this Belgian diva; whether in French, English or Flemish, she communicates with a livid sensual force that has the listener transfixed.

Micheline is accompanied by Australian jazz guitarist Ben Hauptmann.

Car-cophony is a stereo-symphonic expression of our obsession with automobiles. In acknowledgement of Castlemaine’s reputation as street rod capital of Australia, Car-cophony is both a celebration of the car and of our relationship with it. Using the drivers and stereos of 12 local cars, this unique work will transform the ordinary vehicle into a ‘wall of sound’. Over three distinct movements, Car-cophony’s ambient drones and guitar loop motifs will be threaded with warning signals, driving instructor voices, car crunching sounds, crash test results and familiar pop hits, culminating in an exhilarating ‘doof-doof’ and a tongue firmly planted in the cheek.

Vaughan Springs has a long history of playing host to major community celebrations, from the Chinese New Year events of the mid 1850s to full orchestral and community dance events a century later. And now, Vaughan Springs the hostess is back, as the acoustics and atmosphere of the superb little gorge at the entrance to Vaughan Springs will resonate with the car stereo symphony that is Car-cophony.

Described by one listener as ‘just like going to a Pink Floyd concert, but without the flying pig!’, Car-cophony has to be heard to be believed.

Matthew Timmis’ Carcophony is supported through Country Arts SA’s Local Stages and Arts SA’s Last Minute Presentation Fund.

All the way from Toronto, Canada, the critically acclaimed Beyond the Pale has been making a distinctive brand of boundary-busting Eurofolk fusion for over a decade. Earning critical acclaim as one of Canada’s most innovative world roots ensembles, they mix Klezmer, Balkan and Romanian styles with an eclectic range of North American influences, including blues, reggae, jazz and funk. They have received awards from the Toronto Independent Music Awards, Ontario Council of Folk Festivals Songwriting Competition and have recently been awarded ‘Instrumental Ensemble of the Year’ and ‘Pushing the Boundaries’ from the 2010 Canadian Folk Music Awards.

The band has performed at festivals, theatres and clubs, across Canada, the United States and Europe, including New York’s Carnegie Hall as well as the Jewish Culture Festival in Krakow, Poland. This concert will mark the beginning of their first Australian tour. Beyond the Pale’s exuberant live performances range seamlessly from energetic dance rhythms to intricate chamber-folk dynamics, taking audiences on an invigorating musical ride with thrilling arrangements and stunning instrumental virtuosity.

Mandolin: Eric Stein,  Bass: Bret Higgins,  Clarinet: Martin van de Ven,  Accordion: Dejan Badnjar,  Violin, viola: Aleksandar Gajic.

This ain’t nostalgia folks, it’s sophisticated pandemonium. It’s dressed to the nines and keepin’ in step!

Featuring:
Mojo Juju & The Snake Oil Merchants
The Jitterbeetles (in-house chorus line)
James Grim (of Brothers Grim fame)
Very special performances from Frankie Valentine, Papillion and Le Snak

Dress code:
Refinement and elegance, roguish to excess, hedonistic decadence
For Dandies and Dames, Pimps and Pachucos, Divas and Dolls
The highbrow and the hard-boiled
Dress to the nines or scram kiddo!

Batucada, loosely translated, means percussive samba jam, which aptly describes this brilliant and diverse group of 10 musicians. Their tasty concoction of Brazilian, Cuban and Afro-beat rhythms has the hip hop front of MC Hazaduz, whose solid rhymes over the massive samba-reggae percussion add to the band’s rich Pacific soul, reggae and funk flavours.

With influences from bands such as Ozomatli and Manu Chao, Batucada Sound Machine have developed a solid reputation for delivering blistering live performances, fine musicianship and collective impulsiveness. Following tours throughout New Zealand, Australia, the UK, Korea, Germany, Portugal, Belgium, Spain and the Netherlands, the super-tight horns and wall-of-sound percussion will raise the roof off Castlemaine.

