The Woodford Folk Festival will visit the Texas Memorial Hall this Thursday 30 November at 6.30pm as part of its regional ‘Festival of Small Halls’ tour.
American folk raconteur Vance Gilbert and Australian singer-songwriter Liz Stringer are the feature acts in Festival of Small Halls Summer Tour 2017 this month, and the pair are counting down the days.
“Bringing the music to regional folks removes a light layer or film of music’s arrogance and audacity,” Vance said.
“It makes the music work a bit to be part of the fabric of the place. That’s authentic.”
Vance Gilbert has released 12 albums over a career spanning more than 25 years. He has opened for acts like Arlo Guthrie and Aretha Franklin, and he even has a song on a Grammy-nominated children’s album.
Homegrown talent Liz Stringer has risen meteorically in the international music community. She recently recorded her album at Type Foundry Studios in Portland, Oregon, and has been so in-demand on the North American touring circuit that dedicated fans back home began to worry they’d lose her.
The Festival of Small Halls has snagged the Melburnian just before she heads back to Canada to record yet another album.
“I’ll be looking for stories out on the road,” Liz said.
However high her star rises, Liz still signs off her own Facebook posts as ‘Stringzy’ and loves the Australian community.
“I’ve always made a point of doing a lot of regional touring. Small towns have personalities and stories that can be a lot easier to access, because of their size.”
The Festival of Small Halls is a unique regional touring concept, working with community groups and regional councils across Australia to take some of the best international and national music into rural and remote areas of Australia.
Woodfordia Inc, producers of the iconic Woodford Folk Festival, The Planting Festival and the Artisan Camps commit to touring the finest music to the far-flung corners of Australia and ensuring no town that wants a good show has to go without – no matter how far the distance.
For tickets and more information, visit www.festivalofsmallhalls.com/texas-3/
