Newport Folk Festival July 3 4 5 2009

Planning is well underway for the second Newport Folk Festival and there is an air of excitement around town as the ideas area developing into a festival program. We have an international muso and great friend of the folk club, Jill Dawson, coming over from Canada specifically for the festival. Jill, pictured here with her violin at Niagra Falls, can claim responsibility for the time of the festival. She taught over here 4 years ago and when there was talk of 'one day' putting together a festival, Jill was insistent that it take place in July when Canada has its summer holidays. So she finishes school on the 30th of June, packs her bags and fiddle and will be in Newport to get things underway. Jill taught us the Canadian tune "Waiting for Emilie' and so we look forward to playing it with her again in Melbourne.

In addition to our overseas visitor the folk club has found come young local talent. Tess Clark and her group 'Parapluie' have been performing their own compositions around the traps for a couple of years and so we are very pleased to have them join this year's festival. THe group is pictured sheltering from the rain without their parapluie.

What else? The Festival is again sponsored by Hobsons Bay CIty Council (principal sponsor) the Newport Traders Association, and our local member Wade Noonan, and auspiced by Outlets Cooperative We are very grateful for the support of our community including the Newport Bowling CLub, the Newport Senior Citizens, the Substation, the Junction Hotel, Newport RSL and OUtlets Cooperative. Like all festivals it takes the community to work together to achieve something like this and we are pleased to be part of such an enthusiatic community in

Newport.
Other news - the Newport Bush Orchestra (now numbering 20 players) is recording their first cd under the direction of Greg O'Leary and Bruce WIlliams. The cd will be released at the Festival and available for purchase (so the pressure is on). The Bush Orchestra will play for the dance on Saturday night (July 5 at the Substation) so this is certainly one for the diary. Apart from that, lots of other projects are going on (drawing, workshops in Mando, Fiddle, Comedy, Dance) which will lead to contributions at the festival and the draft program should be available online within a week. Should be great fun!