Arts in the Valley 2011 – ‘Up Close and Personal’

The third Arts in the Valley Festival at Kangaroo Valley will take place from 6–8 May, 2011 and there are still some single tickets and full festival packages available.

Arts in the Valley is a biennial three-day festival combining classical and fine contemporary music with dance and sculpture in the heart of Australia’s most beautiful valley.

The 2011 Festival program ranges across solo recitals, vocal ensemble, percussion and dance with collaborations between artists. Each program has been created especially for the Festival.

The popular Garden Sculpture Exhibition, which attracts the work of local sculptors and those outside the area, has become a flagship of Arts in the Valley, and in 2011 will be held over the three days of the Festival at the award-winning property Crystal Creek Meadows.

Arts in the Valley 2011 will showcase some of Australia’s best musicians in intimate settings with superb acoustics. Artistic Director Belinda Webster OAM, says: “Each concert in this festival is a gem – a rare event you won’t find elsewhere in the Australian musical calendar.”

The concerts include:

John Harding in Recital (May 6) – violinist John Harding (past Concert Master of the Sydney Symphony, The Australian Chamber Orchestra, the London Symphony Orchestra and currently with the Hong Kong Symphony Orchestra) rarely gives recitals but will join the Australian Ensemble’s pianist Ian Munro for a special performance to open Arts in the Valley 2011, which will include the ravishing Ravel Violin Sonata.

Harmony in Nature (May 7) – directed by Roland Peelman, The Song Company will sing a special program themed around our relationship to the natural world, including songs by local composer Martin Wesley-Smith as well as three rarely-heard works from Australia’s best known composer, Peter Sculthorpe, whose 80^th birthday was celebrated in the second Arts in the Valley Festival in 2009.

Hausmusik (May 8 – would make a great Mother’s Day treat) is a series of concerts to be performed in the lounge rooms of three beautiful private homes in Kangaroo Valley. The locations have been selected not just for their excellent acoustics but also for the sense of intimacy they foster between the performers and the audience. The three homes selected to host these concerts are: Barrengarry House, Villa Music and Cedar Grove.

As part of Hausmusik, solo recitals will be given by:

• Harpist Alice Giles, including music by the great harp virtuoso Carlos Salzedo
• Pianist Ian Munro, performing works by Mozart
• Genevieve Lacey on recorder, including some of John Rodger’s wonderful music about birds

Hausmusik will also feature cellist David Pereira with painter Micky Allan improvising new works for cello and artist. Originally scheduled for the 2007 Festival, this event was cancelled when David fell ill – the audience will be able to witness the birth of a long-awaited new work.

Dance and Drum (May 7) is a program that will feature Shoalhaven-based Aboriginal dance troupe, Yuin Ghudjargah, in their first performance in Kangaroo Valley and TaikOz Quartet, the Sydney-based percussion group, playing Japanese Taiko drums.  There will be a family performance of Dance and Drum at 11 am (designed for a young audience and made possible through the assistance of Arts NSW) and a performance at 2.30 pm.

Arts in the Valley has become a significant economic and cultural event for Kangaroo Valley. Apart from its contribution to the valley’s major industry, tourism (the inaugural Arts in the Valley Festival in 2007 attracted 650 visitors), it generates a lot of excitement within the local community as well. Many residents assist as volunteers and schoolchildren from the area are involved in the Festival – anyone interested in becoming a volunteer for Arts in the Valley should contact Lee Sharam on 02 4465 1756.

Arts in the Valley is also an opportunity to experience some of the epicurean delights for which Kangaroo Valley is rapidly garnering attention. For the three days of the festival (May 6-8), a range of gourmet hampers featuring delectable local produce will be available for sale at a stall next to the Information Tent in the village centre (near the Kangaroo Valley Pub) from 10 am – 4 pm.

Full Arts in the Valley festival packages are now on sale and comprise a ticket to one concert in each time slot, free entry to the Garden Sculpture Exhibition and a free festival program book.  Single tickets are also available for sale.

Kangaroo Valley is approximately 2 hours from Sydney and Canberra, between Bowral in the Southern Highlands and Nowra on the South Coast.

For enquiries and online bookings, please visit www.artsinthevalley.net.au or phone 0438 631 351.