Tag Archive: Festival

Dawn Barrington > Festival

Summer’s Here!

November 8, 2020 0 Comments

It’s been a while but I think I have good reason to be in “tools down”  mode recently. It was a big move  from Denmark to Fremantle but things are starting to get more settled now. 

I’ve been having a bit of fun busking and doing a few open mics and a couple of gigs too. I have found myself a music partner Jason Johns and we are now busy getting some songs together to go out and do regular cafe/event/pub style gigs. Jason sings and plays great guitar and also writes his own songs so we have a few plans to get originals on our set list too. If you are a musician that is staying in the same city for a period of time you have to do gigs that are mainly covers. There are some venues that do accept originals or even prefer original music, but on the whole, if you want to earn money to try and make a living you have to do mainly covers. I have been lucky enough in the past 6+ years to do a lot of original music performances and earn money but that is because I was touring, so I was able to seek out the venues that are happy to have original artists or actually prefer original music. 

Nannup Festival 2021

I am very pleased to announce that I will be playing at Nannup in Feb-Mar 2021.  This is is going to be great. We are not sure yet what format it will take but at present it is will be a COVID safe event with reduced numbers, however, that could change.  Watch this space. There might be an opening to sell more tickets soon, at present they are already sold out.

I will be doing a couple of “Manus Music talks” workshops at Nannup as well which I am very excited about.  It’s been a while since my last festival gig but they are my favourite because it’s a place where the whole weekend is music, music, music and meeting lots of other artists.

Two Up

Jason and I are Two Up and we did our first paid gig at the Carriage Coffee Shop in Fremantle today.  We have been busy doing open mics to get our songs practiced and we are working towards 2 and 3 hr sets for the summer time. I have not managed to get any recording done this year which is a bit disappointing but Covid had an impact on my best made plans and then finances became a problem too. However, I am keen to record again soon and I am sure I will get the opportunity . Thanks again everyone for following my journey and for your support in what I do. It really is amazing to have so many interested in my musical shenanigans, you are the ones that inspire me to keep going even when the chips are down sometimes.

Festival, Gigs, Photos, Recording

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WAMFest and Recording

November 9, 2018 0 Comments

WAMFest (West Australian Music Industry)

I was lucky enough to be selected for WAMFest this year, so after a gig at Freehand Wines in downtown Denmark I then got myself organised for a some original sets, one in Albany at the White Star for Regional WAMFest and then 2 in Perth.  One was at the Perth Cultural Centre where I did a busking spot and the other was at Yagan Square which is an amphitheatre right in the centre of Perth which was amazing.  Something even more amazing happened and it was a total surprise to me and that is my song “Fly Free Little Bird” got chosen for the KISS MY WAMi Compilation CD. I didn’t even realise till I checked the program to see when and where I was playing and the songs that had been chose were on there. All in all it was a fantastic weekend and a great honour to be a part of such a big Western Australian Festival

It’s hard to believe that so much has happened in the past 7 years and to be a part of this festival was something I had never imagined would happen because I thought that the music industry only catered for people who were not in the 20s or 30s.  It has been a real slog being a woman and middle aged for that matter to get noticed and be treated as an equal. I  am not using age and gender as an excuse, it’s just a reality, and I think our culture really doesn’t take mature women seriously and it’s not easy for young women either because

 they have to deal with expectations placed on them. However, I have noticed that things are changing and gender equity is starting to happen so hopefully this will happen more and more.  I notice that when I play at venues where there are people from Europe or the Middle East or India they are always much more attentive and interested in listening, so maybe we need to learn something from those countries.

