| Federation of Australasian Mandolin Ensembles | |
International Mandolin Festival
Sydney January 6th to 13th 2008 |
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The festival has started —
Individuals and orchestras from around the world are participating
in an exciting and challenging 7 days of music.
Together we will showcase mandolin orchestral music at its highest level and with a contemporary Australian flavour. | |||||||||||
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Gala Concert The Festival will culminate in a Gala Concertat the Shore School, Smith Auditorium Blue Street, Notrh Sydney at 7:30 on Saturday 12 Jan 2007 Tickets can be arranged by contacting 02 9809 5782, or can be purchased on site. Prices are $20/15 (waged/unwaged) |
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The Sydney camp is organized by the Sydney Mandolin Orchestra. More information is available from sydneyfame2008@yahoo.com.au. |
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All Mandolin, Mandola, Mandocello, Guitar and Bass players are invited to come & join the – Sydney International Mandolin Festival Orchestra We expect to form an orchestra of over 120 players (117 to date). |
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Our Conductor
will be Adrian Hooper, an internationally acclaimed
Mandolinist and Conductor of the Sydney Mandolins. Section Leaders are
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Music is being written for the Festival by prominent
Australian composers, including the following Robert Allworth Michelle Nelson John Peterson Michael Smetanin Caroline Szeto Additional music will be sourced from the repertoire of contemporary Australian composers, including Betty Beath Colin Brumby Eric Gross Music scores will be sent out in advance of the Festival as .pdf files, for participants to familiarise themselves with the music. Hard copies can be posted to those without computer facilities. Some of the pieces have been recorded and are available on the JADE CD label – details can be found here. |
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| Rehearsals will be held in the mornings and
most afternoons, with evenings free for “In House” concerts
or other activities. The indicative schedule provided may change slightly. |
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| In-House Concerts
have been scheduled, for participants to perform as an Orchestra, ensemble or as an individual. Groups already scheduled to perform in-house include – Mark and Beverly Davis of Providence Rhode Island – Auckland Mandolinata Orchestra – Fuji Women’s University Mandolin Club – West Australian Mandolin Orchestra – Sydney Balalaika Orchestra – Duo Kyoto – Fretworks – Mandoline Affaire – Marissa Carroll |
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Full accommodation will be provided at the Shore School in Blue St, North Sydney, close to the Sydney Harbour Bridge.
The school is across William St at the end of Blue St as shown
on the map.
Click on the “satellite” or “hybrid” option for an aerial view of the school. |
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The school is a few minutes walk (up a slight hill) from the North Sydney Railway station, trains for which can be boarded
at both the domestic and international Sydney airports (down an escalator, or lift, from the luggage collection carousels).
Train fares from the airport are $12 and the trip takes from 15 to 20 minutes. Not all trains stop at North Sydney, so
confirm that yours does before boarding, or you will need to change at Central or Wynyard Station.
A taxi fare from the airport should cost between $45 and $50, depending on traffic.
Trains pass through North Sydney station at 10 to 20 minute intervals on weekends, see the detailed railway timetable. There is an underground shopping plaza above the North Sydney Railway Station. Free undercover Council parking is available off Union Street, adjacent to the school (under the tennis court, which can be seen on the map). From here one can walk onto the campus. No parking is available in the school grounds themselves. The school will not allow pick-up or arrival inside the school. You must be dropped off outside and walk up the driveway. A school car-park will be made available for the evening of the concert. Registration commences at 2:00 pm on Sunday 6 January. However the Foyer area will be open and staffed from 10:00 am should you wish to leave luggage there. Walk in the front entrance of the school, take the first turn right and follow the signs. Food – A range of options to the basic residential and non-residential packages will be distributed to all participants before final payments are due in mid-November. All meals will take place on the Shore campus. Foyer – Basic tea and coffee will be provided between rehearsal sessions, mornings and afternoons for all. These will be self-served in the Foyer area a few metres from the rehearsal room. Lunches will be served in the Foyer and eaten there or in the gardens. A plan of the Rehearsal space, Smith Auditorium and Foyer can be found here. A Bazaar table will be set up in the Foyer for players to sell their own CDs etc. Late night drinks, jam sessions and other social activities can also be conducted in the Foyer. Shore School is a residential boy’s school, with accommodation provided in four “Houses”. The rooms are single, double, triple or greater (dorms) – although we do not expect to house more than four to a room. There is no price difference between rooms, but preference will be given to early registrations. There are very few single or double rooms left. The rooms are not lockable! However, a school locker will be allocated to each guest for storage of valuables – bring your own padlock! (We can rent a hacksaw to anyone who loses their key.) A secure room will be available adjacent to the rehearsal area, where instruments can be safely stored. Common bathrooms and toilets are located on each floor of each house and laundry facilities are available. All meals will be provided from Saturday night to the following Sunday morning. The School has a swimming pool and is close to shops, restaurants and transport.  January is normally hot in Sydney so summer clothing is all that is required. The rehearsal hall will be air-conditioned. The school internet facilities will not be available to us, however the area is a wireless internet hot-spot and there are several Internet cafés within walking distance. No Smoking whatsoever inside Shore buildings, like most places these days. |
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Alternatively, accommodation is available nearby in North Sydney at a range of hotels and guest houses.
