Newport Bush Orchestra Busks a Move at Willy

The Newport Bush  Orchestra warms a few heart cockles at Williamstown on Saturday 26 April
As part of Willy Council's Busk-A-Move,
NBO personnel braved the winds and rain to strut their stuff in Douglas Pde for an hour on Saturday.

True to the BO ethos the word was put out for performers and the response was very respectable. Chrises K and H, Bruces W and S, Mike S, Cat T, Greg O, Anette, Trev, Steve, Rob R, Big Al,  Bill, Corrie and Bo arrived and treated passers by to the BO experience.

The effect was immediate and gratifying. You coud feel the mood of the shoppers lighten and once we remembered to put out the hat, the cash started pouring in. Our sound and demeanour generated spontaneous goodwill and we had shop assistants jigging and cameras clicking away as we ran through our feral and chaotic repertoire.Our administrative office Heather (appointed there and then on the spot) was kept busy stopping the 10's and 20's  fluttering away.

We spent it on well-deserved coffees afterward as we bathed in our very transient glory.

All agreed it was a good way to spend an hour in Willy. Oh! .... and we continued our tradition of bringing audience members to tears as a young mum saw her 6 month old bairn keeping quite good time with Anette's
tamborine. She was thrilled!

One pic - more on the way .......

Singalong and Club Night

Some pics from 2 recent events; the Live@Newport singalong and the first Club Night at the Newport Scout Hall. Both firsts, and both great nights!

‘Bilarni’. A new show from Jan (‘Yarn’) Wositzky, friend of the Newport Fiddle and Folk 2014

Jan Wositzky is a friend of the Fiddle and Folk Club and a great contributor to our Festival. Never one to be idle, he has been researching and writing about Australian author, bushman and raconteur Bill Harney for twenty years. The result is a one-man storytelling show. For 70 minutes, Jan weaves personal anecdote, song and recitations of transcribed oral texts into a tale that is moving, funny, absurd, raw and at times tragic. Bill Harney ‘Bilarni’ (1895 – 1962) was born of English parents and grew up in Queensland. At 12 he took off droving and what followed was a rich and richly recorded life. Largely self-educated, he was poetically articulate and

throughout the 40s 50s, in Australia, his voice was heard and his stories familiar on radio, and his books devoured. Bill Harney was famous in his day and remains a legend in Queensland and the Northern Territory where his relationships with Aboriginal people ran deep.

 

In ‘Bilarni’ Jan examines the man and the myth; the story as he tells it is neither sentimental nor uncritical. He brings great depth to the telling with rich layers of information, multiple Aboriginal languages, Australian dialects, and ‘Englishes’ superb evocations of characters that could only be encountered in the north of this continent. Jan’s musicality is evident throughout, particularly so when it comes to the mastery of Harney’s rhythmical speech patterns. Lovers of language and literature will be seduced by Harney’s depth of feeling and perceptions, expressed so eloquently. This a storytelling at its best!

‘Bilarni’ will be enjoyed by anyone who loves a good yarn and a wild ride.

Sign up for Jan's e news HERE

Facebook HERE

Catch the show at the National Folk Festival Saturday 19 April HERE

Pics: We made our Newport  house available for Jan to perform 'Bilarni' to a small audience before taking it on the road to the National Folk Festival.

Jackie Kerin