The three concerts of Oberon’s 2008 Kowmung Music Festival, held in March, attracted an audience of more than 400 people.

The most popular of the well-attended concerts was the Saturday night’s program of dance music, held in a marquee erected on a hillside property overlooking the Tarana Valley.

The program included waltzes and tangos and ended with the familiar notes of Strauss’s Blue Danube. The audience of 150 people cheered, clapped and wolf-whistled as the musicians took their bow.

After the performance, volunteers moved the chairs and set up tables under and around the marquee to provide for the many people who stayed on for a Supper Under the Stars, which local Rotary members organised and served.

Festival Manager, Tim Arnison, said the people travelled from as far away as Brisbane to attend the concerts.

Mr Arnison said: “People were coming up to me and to other members of the organising committee to say how they were blown away by the music, the situation, the informality and the friendliness at the concerts.

“We had a call from a man from Blackheath to say how wonderful it is that Oberon has such a great outdoor festival of classical music with top performers and yet in such a relaxed atmosphere.

“People who hadn’t been before were struck by the outstanding quality of the musicians.”

Among the performers were violinist Eva Gruesser who, with other members of the Lark Quartet, won the Gold Medal at the 1991 Shostakovich International String Quartet Competition in St Petersburg. She has since performed at many international concert halls and has been guest concertmaster with many orchestras including the Sydney Symphony Orchestra.

Other players included Yvette Goodchild, who is Assistant Principal Viola with the Sydney Symphony Orchestra, Sandro Costantino, a viola player with the SSO, Marina Marsden, Principal Second Violin, SSO, and Peter Jenkin, Principal Clarinet with the Australian Opera and Ballet Orchestra.

The audience was particularly impressed with a young cellist, Martin Penicka, who played in many of the works on the programs. Aged in his late 20s, he has played in the Sydney Youth Orchestra and has performed with the Sydney and Melbourne symphony orchestras.

Flamboyant American pianist George Lopez visited Australia to take part in the concerts. Organisers arranged for a concert grand piano to be set up in the marquee for him, tuned by local piano technician and festival volunteer, Ray Ross.

The festival was supported by local businesses as well as by a grant from Arts NSW. Local volunteers gave their time to arrange the festival and local landowners donated the use of a shearing shed and paddock to provide the venues.

Musician Rohan Smith, who has family connections with Oberon and who initiated the festival, co-ordinated the program, lined up the performers, co-ordinated rehearsals and played in the concerts for what was the 11th Kowmung Music Festival.

Tim Arnison, a local farmer who has managed the festival on a volunteer basis for the past four years, told the audience that he was standing down from the role following the 2008 festival.

Images from the successful Kowmung 2008 Festival:

Hayden Concert



Lopez and Mirella

Tim Opening the Concert



Taking a Bow



Supper under the stars, and in the tent.



Happy Artistic Director



Laureldale

Kowmung Music Festival
PO Box 406  
Oberon NSW 2787

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