If the program is anything to go by, South Australia seems to be stringing together some of the world’s best musicians at this year’s Adelaide Guitar Festival.
The four-day program, announced today (Saturday, May 28), will feature four world premiere pieces across various shows; including 18 international acts, 66 national artists and almost 200 local musicians.
Guitars in Bars and other places, which is new to the program, will take Adelaide Guitar Festival to the pubs and clubs of South Australia and is expected to increase the festival’s reach to more than 100 venues across the State.
Slava Grigoryan, Adelaide Guitar Festival artistic director, says the festival “stretches into new territory” in the city.
“I am so excited to be bringing together world-leading artists who traverse many genres, to be exploring the nexus of health and music in our new Resonance program and to be working with Adelaide’s own world-class musicians,” he says.
Slava Grigoryan, Bogdan Mihailescu and Jim Redgate
Slava is also part of the program, playing in the new ‘Resonance’ show with world-class guitarists in hospital wards and homes for older music lovers who may not be able to otherwise attend the festival.
But opening the show will be the incredible talent of Bogdan Mihailescu, winner of the 2014 Adelaide International Classical Guitar Competition. The Romanian native returns for his Australian debut recital.
Adelaide Town Hall is a new venue to the festival, where headliners Punch Brothers will show why they are the global kings of progressive bluegrass, while Béla Fleck, who won the 2016 Grammy for Best Folk Album, will team up with his partner Abigail Washburn in a true folk music explosion.
Abigail Washburn and Bela Fleck – photo Jim McGuire
One of Spain’s most revered guitarists, Ricardo Gallén will be performing in the Dunstan Playhouse, showing off his passion for the notoriously challenging work of Bach.
Classical music lovers will be spoilt for choice. The Guitar Festival Symphony Gala, featuring the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra, boasts world premieres of new works from esteemed Cuban composer Leo Brouwer and acoustic electric guitar by Australia’s Andrew Ford.
The popular Coopers’ Late Night Sessions return to the Space Theatre with incredible artists and a huge variety of guitar styles and genres.
For lovers of blues and roots, Genevieve Chadwick is the one to see, who has been said to, “look like an angel, roar like a lion and play guitar like a demon”.
Genevieve Chadwick
The kids won’t miss out either when Josh Earl puts on his family show My Family is Weirder than Your Family, celebrating the weirdness in every family through hilarious song.
This year’s festival also features workshops, artist talks, master classes and ’15 Minutes of Fame’, where hopefuls try their luck in the spotlight.
The Adelaide Guitar Festival is a biennial event and runs from August 11-14.