July

Programme Links for Weekend Activities

You can now click on the weekend dates to view programme highlights for each day. The programme grid will be available early August with all the detailed information you'll need to  navigate the weekend's concerts, workshops and other activities.

The weekend day by day  17  18  19

l30 July 2010

Another Great Year of Dancing

You’re invited to join us for anoher outstanding weekend of dancing at Turning Wave Festival 2010. We're a dance friendly event with a variety of dance activities from our pre-weekend set dancing classes to a weekend of workshops on various aspects of dance from Australia, Ireland and Scotland, dance displays, three Irish Ceilis, a Scottish dance and our Gala Event The Spirit of the Bush Costume Ball featuring dances from the Australian tradition selected and called by Don Richmond. Music by Bon Accord.

View Dance at a Glance

29 July 2010

2010 Sydney Festival Launch

Sydney's Irish Gaelic Club will host the 2010 Turning Wave Festival Sydney Launch on Sat August 21 as we gear up for another brilliant event. Highlight this date in your diary and note the address, level 1 / 64 Devonshire St. Surry Hills. Our committee will welcome your support and, a month out from the main event the night will be a little taster for September, featuring some of our 2010 performers. It'll also be an opportunity to check out the 2010 festival compilation CD.

Doors will open at 7pm with the first act on stage at 7.30pm.  Tickets are $15 / $12 (TWF friends) - booking recommended. Bar will be open with drinks at club prices. The night will finish with a trad session so BYO instruments if you want to share a tune.

If you would like to attend the TWF Sydney Launch on Sat 15th Aug you can book by phoning 02 9489 2780 or email info@turningwave.org.au

18 July 2010

June

Fourteen of the Best

We've just completed the 2010 Festival Sampler CD featuring  songs and tunes from fourteen of this year's Festival performers.

20 June 2010

Early Bird Tickets

Advance purchase tickets at the early bird price of $65 are NOW AVAILABLE until close of business on 27th August or until sold out. Turning Wave Festival will deliver a fabulous and diverse line-up of performers to delight the senses and tempt your musical pallet and rolled them all into one mighty weekend. We're proud of the quality of music, song, dance, poetry, folklore and family entertainment on offer, with an opportunity for everyone to participate. We hope you enjoy the festival and thank you for your continued support.

Get ticket information and booking form

20 June 2010

More Trad Musicians

Ado Barker & Ruairi McGorman are the latest musicians to be confirmed for TWF 2010 and we are very excited to welcome these two fine exponents of Irish traditional music.

The two will perform as a duo at TWF with Ruairi playing Irish bouzouki, an instrument which he learnt from De Dannan star Alec Finn and one on which he is well known in Ireland. Ruairi is the son of the great Irish flute player Catherine McEvoy and came to Australia in 2009 to teach Irish music at the Gaelic Club in Sydney. Ado is well known to Australian audiences as a member of the outstanding trad band Trouble in the Kitchen, but also as a very fine fiddler in his own right. Performances by this exciting combination will be much anticipated at this year's festival.

5 June 2010

Historic Abbey New Venue in 2010

Over looking the town of Gundagai stands Lanigan Abbey Estate, an historic Heritage & National Trust listed property. The Estate was built in two stages. In 1888 the Abbey was built for The Sisters of Mercy who came from Ireland. The Gothic designed school was built in 1898. Today this houses an art gallery and gate keepers cottage. At the centre of the Estate, set amidst re-established gardens in the Italian style, is the cental square.

The Art Gallery will be the venue for the 2010 Official Festival Opening as well as a number of acoustic concerts and events. A visit to Lanigan Abbey is a unique experience so don't miss this opportunity. Seating at these events will be limited so be early to avoid disappointment.

4 June 2010

MAY

Fundraiser Success

A big, big, thank you to everyone who turned out to support the 22nd May TWF fundraiser Irish Ceili night at Pennant Hills. The event surpassed all expectations, achieved its goal and, everyone had a fabulous night of traditional music and dancing thanks to the Coast Ceili Band and dance callers who all gave of their time and talent to make the night a huge success.