MC, vocals MC Hazaduz  Guitar, vocals Richard Setford  Guitar, vocals Henrique Morales  Percussion, vocals James Hughes  Bass guitar Alex Ulrich  Trumpet Finn Scholes  Trombone Oliver Emmitt  Percussion Darryn Sigley  Drums Jono Sawyer  Keyboards Vuk Tomic

Ashley MacIsaac, fiddling virtuoso from Nova Scotia Canada, learnt to play the fiddle the Cape Breton working-class, pub-stomping way; fast and furious, with phenomenal precision. He is a passionate traditionalist with a great fondness for experimentation. Crossing boundaries of Celtic, folk, electronica, punk, garage rock and grunge, Ashley has unarguably put his own spin on the sounds of his past. Growing up listening to AC/DC, Ozzie Osbourne and Canadian fiddle masters Angus Chisholm, Winston ‘Scotty’ Fitzgerald, and Buddy McMaster, Ashley was touring by the age of 14 and recording his first album at only 16. In 1995, he burst onto the worldwide scene with the triple-platinum Hi, How Are You Today? He has played with Philip Glass, the Chieftains, Paul Simon, the White Stripes, and recently performed at the 2010 Vancouver Olympics Opening Ceremony.

Performing with Ashley is ‘one of the best Celtic guitar accompanists in the world’ 15-year old prodigy Quinn Bachand from Vancouver Island, Canada. With his hard-driving strumming, inventive voicing and powerful rhythmic effects, Quinn joins Ashley in adding a truly contemporary edge to traditional Celtic music.

Fiddle Ashley MacIsaac  Guitar Quinn Bachand

As Australia’s masters of deep funk and super-heavy soul, The Bamboos are recognised as the country’s greatest of their kind. Combining elements of old-school funk, hip hop, modern rock and psychedelic and northern soul, The Bamboos have forged a sound of their own.

The Bamboos have performed at festivals across Australia and have toured the United Kingdom and Europe three times, performing highly acclaimed shows at The Barbican and The Jazz Café in London, and other equally esteemed venues in Ireland, France, Spain, Italy, Germany and Switzerland.

The 8-piece line-up, led by guitarist Lance Ferguson and featuring the power-house vocals of Kylie Auldist, is renowned for blistering, high-energy live sets, which keep people dancing all the way from Byron Bay to Bratislava.

Vocals Kylie Auldist  Guitar Lance Ferguson  Drums Daniel Farrugia  Fender bass Yuri Pavlinov  Hammond organ Stevie Hesketh  Tenor saxophone, flute Anton Delecca
Trumpet Ross Irwin  Baritone saxophone Philip Noy

In 2006 Beyond the Pale was commissioned to create new interpretations of works by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, in celebration of his 250th birthday. In response, this extraordinary group conceived a full concert program which reinterprets symphonic and choral compositions within an intimate folk group context. Instruments rarely heard in Mozart’s music, such as the accordion and mandolin, reinvigorate his melodies with fresh musical inflections that render the work simultaneously radical and warmly familiar.

Beyond the Pale have achieved a deeply considered and sensitively mastered new Mozart repertoire in which melodies are recast within European folk forms and given new life. This exciting Australian premiere of Beyond Mozart will open our music program at the Castlemaine Town Hall. Be sure not to miss Beyond The Pale’s own remarkable jazz and folk take on the quintessentially classical.

Established as one of the world’s leading oud performers and composers, and a virtuoso of amazing diversity and sensitivity, Joseph Tawadros dazzles audiences worldwide with his brilliant technique, his passionate musicianship and his joyous style of performance.

With seven albums to date, Joseph has been responsible for expanding the oud’s notoriety in mainstream western culture as well as receiving great recognition in the Arab world. Always willing to push the boundaries and challenge traditional musical forms and rhythms, his efforts have led him to many collaborations with Slava and Leonard Grygorian, Neil Finn, Tim Freedman, Katie Noonan, Richard Tognetti and the Australian Chamber Orchestra, among many others.

