Mandolin orchestras have existed in Australia and New Zealand since the beginning of the 20th century. However, it was not until 1979, when the Federation of Australasian Mandolin Ensembles (FAME) was formed, that the concept of an Australasian mandolin movement became a reality.

The inspiration leading to the establishment of FAME arose at an annual music camp held by the Melbourne Mandolin Orchestra in Bendigo, Victoria. The original idea was to form an organization which could apply for grants and co-ordinate events which would include all the member orchestras and individual mandolin music lovers throughout Australia.

1. To promote community involvement in the formation and development of orchestras of plucked string instruments,
2. To promote such orchestras to achieve the highest musical standards possible,
3. To promote the training of players and conductors, and
4. To encourage musicians to compose and arrange music for mandolin orchestras.

FAME has succeeded in becoming a valuable and strong link between performers throughout Australia and New Zealand, and has been conducting highly successful music camps and festivals for over 28 years. As well as linking musicians from all over Australia and New Zealand, it has forged links with overseas performers and composers, thereby nurturing the growth of the local mandolin movement. The musical backgrounds of FAME's members range from folk and light popular music to classical music and their skills also range widely from beginners to professional musicians. The activities supported and sponsored by FAME include conventions, workshops, regular newsletters, purchase and maintenance of musical instruments, recordings, scholarships for students, and encouragement and commissions for new works by Australian and NZ composers to expand the repertoire of the mandolin ensemble.

Community involvement including regular performances by the member ensembles for charity is also encouraged. Major milestones for FAME were the International Mandolin Festival held in Melbourne in 1993, and the second International Mandolin Festival held in Perth in 1997. Fame has also sponsored a tour by the Australian Mandolin Orchestra to Germany in 1980 and supported the tour by the Nagoya Mandolin Orchestra including wonderful performances in Castlemaine and Melbourne in 1998. Another concert tour was undertaken by the AMO to Germany and Holland from mid to late May, 2006. Read about it in our Past Events Page or click here.

Click here to download a FAME membership form in PDF format (you'll need Acrobat Reader 5 or later to open this file)

Click here to download a FAME membership form in MS Word format