Recording

Since my last post I have finished two recording sessions. Al Smith from Bergerk Studio came down from Perth for the

weekend twice, once in September and again in October and we recorded 4 songs for my upcoming EP which I will probably be releasing in January.  Tony King is amazing and once again he offered to do my instrumentation and he also helps with production which is awesome! I love recording andI love how the songs evolve and it really is a collaboration because I never know where each one is going to go. We just start with my acoustic version which is literally lyrics and chords and then Tony adds his magic as he comes up with ideas throughout the process.  This was the first time working with in the studio with Al although he has mastered all my tracks since I started recording. Tony has known Al for 20 years and they worked brilliantly together and what I love the most about working with these guys is that there’s no inflated egos. It’s all pure fun and creativity. Luke Tulloch came in and did some violin tracks, he is an incredibly talented young man that I met at TAFE a number of years ago now and it didn’t take him long to find some lovely violin melodies to accompany my songs.

To top it all off I had a great gig at the Three Anchors in Albany with Tony King and it was the first time that I had done a three hour gig with him, and I was a bit nervous hoping that he would know how to play all my songs, but I realised very quickly that there was nothing to be concerned about, Tony is a legend when it comes to improvising, he really is an outstanding musician.  We had a great gig and he managed to compliment every song brilliantly and thanks to John King we got a photo to prove it. 

Albany Gigs, Gigs, Photos, Recording, Song writing

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Taking flight – Festival fun

June 10, 2018 0 Comments

Denmark Festival of Voice 2018
The sun was shining and there was a buzz in the air in Denmark as the Festival of Voice got into full swing. Our beautiful little town came alive with song, poetry and music scattered in every venue across town. I played at Mrs Jones Cafe on Saturday and Sunday.

On Saturday early evening Tim and I did a documentary screening of “Music from Manus – 5 Days not 5 Years” which was very well attended. Once again we had a fantastic response and people really engaged with the information being shared on the screen and thanks to all those who signed my petition and put money in the tin afterwards.  I have been able to send some money to help a refugee get some urgently needed dental treatment today as a result of the money raised at the screening.

Thanks to the Denmark Yoga community for raising funds and to all the individuals who have approached me in the street to donate too, their money also was able to support the dental costs. We have a few more local screenings, one in Denmark and one in Walpole then the next ones will be when I go over east in August.

So life has been changing dramatically for me in recent months with so many more engagements than ever before.  My music career has overlapped with my activism work and my purpose has become more clear.  I am passionate about music and writing and recording songs and performing which always comes first.  However, alongside that is my desire to see an end to the offshore detention of innocent people.  I am passionate about that too and I am honoured that I can use my music profile to raise awareness and support change.

Gigging Land
In the next few months I will be doing my usual gigs and they include my first time at Freehand Wines right here in Denmark and then I have been asked to perform a the Truffle Kerfuffle in Manjimup being organised by Kelsi Miller Good nights Bunbury on Sunday 24th which is fantastic!.  A week before I go to Townsville I will be playing at one of my favourite local spots….well almost local….in Albany called Six Degrees which will be a great warm up for the pending trip.

Next Album in the making
I have a heap of new songs that I want to get onto my next album so I’ve booked a weekend in September to record the first few songs and it’s wonderful to have Tony King there to do lots of the instrumentation and Al Smith from Bergerk! studios is coming down to set up his recording gear in my music studio. I’m going to ask a bunch of locals to participate too so it’s really going to be another local affair.  I’ll keep you posted on that one folks.

Townsville Cultural Festival
July is a month where I will be getting organised for the biggest event for  “Dawn Barrington Music” this year and that is that I will be performing at the Townsville Cultural Fest! This will be my very first visit to Townsville and it’s going to be awesome and especially lovely to catch up with Kallidad who are one of the headliners.  This is an incredible festival where gender equity is a priority and all cultures are recognised in one big celebration.  The organiser of this festival Farvardin Daliri and his team have been making this happen for many years and he is a great advocate for cultural diversity in his community and I am very looking forward to meeting him and his team in August for this fantastic weekend.

Documentary screenings
After the Townsville Festival I will be going down to NSW to do a heap of screenings down the NSW coast in Newcastle, Gosford, Sydney x 2, Wollongong and Eurobodalla. I am very excited because there is such enthusiasm by the people hosting them to make it happen and I will get to meet all the fellow activists/advocates over there who I have been conversing and liaising with on facebook for the past 18 months or so.

