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Folk Alliance Australia

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AFMA’s 2022 – Nominations Now Open!

June 9, 2022 by FAA Board

Nominate for 2022 AFMA

Australian Folk Music Awards Logo

NOMINATIONS ARE INVITED FOR
THE 2022 AUSTRALIAN FOLK MUSIC AWARDS (AFMAS)

Folk Alliance Australia follows its successful launch of the Australian Folk Music Awards (AFMAs) in 2021 with the announcement of details of the 2022 Awards.  The 2022 AFMAs introduces one new award – ‘Instrumentalist of the Year’ category.

We invite nominations from artists, performers, venues, festivals and projects to showcase and highlight the talent and diversity of the Australian folk music scene. We welcome nominations from first nations and culturally diverse artists in the 2022 AFMAs to fully reflect the range of folk music being played in Australia.

The 2022 AFMA Awards will celebrate and recognise the musical and cultural talent, vibrancy, richness, diversity and community nature of the Australian folk music sector and will be presented at the AFMA Awards Concert/Gala event at

The Brunswick Ballroom, Melbourne
Wednesday 26 October

as a lead-in to the Maldon Folk Festival. The AFMA Awards event will also be live-streamed as an Online event.

Nine Awards will be presented in 2022:-

  • Folk Album of the Year – Traditional
  • Folk Album of the Year – Contemporary
  • Folk Artist of the year – Solo
  • Folk Act of the year – Duo/Group/Ensemble
  • Instrumentalist of the Year  (NEW AWARD)
  • Folk Act of the Year – People’s Choice (by public voting)
  • Folk Community/Cultural Project of The Year
  • Youth Artist of the Year
  • Contribution to Folk

(See link below for Information and the Nomination Forms for each award)

The aim of the Australian Folk Music Awards are to:

  • Create a National Folk Awards Scheme for the Australian Folk Music Sector/Community.
  • Raise the profile of Australian folk music.
  • Acknowledge, recognize and celebrate national achievements of the folk music sector.
  • Benefit Australian folk music artists to build their profile and careers.
  • Involve and engage the wide diversity of Australian folk music genres 
  • Raise the profile of Folk Alliance Australia as a national organisation for folk music.

Folk music covers a lot of musical ground ranging from World and Ethnic, Roots, Americana, Bush, Celtic, acoustic Blues and many acoustic styles, both traditional and contemporary.  The Folk music scene is comprised of many communities and brings this richness to the musical diversity that is folk music. Folk music/traditional music is the ground spring of many contemporary music genres with many talented artists, organisations, communities and cultures represented. We have over fifty Australian folk festivals which are vibrant parts of city and especially regional arts and culture scenes giving them their creative identities and involvement with music and the arts. Folk music crosses over into mainstream arts and cultural events, festivals and recordings.

AFMA Nominations are on-line and now open, closing midnight Sunday 31 July (EST).

Nominate Here

Media enquiries:-
Keith Preston (President FAA) – afmas@folkalliance.org.au or 0418 839 264

Nominate for 2022 AFMA

***

Filed Under: Australian Folk Music Awards, News

Folk Alliance International – 2022 International Folk Music Awards

June 6, 2022 by FAA Board

Allison Russell – Photo: Listening Through The Lens

Folk Alliance International has announced the recipients of the International Folk Music Awards 2022 for Song, Album and Artist Of The Year.

Other recognitions were:

The Clearwater Award – presented to a festival that prioritizes environmental stewardship and demonstrates public leadership in sustainable event production – Planet Bluegrass

Lifetime Achievement Awards – Flaco Jiminez (Living), Nanci Griffith (Legacy) and Swallow Hill Music (Business/Academic)

The People’s Voice Award – Jason Mraz

***

Filed Under: News Tagged With: folk alliance international, international folk muci awards

AFMAs – Announcement Soon!

June 6, 2022 by FAA Board

Australian Folk Music Awards 2022

Announcement This Month

The AFMAs will be launched this month. Stay tuned to this site and our Facebook and Twitter accounts.