A selection of these is identified on the following links:
australian explorer,
Take A Break,
OZstayz
A number of our non-residential players have found accommodation at the Lane Cove Caravan Park |
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The Mandolin Festival takes place during (but not part of) the
Festival of Sydney which could have
attractions for visiting musicians.
General information on Sydney in January can be obtained from the
City of Sydney web page. A Harbour cruise has been arranged as part of the Festival, and a Bush Dance, which should have no shortage of playing participants. We can also assist with arranging excursions and things to do for non-playing participants. The Harbour Cruise will attract an additional fee of $25, which should be added to your final payment if you wish to come along. The cruise will run from 5:30 to 8:30 on the Tuesday evening. Snacks will be provided while afloat and drinks can be purchased on board. The cruise will terminate at Circular Quay, where there is a large range of options for meals, both in the Rocks and along the walkway to the Opera House. After dinner, make your own way back to the School by ferry, train, bus or by a walk across the Harbour Bridge (recommended). Access to the Bridge from Circular Quay is via the Argyle Cutting in the Rocks. |
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The cost is A$800 for residential players, with reduced rates for
non-playing residents and for non-residential players. Details are given in the Registration Form. Bank Details – We intend to carry out all financial transactions in advance of the Festival by Internet banking, this will streamline the arrival and registration process. Our bank is the Neutral Bay (NSW) branch of the Commonwealth Bank of Australia. The address is 155 Military Road, Neutral Bay, NSW Australia 2089. The BSB number is 06 2210 and the Account number is 1023 1776. The name of the account is "Sydney Mandolin Orchestra Inc". |
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FAME Subsidy for young, fully-dependant players
FAME has announced a Scheme to provide a subsidy of up to $200 (per player) to enable young players to attend the Festival in Sydney. For new Registrations, please identify yourself as an applicant for this scheme on the Registration Form. If you have already registered and believe you may qualify - please contact us on the Festival web address sydneyfame2008@yahoo.com.au Should there be more successful applicants than the overall scheme funding provides for, the subsidy will be proportionally reduced for each successful young player. To encourage participation in this scheme, the Festival Committee has extended the “early-bird” prices shown on the Registration Form up to the end of August. It is time to register now! |
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Guitar concert –
A Guitar Summer School is being held in Sydney by the local
Classical Guitar Society
at the same time as our Mandolin Festival. We attempted to arrange some interaction betweeen the two groups, but the demands
of each timetable have defeated us. Nevertheless – The Guitar Summer School will culminate in a Free public concert on Sunday afternoon (5:30 pm) 13th January, the day after our main concert. The concert will feature participants and staff of the Guitar Summer School and would be a really good way to finish off a musical week in Sydney. The Concert will be held in the Packer Theatre, Ascham School, 188 New South Head Rd, Edgecliff, Sydney. If entering from New South Head Rd, the Music Dept. is at the back of the Ascham campus, behind the tennis courts. Cars can be parked in the carpark at the New South Head Rd entrance to Ascham. The Edgecliff Bus-Train Interchange is directly opposite the School's front gates. |
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(And check this webpage regularly for updates!) |
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Last updated 7 January 2008
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