Following four days of world music and conferences, the Australian World Music Expo is over for another year.
Held at Melbourne’s Art Centre, AWME featured talks from the likes of Bluesfest organiser Peter Noble, Glastonbury’s Malcolm Haynes and Boomerang Festival’s Rhoda Roberts, as well as performances by the cream of the vast World Music crop.
Bluesfest’s Peter Noble spoke about his almost 50 years in the music industry, discussing his transition from musician, to agent, to promoter, before experiencing real success with the creation of Byron Bay’s Bluesfest.
The man who coined the phrase, ‘blues and roots’, was glowing in his praise for fellow organiser Rhoda Roberts, of this year’s inaugural indigenous music festival, ‘Boomerang’; a venture that Noble cites as his career defining moment.
The sentiment was reciprocated from Roberts during a panel she featured in called More Than Music: Non-Musical Elements In Festivals, in which she thanked Noble for his belief in her, and for giving Indigenous Australian’s a platform from which to gain wider recognition.
Roberts was clearly emotional during the panel, almost shedding a tear on a number of occasions.
The panel also featured Singapore’s Tapestry Of Sacred Music Festival’s, Christopher Rodrigo, Splendour In The Grass’ Kate Little, and Canada’s Calgary Folk Festival organiser, Kerrie Clarke. Each discussed how their events offered something more to the audience than just music, by offering a unique experience that continues to lure the attendees back year after year.
AWME was held over four days (November 14-17) at Melbourne’s Art Centre, featuring live music, industry panels and keynote speakers from Australia and around the world.
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