23 May 2010

New Benefit for TWF Friends

More benefits available to Friends of TWF. Gundagai Tourist Park  is offering 10% off the camping price for the 2010 Festival weekend. Find out how to become a member.

20 May 2010

Treat for Gundagai Audiences

Ophelia of the Spirits aka singer, composer & pianist Angela Little will be performing at TWF 2010 as part of the special Thursday night ticketed event as well as selected concerts over the weekend. "Each of us inhabits many different characters over the course of a lifetime, weaving a delicate web of stories and half-told truths, treading a precarious path somewhere between the real and the imagined." Ophelia of the Spirits reflects this dramatic sense of character and storytelling that inspires Angela's music and sets her apart from the usual singer/songwriter fare.

Angela Little stepped into the warm glow of the footlights with the release of her debut EP in 2008, which received airplay on Triple J, ABC, and community radio stations around Australia, establishing her as a vibrant new presence on the Australian music scene. In 2009 she was awarded a Jump Grant by the JB Seed for her album release, as well as being short listed for a prestigious APRA Professional Development Award (which recognises and develops outstanding young Australian musical talent) in the area of Composition for Film & Television, and nominated for several industry awards for her work on the film 'Australia', including an AFI Award for Best Original Score, and two APRA-AGSC Screen Music Awards for Best Original Song ('By The Boab Tree') and Contribution to Best Soundtrack Album. Angela's live shows fuse elements of music, sound and vision to take the audience on a journey rarely experienced.

16 May 2010

The Gundagai Story: Be Part of the Telling

In the nineteenth century the Gundagai area was a popular meeting place for bush travellers, swagmen, shearers and drovers, and the town, probably more than any other Australian locality features in stories, poems and songs. From Jack O'Hagan's Along The Road To Gundagai to Banjo Paterson's The Road to Gundagai, the traditional ballad Flash Jack from Gundagai and many, many more, iconic Gundagai is there. We're inviting you to share a song, poem or story that mentions Gundagai and be part of the Turning Wave's The Gundagai Story Concert. To take part you just need to be a weekend ticket holder. To register your interest put Gundagai Story in the subject box of an email and send with your name and selection to info@turningwave.org.au

16 May 2010

Fundraiser Irish Ceili Night 22nd May

Grab your dancing shoes and a bunch of friends and join us for a fabulous night of set dancing and more as we recreate a little bit of old Ireland with a typical Ceili night and you're all very welcome. This will be a major fundraiser for the Turning Wave Festival to cover some of the ongoing operating costs so come along and show your support for our great little festival of Irish & Australian Music.

Contact Pam: 9489 5786 for info, bookings or if directions required.

COAST CEILI BAND will set the mood and get your toes tapping with their lively jigs, reels and polkas. Dancers up and down the eastern sea-board of Australia enjoy dancing to their infectious rhythms and, if you're not up to par with your dance steps, don't worry, experienced dance callers Margaret & Bill Winnett and guests will be on hand to show you the ropes.

2 May 2010

APRIL

Squeebz for Gundagai!

Squeebz is a new unit of young, Melbourne-based musicians with a wealth of experience performing in a number of other successful groups in concerts and festivals all across Australia. With a fresh and exciting approach to interpreting traditional Irish, Scottish, Old Time and Cape Breton music, this new configuration of talented and award-winning multi-instrumentalists promises to crank out some awesome music at TWF 2010.

21 Apr 2010

MARCH

Performers Announced Soon

The committee is working hard to process the avalanche of applications received for this year's festival. While we have confirmed some performers, the full list is still being finalised and will be published on the website at the end of April so keep in touch.

30 Mar 2010

Become a Friend of Turning Wave

You're invited to become a friend of Turning Wave Festival. Each year our festival relies on invaluable financial support from corporate and community sponsors. This support enables the Festival to present a diverse program of events and artists each year.

Now you too can become a part of this vital chain of support for just $20 AND, to thank you for your support we will offer you the following benefits:

$5 off the early bird or gate ticket price;

$5 off the purchase of the 2010 festival compilation CD;

Friends discount for TWF Sydney Launch and other special TWF functions.