In this concert, Joseph is joined by three of Australia’s finest virtuosi — his prodigiously-talented brother James Tawadros on Egyptian percussion, celebrated jazz pianist Matt McMahon and Greek clarinetist Dimitri Vouros, in an extraordinary collaboration that will transport you to an entirely new place. Combining Egyptian, classical and jazz music, Joseph has created an astonishing and unique musical language that defies categorisation.

ACO2, the Australian Chamber Orchestra’s precocious little sister, delivers the ACO’s regional touring and education programs. ACO2 connects the next generation of talented young Australian musicians with the stars of the ACO, creating a combined ensemble with a fresh, energetic performance style. The young musicians have all participated in the ACO’s Emerging Artist Program and many already play in state symphony orchestras, but choose to spend time experiencing the ACO’s high-octane performance style.

For this concert, popular Canadian violinist Lara St John will direct ACO2 in a program of classical favourites from baroque Italy, romantic Russia, contemporary Australia and sultry Argentina. ACO2 violinists will dazzle in Vivaldi’s Concerto for Four Violins, while Piazzolla will take Vivaldi as inspiration for his tango-style evocation of Buenos Aires’ seasons. After some poignant Hindson, the concert will end with Tchaikovsky’s thrilling, swirling serenade.

VIVALDI Concerto for Four Violins, RV580
PIAZZOLLA Four Seasons of Buenos Aires
HINDSON Maralinga
TCHAIKOVSKY Serenade for Strings

Formed in 1997, La Compañia performs music of the Renaissance and early Baroque. Directed by Danny Lucin, the ensemble brings together Australia’s leading specialists on period instruments. The group follows the 16th-century performance practice of ornamentation, diminution and embellishment. Their vibrant musicianship combined with their improvisatory skills has established La Compañia’s reputation with audiences and critics for presenting innovative programs and dynamic performances.

From the intimate to the exuberant, La Compañia will present a program of tender love songs and lively dance tunes — exciting soundscapes from the courts of Italy and Spain featuring an ensemble of cornetto, shawm, dulcian, sackbuts, percussion, lute and voice, with music by Adrian Willaert, Matheo Flecha and Francisco Guerrero.

Soprano: Siobhan Stagg,  Violin: Rachael Beesley,  Cornetto: Danny Lucin,  Shawm, dulcian: Mitchell Cross,  Sackbut: Glenn Bardwell,  Sackbut: Julian Bain,  Vihuela, guitar, lute: Rosemary Hodgson,  Percussion: Christine Baker.

The mentorship, which builds on the Dominique Segan Visual Arts Award, has evolved to connect inspiring national arts leaders with emerging young central Victorian artists. The Castlemaine State Festival is proud to bring together Richard Gill, Musical Director of Victorian Opera, and members of the Australian Youth Orchestra, as mentors to the newly-formed Goldfields Youth Orchestra. In preparation for their debut performance at the beautiful Castlemaine Town Hall, the Castlemaine Secondary College Orchestra and Bendigo Colleges Symphony Orchestra will undertake an intensive residency workshop and rehearsal period with Richard Gill and members of the Australian Youth Orchestra String Quartet.

Bring your family and friends along for this much-anticipated premiere concert by the symphonic leaders of today and tomorrow.

Dvorak Symphony No. 9 From the New World
Schubert ‘Unfinished’ Symphony No. 8 – Movement 1

If you have ever dreamed of being an opera singer, this event is for you. Join maestro Richard Gill and soloists from the Victorian Opera for this stunning event as the ever-popular community big-sing premieres in Castlemaine. Sing Your Own Opera is a rare performance opportunity for anyone who loves to sing.

After taking part in a full rehearsal conducted by Richard, it will be time to frock up and sing a selection of choruses from the greatest works of the operatic repertoire including Carmen, Rigoletto, La Bohème and
The Magic Flute.

Far from karaoke, this is your chance to become part of the spontaneous, one-night-only, 2011 Castlemaine State Festival Opera Company.