Nine AFMA Awards will be presented in 2022:-

Artist Awards

  • Folk Album of the Year – Traditional                     (LINK TO AWARD NOMINATION FORM)
  • Folk Album of the Year – Contemporary              (LINK TO AWARD NOMINATION FORM)
  • Folk Artist of the Year – Solo                                 (LINK TO AWARD NOMINATION FORM)
  • Folk Act of the Year – Duo/Group/Ensemble        (LINK TO AWARD NOMINATION FORM)
  • Instrumentalist of the Year                                   (LINK TO AWARD NOMINATION FORM)
  • People’s Choice                                                     (LINK TO AWARD NOMINATION FORM)
  • Youth Artist of the Year                                        (LINK TO AWARD NOMINATION FORM)

Industry/Community Awards

  • Folk Community/Cultural Project of The Year     (LINK TO AWARD NOMINATION FORM)
  • Contribution to Folk                                             (LINK TO AWARD NOMINATION FORM)

***

Filed Under: Australian Folk Music Awards, News Tagged With: australian folk music awards

Nominations Open Soon – Australian Folk Music Awards 2022

May 23, 2022 by FAA Board

Photo: Listening Through The Lens

NOMINATIONS OPEN JUNE 6 

FOR THE 2022


AUSTRALIAN FOLK MUSIC AWARDS (AFMAS)

The 2022 AFMA awards will celebrate and recognise the musical and cultural talent, vibrancy, richness, diversity and community nature of the Australian Folk Music sector and will be presented at a live-streamed Live Music Awards Concert/Gala event at The Brunswick Ballroom, Melbourne in October. Nine Awards will be presented in 2022:

·         Folk Album of the Year  – Traditional            

·         Folk Album of the Year – Contemporary   

·         Folk Artist of the Year – Solo           

·         Folk Act of the Year – Duo/Group/Ensemble

·         Instrumentalist of the Year  

·         Folk Act of the Year – People’s Choice (by public voting)

·         Folk Community/Cultural Project of the Year   

·         Youth Artist of the Year

·         Contribution to Folk   

Nominations open 6 June and close 31 July

FULL DETAILS WILL BE POSTED ON JUNE 6 ON THIS SITE

***

Filed Under: Australian Folk Music Awards, News

Australian Folk Music Awards 2022 – First Glimpse

April 23, 2022 by FAA Board

afma logo

2022 AFMAs – The Australian Folk Music Awards

Folk Alliance Australia will be presenting the AFMAs in Melbourne in October 2022. 

Details will be released soon and nominations will open in late May 2022.

The AFMAs will feature live music, awards presentations and will also be an online event.

Two new Awards will be offered (for instrumental folk music) making 10 Awards in total

The AFMAs nominations are for performance achievements and music recordings covering the period June 2021 – June 2022

As well as awards for ‘Project of the Year’ and ‘Contribution to Folk’ awards

If you know someone who you think should nominate or be nominated please let them know that the AFMAs open in late May

Full details in forthcoming FAA newsletters and social media

***

Filed Under: Australian Folk Music Awards, News Tagged With: australian folk music awards 2022

Your FAA Board

April 18, 2022 by FAA Board

Keith Preston, President (SA)

Keith is Arts Manager at the Australian Migrant Resource Centre in Adelaide since 2007 and is involved in managing and coordinating a range of arts projects with artists from new arrival communities which includes traditional music & dance, school exhibitions and presentation of several key cultural festivals. Each year he produces a major concert at the Adelaide Festival Centre. He is involved with a range of performance projects through HATs Inc, including the acclaimed Adelaide Songs project. He currently plays with fusion band Moonta Street who blend European and Chinese music, Sufi Highway a South Asian and Middle East music show and works regularly as a performer of traditional puppetry. He has just written a musical comedy which will be produced in 2021. He previously worked for many years as coordinator of the SA State Folk Festival (Victor Harbour), the SA Medieval Festival and established the SA Folk Centre. Keith has experience in arts organisations, festival management, overseas touring, band management and youth development.

John McAuslan, Treasurer (Vic)

John McAuslan is now 5 years retired as director of the Brunswick Music Festival and Across The Borders Pty Ltd. (ATB), an event / artist management and international touring agency. Across The Borders was in the business of event management and international touring for over 18 years. ATB were the event managers of the Brunswick Music Festival, the Sydney Road Street Party and the Mechanics Institute PAC from 1997-2013. John started in the folk music movement as a performer and from the early 80s as an organiser; he was director of the 1986 National Folk Festival; an Australia Council-funded music coordinator in Brunswick and label manager of Brunswick Recordings for Brunswick Council (1990-93), a groundbreaking label featuring Victorian multicultural and Anglo/Celtic recordings, which produced 18 titles on vinyl, cassette and CD. He served as Treasurer on the original board of Folk Alliance Australia (FAA), served on the Victorian Folk Life Association and was a member of the Victorian Government festivals grant panel. In 2008 he was awarded the Graeme Squance Award for services to folk music in Victoria; he served as the chairperson of Folk Alliance Australia 2011-2013, and now returns as Treasurer of the FAA.

