Well, the first Bendigo Blues & Roots Music Festival is done and dusted and (by all accounts) was a smashing success!
The feedback we’ve received, from punters, participating venues, and the musicians who took part, has been overwhelmingly positive (see overleaf for some examples). We look forward to continuing to work with all of our partners, sponsors and in-kind supporters from last year, not to mention so many brilliantly talented musicians and the volunteers who made BB & RMF in the first place.
As far as 2012’s Festival goes, you can look forward to official line-up announcements later in the year, but be assured, the program will again be as outstanding as it was last year, only more various and with even more familiar names involved. But for now, please mark down the second weekend in November in your diary or calendar (Nov 8th, 9th, 10th & 11th) as that’s when Bendigo Blues & Roots Music Festival #2 will take place, with another all-day, family-friendly, free-entry concert as the centrepiece to the program, this time to be staged in Civic Gardens adjacent to Bendigo’s magnificent Town Hall!
In the meantime:
Saturday April 14th will see the Rifle Brigade Hotel (137 View Street Bendigo) host the first BB & RMF Showcase event for 2012, with 15 acts performing from 12pm till 8pm. There will be a stage and a fantabulous bar set up in the temporarily converted carpark beyond the beer garden, with a massive help from our good friends at Bendigo Beer. Performances in the Al Fresco area in front of the pub at the top end of View Street, will further enhance the atmosphere in Bendigo’s Arts Precinct during the afternoon. An amazing array of local and visiting talent is yours to enjoy for a measly cover charge of $10. If you wish to donate further to the cause of supporting BB & RMF 2012, there will be a raffle and our handsome merchandise will be available to purchase, so you can take home a souvenir or two!
Bull Street will again host a Blues & Roots Showcase concert on Easter Saturday afternoon (April 7th, 2pm till 6pm), featuring: Bones Blackwood, MTB, Blues Mountain and Cold Snap. The same site will host a cruisy-bluesy “Chill Out” recovery session on Easter Monday (April 9th, 1pm till 5pm), featuring the talents of Talisa Jobe, Luke Owens, The Jefferson Smith Band and The Old Buzzard Medicine Show. A huge thanks to the Metro/Puggs Irish Bar for keeping this great Easter tradition alive.
There’s also the “Turning Music Into Gold” Mini-Fest at the Goldmines Hotel from 1pm till 6pm on Easter Sunday – and – Happy Jack’s Hootenanny at Happy Jack’s Reserve in Lockwood South, with live music from 1pm till 8pm on Saturday April 28th. So April is shaping up as a huge month for fans of home-grown, grass-roots, music events… get amongst it!
For blues performers of all ages and experience levels, don’t forget the Bendigo Blues Club Jam Session, held the first Saturday of every month from 2pm in the beer garden at the Newmarket Hotel; for a fun play and/or an enjoyable listen!
Be sure to check out what’s on at the venues who support great live music on a weekly basis. These gutsy businesses are the lifeblood of the live music scene and they deserve YOUR support!!
Thanks again for picking up our Bluesletter for a read. Please do visit our website and join our email list if you wish to receive updates on upcoming BB & RMF related events: www.bendigobluesandroots.com