Conductor Richard Gill  Soloists and accompanist Victorian Opera

Gypsy inspired tangos and waltzes, slow and sultry, and mad and beautiful musical renditions of extraordinary technical complexity.
The pleasure Cosmo Cosmolino derive from playing together is evident to all. Their passionate music is sure to leave every audience uplifted and inspired.

Having formed 12 years ago, Cosmo Cosmolino have established themselves as favourites of the Melbourne Festival’s Spiegeltent, and fringe and folk festivals across Australia and internationally.

Cosmo Cosmolino is led by the luscious strings of Suzanne Simpson and Andrea Keeble, renowned cellist Helen Mountfort (of My Friend the Chocolate Cake fame), the vigour of Judy Gunson (Stiletto Sisters fame) and Dan Witton maintaining the tidal surge on the bottom end (bass).

Violin, vocals Suzanne Simpson  Violin, viola Andrea Keeble  Cello Helen Mountfort
Vocals, piano accordion Judy Gunson  Double bass, vocals Dan Witton.

Massimo Scattolin is a highly distinguished classical guitarist from Italy. He specialises in performing the most challenging concertos for guitar and orchestra, including concertos written for him by great composers such as Ástor Piazzolla. Massimo Scattolin is widely regarded as one of the finest classical guitarists of our time.

As first violinist for the Flinders Quartet, Erica Kennedy performs regularly throughout Australia and internationally. She has won numerous awards, recorded for national television and radio, and performed with various Australian orchestras. Erica has recently been appointed Associate Principal Violin of Orchestra Victoria.

In this concert, prepared specially for the 2011 Castlemaine State Festival, Massimo Scattolin and Erica Kennedy will perform a very delicate classical repertoire for guitar and violin.

Victoria Welsh Choir is a traditional Welsh male choir that has been performing in Victoria, interstate and overseas since 1980. Singing in four-part harmony and with at least a quarter of its musical range sung in Welsh, the choir has a wide repertoire, singing popular tunes, Broadway melodies, operatic arias, Afro-American spirituals, Welsh hymns and folk songs. The Victoria Welsh Choir members come from all over Melbourne and a thriving contingent comes from Bendigo.

Under the exceptional musical direction of Welsh-born Faleiry Koczkar, the choir has performed at prestigious venues, including the Sydney Opera House, the Royal Albert Hall in London, Docklands Stadium during the Rugby World Cup, and ANZAC Day Services at the Shrine of Remembrance in Melbourne.

Program 1 includes a wide repertoire of the choir’s much-adored Welsh and English choral tunes, opera choruses, spirituals and popular songs from musicals.

Program 2 is a specially-created response to the 2011 Castlemaine State Festival’s focus on storytelling. The choir will draw inspiration from the story of the Welsh in Victoria, in particular The Diary of a Welsh Swagman by Joseph Jenkins. Readings from the diary will alternate with specially chosen Welsh folk tunes and hymns.

Speak Percussion is one of Australia’s most diverse percussion collectives whose activities span a wide variety of contexts and genres. Beyond percussion ensemble and new music practice, Speak Percussion works to create an evolving and hybrid art form.

In this concert, percussionists Eugene Ughetti, Peter Neville, Matthias Schack-Arnott and Leah Scholes will present an eclectic program to celebrate a diversity of acoustic languages on the vibraphone. In a program of predominantly virtuosic pieces by Australian composers, Speak Percussion will present the ultra-complex work of Richard Barrett from his mammoth chamber work Opening of the Mouth and the first-ever recorded vibraphone work from the vaudeville era, the infamous Aloha Oe.

The program will also feature the world premiere performance of Surface Given Radiance by Luke Paulding, a brilliant young composer who is gaining notoriety for exploring unconventional timbres and extremes of playability. Paulding’s work augments the vibraphone with 80 microtonally tuned aluminum tubes, creating tightly woven textures with explosive force and the blazing resonance of metallic overtones.