I am now keen to spread the word far and wide so please feel free to share the documentary and if you want me to do a screening in your town please make contact with me because I am very happy to come and do that.

Albany Gigs, Denmark Gigs, Gigs, Recording, Videos

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ALBUM LAUNCH at the Denmark Festival of Voice!

May 16, 2017 0 Comments

I will be launching my Album “When Did it Change” at this year.s Denmark Festival of Voice which is only a few weeks away on June 3rd and 4th.  The whole of Denmark comes alive with music, poetry, spoken word and other creative collaborations. The festival has been going since 2004 and this is the 4th time I have had the opportunity to play there.  This year I will be joined by Peter Caron on guitar.

“When did it change?” was recorded in February of this year in Denmark with Denmark musicians and a Denmark raised producer.  When did it Change? is a my third CD release in as many years. This album is largely autobiographical and includes new songs written to reflect a time of considerable change in my life for which music has been the catalyst.  It also dips into the past by reworking some songs from my EP “Voices”.

 

I will be playing at Mrs Jones Cafe on Mt Shadforth Rd and the Arthouse Cafe, Denmark Arts, 2A Strickland Street.

REVIEWS

“The irrepressible Folk artist Dawn Barrington is a truly inspirational Musician. ….. Dawn has recorded and independently released her second album ‘ When did it change ‘ and it is astounding how far that this songwriter has progressed in so few years. With the courage of her convictions and some help from a core of exemplary musicians (Tony King, Co- Producer and Guitars, to name just one) Dawn has crafted a wonderful Folk recording. ‘It was you‘ and ‘Cross to bear‘ are two of my favourites, both songs verging on folk rock, propelled along by robust melodies and exquisite musicianship. ‘A young lady i once knew‘ is another highlight on this album, as are the inspired covers of Leaving on a Jet plane and Blowing in the wind. In fact ‘When did it change‘ sounds very much like a sixties recording, even without the covers just mentioned, yet it still manages to be of the here and now, Tony King’s guitar work has a lot to do with that, though i think it has more to do with the songwriters own influences and her modern interpretations of a bygone era. In a nutshell Dawn Barrington has found her voice.
I truly enjoyed listening to ‘ When did it change ‘ and wish Dawn the greatest success for this formidable album and her fledgling career.”  Pete Williams – Presenter 3NRG 99.3FM, Sunbury, VIC

“Dawn Barrington is a folk singer from Western Australia and I became aware of her music in September of 2014 when I downloaded her track ‘Voices’ from AMRAP. Early 2015 saw the release of the single “Women of War” to coincide with the 100th anniversary of Gallipoli and put the war in a perspective not often acknowledged, that of the women who either took part directly or who stepped up to support the war effort from Australia as well as generally keeping the home fires burning.

I would describe Dawn’s music as a set of carefully crafted lyrics’ riding an original meandering tune to simultaneously arrive at a point.

A few months back, Dawn toured the east coast for the first time and I was lucky enough to have her as a guest on Rare Traxx & Eclectic where she sang live in the studio. Later that same week, I went to the Illawarra Folk Club to see Dawn perform live. I witnessed a very warm exchange between artist and audience which I thoroughly enjoyed.

I look forward to Dawns next visit and the possibility of seeing her perform live at a house concert venue.” Michael Hayes – Producer 2MCR 100.3FM, MacArthur, NSW

“The album as a whole has captured your energy and creativity.” Ruth Halbert, Denmark WA

“Had a great interview with Dawn Barrington a few months back. She has a deep soulful voice with achoustic rythm and meaning. You can tell she’s a friend by her lyrics. Great Music. And I’m Promoting Her. It would be so great to see her at TribeLive.” Ian Knott, Presenter, Tribe 91.1FM, Wilunga, SA

Denmark Gigs, Gigs, Photos, Reviews

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