Awards and Festivals
The Tamworth Country Music Festival is an annual country music festival held in Tamworth, New South Wales (Country music capital of Australia). It celebrates the culture and heritage of Australian country music. During the festival the Country Music Association of Australia holds the Country Music Awards of Australia ceremony awarding the Golden Guitar trophies.
Another important Country festival, the Gympie Muster began in near Gympie, Queensland in 1982. The non-profit community-based festival raises funds for charity and attracts around 25,000 fans to listen to stars and new talents alike. As well as mainstream Australian country the event showcases the breadth of contemporary Australian country: from folk and bush poetry, to alternative country.
Indigenous country music is in evidence at the Deadly Awards, a celebration of Indigenous musicians and their music.
The Mildura Country Music Festival celebrates the Australian Independent Country Music Awards every October.
Other significant country music festivals include the Whittlesea Country Music Festival held north of Melbourne in February, Boyup Brook Country Music Festival held in Western Australian in February, Bamera Country Music Festival held in South Australia in June, the National Country Muster held in Gympie during August and the Canberra Country Music Festival held in the national capital during November. Some festivals are quite unique in their location: Grabine State Park in New South Wales promotes Australian country music through the Grabine Music Muster Festival; Marilyns Country Music Festival is a unique event held in South Australia's Smoky Bay annually in September and is the only music festival in the world using an oyster barge as a stage.
Along with the festivals above, there are also event that include country music such as Musters, Field Days and rural shows.
Read more about this topic: Australian Country Music
Famous quotes containing the word festivals:
“Why wont they let a year die without bringing in a new one on the instant, cant they use birth control on time? I want an interregnum. The stupid years patter on with unrelenting feet, never stopping—rising to little monotonous peaks in our imaginations at festivals like New Year’s and Easter and Christmas—But, goodness, why need they do it?”
—John Dos Passos (1896–1970)