In Liminal, a passionate, sublime beauty of ancient sacred chant will collide with the energy and instability of minimalist grooves. At what point does the ancient become modern, as the languages of modernism from free jazz to punk minimalism mix freely with the rapture and danger of sacred text? Liminal is the point of distillation for Nick Tsiavos in his 20-year exploration of these ideas.

The brilliant discordance of new complexity, the anarchic tumult of free jazz and the cascading melisma of Byzantine chant meld together into a hypnotic synthesis of a new minimalism.

Contrabass: Nick Tsiavos
Soprano: Deborah Kayser
Saxophones: Adam Simmons
Percussion: Eugene Ughetti & Peter Neville

Trio Anima Mundi has become noted for its eclectic and diverse programming, presented with ‘welcome energy and persuasive authority’. The trio maintains a visionary approach, bringing to audiences a dynamic mix of well-loved works alongside many little-known jewels of the piano trio repertoire. Its members are recipients of numerous awards in Australia and internationally, and have diverse professional lives in Melbourne.

Piano Kenji Fujimura
Violin Rochelle Bryson
Cello Miranda Brockman

Melbourne pianist/composer Benjamin Martin regularly captivates listeners in Australia and internationally. Identified by The Australian as ‘the best young talent for the new millennium’, he is an artist of exceptional versatility and subtlety of expression. A graduate of the Juilliard School, Benjamin has been described as ‘the consummate artist’ and as a composer who is  ‘distinctive
and arresting in style’.

He has appeared as a pianist regularly with the Australian Chamber Orchestra and his compositions have been performed in Australia, Europe and the United States.

Benjamin Martin will perform a beautiful program combining well-known piano repertoire with his own compositions.

Bendigo Chamber Choir includes 35 of central Victoria’s finest voices and is renowned for performing high-quality and diverse classical choral concerts, with a repertoire that spans many eras. In this concert, the choir will include music of Handel (from the Coronation Anthems), Allegri’s Miserere, Faure’s Cantique De Jean Racine, motets by Victoria and Palestrina, and secular music by English composers.

Bendigo Chamber Choir will celebrate its 30-year anniversary in 2011. This concert will be directed by Castlemaine’s own Michael Bottomley.

The Australian Youth Orchestra (AYO) has a well-earned reputation as one of the world’s most prestigious and innovative organisations for young pre-professional classical musicians. During the 2011 Castlemaine State Festival, the AYO will be conducting their AYO Ensemble in Residence, and producing a music program in response to this residency experience.

The AYO Ensemble in Residence will also include a mentorship of Castlemaine Secondary College musicians in collaboration with Richard Gill, the Music Director of Victorian Opera.

HAYDN – String Quartet in G major, Op.76, No.1

Richard MEALE – Cantilena Pacifica from String Quartet No.2

PURCELL – A selection of Fantasias written for viols

SHOSTAKOVICH – String Quartet No.3 in F major, Op.73

Sorry. This Show has been Cancelled and replaced with Beyond the Pale – Beyond Mozart

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Overlander brings together four of Australia’s leading musicians in an entirely unique union — the funky rumbles of didgeridoo super-star William Barton, the dulcet tones of singer/songwriter Mel Robinson, the boundless charm and wit of composer/performer extraordinaire Iain Grandage, and the voluptuous strength and energy of percussionist Claire Edwardes.

The program will feature works composed and arranged exclusively by members of the group. Each musician has a different take on the Australian musical landscape and together their works combine to form a rich tapestry of sonic colours.

In this premiere performance, music and moving images combine to entice audiences on a mesmerising journey through contrasting emotional landscapes; of places both known and unknown, real and imagined.

The moving images for this performance are the result of an Aphids’ Remote Sense residency and mentoring program, in collaboration with Punctum and filmmaker Paul Fletcher.

SUPPORTED BY
APHIDS
PUNCTUM
IAN POTTER FOUNDATION
YUBA MUNDOO
MECHANARCHY