Cherie Harvey, Secretary (SA Regional)

Cherie Harvey is founder and manager of HATs Inc (Heritage Arts & Traditions), a multi-award winning arts organisation based in the Clare Valley wine region in South Australia. HATs Inc is based in the historic Auburn Courthouse and is upheld as a model for presenting arts and music in regional areas. HATs specialises in presenting touring acts, developing new projects and engaging with a regional audience. Cherie has a long association with folk music and dance and was Chairperson of the Folk Federation of SA from 2000 to 2004.

Erin Collins (Tas)

Erin is a musician and writer whose work has been showcased at performances and festivals as diverse as the National, Cygnet, Tamar Valley, Maldon and Majors Creek Folk Festivals, Ten Days on the Island, Junction Arts Festival, Queenstown Heritage and Arts Festival, the Wooden Boat Festival and From France to Freycinet, in addition to Regional arts and other touring. She has been involved with the Cygnet Folk Festival, predominantly as a performer since the mid 1990s. Over the past two decades Erin has qualified in courses, masterclasses and seminars in event management and festivals and combines her experience of performance with management of festivals and events. Erin has worked as performer, producer, company manager and musical director for shows during Ten Days on the Island, presented for festivals as Band Manager for Australian Folk group Silkweed, presented for “Mostly Folk” on Hobart FM community radio and is the Tasmanian producer of the Woodford Folk Festival initiative, Festival of Small Halls in partnership with the Cygnet Folk Festival. Erin has steered the artistic vision as Artistic Director for the Cygnet Folk Festival since 2011. She lives in Hobart.

Therese Virtue (Vic)

Therese has spent many years engaged with folk music in various contexts. As a teacher in Victoria’s secondary schools, she found herself swapping songs and dances with Greek and Macedonian students in Melbourne’s West. She has sung in various folk groups with repertoires of English, Irish, American and Australian songs, and in the Italian folkloric ensemble Il Gruppo Folcloristico Italiano. Therese was a founding member of Petrunka, Melbourne Women’s Bulgarian Choir, and now spends considerable time wrestling with the intricacies of ancient Georgian polyphony,  in Melbourne Georgian Choir. After many years, Therese swapped teaching for work as an organiser for Melbourne’s multicultural music presenter The Boite, where she is recognised as an advocate for artists and performers from the hugely diverse range of cultures and music genres housed in Melbourne.

Erin Heycox (Vic)

Erin Heycox is a performer and music educator based in Footscray, Melbourne. Erin has performed with her violin and voice across an eclectic range of musical projects including with Shantily Clad (sea shanties), Eyal and the Skeleton Crew (klezmer informed jazz), Dolly Diamond’s ‘Parton Me’ (bluegrass), Orchestra Nouveau (classical art music) and creating live improvised theatrical soundscapes for Soothplayers and Four Letter Word Theatre. Erin is currently launching an album with her chamber folk duo Broken Creek which they will tour across Australia in 2022 with performances and workshops. Erin founded the music program at Preston High School. She has directed choirs (Souffle Sisters and Newlands Choir) and presented workshops for Newport Folk Festival, The G.R.A.I.N Store, AMUSE and ASME. Erin is excited to work with Folk Alliance Australia to create opportunities for musicians and the folk community.

Louise De’Ath (WA)

Looweeze is a WAMI award winner who first fell in love with the Folk Alliance performing as an official showcase artist in the US. She moved to Nashville where she was recording, writing and performing until the pandemic.  Currently in her home state of Western Australia (where she grew up in the wheat belt listening to bush bands), Loo is experienced in the community and arts sectors and has expertise in touring, production, grant writing and partnerships, conference and festival organisation. 

Sam De Santi (NSW Regional/QLD)

Sam is a multi-instrumentalist and sound engineer currently residing in Brisbane with strong musical interests in Australian, Celtic, Italian, and Bluegrass music. Born into a musical family, Sam played Australian traditional music from a young age with his parents in Wongawilli (Bush) Band (2003-2015) and Zumpa (Italian folk). He has been involved with programming and production with a number of festivals including the Illawarra Folk Festival, Perisher Peak Festival, and Folk in the Foothills. He has also been involved in the production of folk tune books – Good Tunes Volume 1 and Tunes for A New Millennium (Judy Turner). In 2015, he relocated to London to pursue university completing his Sound Engineering degree in 2019, and works at the Irish Cultural Centre in Hammersmith as a sound engineer, video editor, and archivist, albeit remotely these days. While in the UK he achieved recognition for his guitar playing, placing second in the Senior All Ireland Competition Accompaniment (2019). Sam is a current member of Zumpa, The Munster Bucks, Antiri, Jane Brownlee and Samuel De Santi Duo, and The Salty Sirens.