PLUS, you will receive friends e-News and enjoy being able to purchase your festival tickets before they go on sale to the general public.

Friend’s membership is open to anyone who wishes to support The Turning Wave Festival Inc. and its aims, which are to organise, manage and promote traditional Irish and Australian Music and the related arts through the Turning Wave Festival of Irish & Australian Music and its associated events.

To find out more T: 02 9489 5786 or E: turningwave@optusnet.com.au

To register download the form, complete your details and post with your cheque to the address shown on the form.

23 Mar 2010

Irish Guests Announced

Turning Wave is pleased and excited to announce that our special guests from Ireland for the 2010 festival will be Maura Walsh (concertina / fiddle / accordion / whistle) from Lixnaw, Co Kerry and Briege Murphy (singer / songwriter) from Forkhill Co Armagh. Our 2010 showcase of performers coming soon so stay in touch.

22 Mar 2010

FEBRUARY

More Photos from 2009

Check out more 2009 photos. Maybe you'll find yourself. View Now

7 Feb 2010

Find us in More Places on the Web

TWF has two new addresses on the world wide web.

You can now find us on Myspace. Check it out and, if you have a myspace address why not become a TWF friend.

We're also on Facebook. If you're a member of facebook you can become a TWF fan, keep up with all the very latest news, share information with other TWF fans and post & reply to discussions.

We value your feedback and ideas and will look forward to hearing from you sometime soon.

1 Feb 2010

FAS is better then BAB!

What's it all about? You may well ask! Like so many festivals and events that have been running for just a few years the temptation is always to go Bigger And Better! In 2010, with TWF heading into its 5th year, we are looking at Friendly And Sustainable as our main goal. From all the feedback we receive there is no doubt that the festival is friendly. The town is welcoming, the community love the event and you keep coming back. This is something we highly value and will continue to nurture.

While there are always aspects of the festival that we can improve, and indeed, we are on a continuos learning curve, we believe that overall we have a formula that works well. And we want to maintain that in a way that establishes TWF for the long haul. So, in 2010 we won't be offering bigger and better. What you can expect is a an innovative and inclusive event of the highest calibre, from both a performance art and a participatory perspective. For five days in September, be enthralled, be engaged, be entertained and may your Turning Wave experience sustain you for the other 360!

Some of the Faces from TWF 2009

11 Feb 2010

JANUARY

Festival Theme Announced

In 2010 we're going unashamedly Irish to celebrate our Irish heritage and all things Irish in this great land of OZ with our theme Ireland over here! We'll be looking for acts that can articulate this theme through music performance or in workshops, themed concerts or unique presentations.

9 Jan 2010

Applications for 2010

Before you complete and send in you 2010 Application please read the instructions and requirements carefully. We are changing some aspects of the festival format for 2010 in order to achieve a more sustainable and smoother running event.

8 Jan 2010

NOVEMBER

New Opening Date for Applications

If you are intending to apply to perform at TWF 2010 please note that the committee has decided not to open applications until 11th January 2010. In past years having applications open for 3 months has made organisation from the committee's perspective very unwieldy. The closing date will still remain as midnight Sunday 28th February 2010.

27 Nov. 2009

OCTOBER

Praise for '09

Once again the emails have been coming in thick and fast with accolades for TWF 2009. For those who were there, performers, festival goers, volunteers and supporters a big, BIG thank you for being part of our 4th event. Yes we had a ball but this year has been exhausting but we will have pictures and highlights up on the website soon.

10 Oct. 2009

SEPTEMBER

Turning Wave again in Top 10

The Turning Wave Festival has again made the top 10 in the NSW/ACT Regional Achievement & Community Awards in the Events and Tourism category for 2009. This is a huge achievement for the Festival and a credit to the Festival Committee, its Artistic Director and the Gundagai community. 

30 Sept. 2009

2010 Festival Theme

Ireland over here!

A celebration

of our Irish heritage

and all things Irish in Oz.

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