JO CRESSWELL (ACT)

Jo has worked in Community Music Development all her life.  As an arts administrator she has managed numerous festivals, events, conferences, workshops and residential retreats.  As Assistant then Artistic Director she helped establish the National Folk Festival in Canberra and developed its Master Class program.  She was on the steering committee that established Folk Alliance Australia. She’s committed to creating musical projects that are human scale, sustainable and encourage education and connection.  With her partner Dave O’Neill she took on the Artistic Direction of the 2023 National Folk Festival. Together they direct an annual Celtic Music Camp. In her business she currently runs residential walking & singing/music events in Kosciuszko National Park, NSW and France.  Her Canberra business, the Celtic Arts Agency, has fostered a music program in schools for 20 years and she is herself a music teacher. Jo has a passion for the diversity found under the folk umbrella which has led her to explore as a dancer: Contra, Bush, English, International folk dance, Irish, Scottish, Step dancing and Belly dance. As a musician she has played from the Irish, Scottish, Scandinavian, Old Time and French diasporas and performs on concertina and piano.

Filed Under: Committee Tagged With: FAA Board

Charm of Finches UK and Europe Tour

April 18, 2022 by FAA Board

Charm of Finches – Photo: Listening Through The Lens

Australian Folk Music Award winning duo Charm of Finches are heading overseas on a substantial tour that will provide terrific exposure to the talents of the pair.

The details for their shows April to July 2022 are below. TICKET INFO HERE

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Filed Under: News Tagged With: charm of finches, tour dates

FAA at The National Folk Festival – Here’s How To Participate

April 13, 2022 by FAA Board

Dear Members & Friends
Please join Folk Alliance Australia at the National Folk Festival this Easter weekend for two special events

Saturday 1.20pm Folk Forum – Imagining the future of Folk
Sunday 5.00pm FAA Annual General Meeting

 
For those who wish to join us online at these events here is the ZOOM Link (for both events)

ZOOM LINK

Meeting ID: 859 8986 9230
Passcode: 2020

Saturday 16 April 1.20pm – 2.30pm (Eastern Standard Time)
FOLK FORUM
‘Imagining The Future of Folk’
Venue: Old Trocadero

Introduction/Welcome by Folk Alliance Australia

Forum Convenor – Therese Virtue – FAA Board Member & Chair The Boite Melbourne

Panelists:   Parvyn Kaur / Zulya Kamalova  / Miriam Leiberman  / Luke Plumb / Pauline Maudy /  Bruce Watson / David Gilks (NFFestival)
 
Sunday 17 April 5.00pm – 6.00pm (Eastern Standard Time)
ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING
Venue: Old Trocadero 

Members & friends are invited for our financial and artistic reports, plans for the 2022 Australian Folk Music Awards, other important updates and welcome new and existing Board members

ZOOM LINK

Meeting ID: 859 8986 9230
Passcode: 2020

***

Filed Under: News Tagged With: agm, folk alliance australia, folk forum, national folk festival

Make Music Day is back for 2022. For the first time is two years!

April 8, 2022 by FAA Board

Held each year on June 21 around the globe, to celebrate all things music, Make Music Day encourages both amateur and professional music making, and empowers individuals to seek out ways to celebrate and express music in their community.

All of it is free and open to the public. Every kind of musician —young and old, amateur and professional, of every musical persuasion — gathers indoor and outdoor, in venues, streets, parks, plazas, paddocks and verandas to share their music with friends, neighbours, and strangers.

REGISTER HERE

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Filed Under: News Tagged With: make music day australia

Tribute to John Thompson from Ian Dearden

April 8, 2022 by FAA Board

John Thompson with Cloudstreet

Ian Dearden‘s “Song For John” is the third tribute song to our dear friend and musical colleague, John Thompson of Cloudstreet who passed away last year (both Eric Bogle and Fred Smith have also written tributes – Fred’s is not yet released).

All of the funds from Ian’s tribute are going to John’s widow, Nicole Murray, for a memorial headstone to be erected on John’s grave at the Toowong Cemetery, Brisbane.

FAA awarded John Thompson with the inaugural Services To Folk Music Award

IAN DEARDEN BANDCAMP

JOHN THOMPSON’S FOLK ALLIANCE AWARD

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Filed Under: News Tagged With: ian dearden, john thompson

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Folk Alliance Australia (FAA)

is the peak national body representing folk cultural activity and the folk industry of Australia. We are a membership organisation that provides an information resource and networking, showcase and professional development opportunities for the Australian folk community.

 

 

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