New talent announced for Queenscliff Music Festival

AS the Queenscliff Music Festival rapidly approaches, a new set of artists has been announced to perform at the Queenscliff Maritime Museum.

The festival, running from November 22 until November 24, has introduced the Gil Allbutt Boat Shed as an external venue, adding an exciting new lineup of local talent.

Among the new musicians are Tilda Jarvis, Under the Sun, Serendipity, Seedy Weed Dragons and more.

Festival director Claire Strickland said it’s exciting to have the new venue as part of the program with local emerging artists appearing on the stage.

“Queenscliff Music Festival has always been committed to fostering local and emerging talent as part of the festival,” she said.

“It’s part of our unique identity, the festival is really showcasing the great talent from the region, the Surf Coast, Geelong and Bellarine is flush with great emerging talent.

“We feel it’s really good for the festival to be able to foster and create a platform for those local acts to get an opportunity to have that really valuable exposure to a festival audience.”

Ms Strickland hopes the added talent and venue is an opportunity to highlight Queenscliff in a different light to festival goers and build upon the unique offerings.

“It’s showcasing that great connection to the water and history that Queenscliff has,” she said.

“It’s about creating different opportunities for our festival goers to step outside the festival precinct and explore the town and the water or the harbour.”

Bands will battle it out in the pavilion for the return of the FReeZA Foot in the Door Competition on the Friday and Saturday night, in a new partnership with the Port Fairy Folk Festival.

The new initiative invites two youth-based artists from the Port Fairy Future Folk program to perform at the Maritime Museum venue and in return some of the bands from the Queenscliff FReeZA competition will have the opportunity to perform in Port Fairy.

Evie Dalton and Joesph Lim will be playing in Queenscliff as part of the Port Fairy Folk Festival and Queenscliff Youth Exchange program.

A new grant scheme will also launch this year, introducing the Queenscliff Music Industry Kickstarter Grant, with the first of two rounds to open in December.

“It’s a grant that aims to provide professional and creative development opportunities for people in the early stages of their music industry career,” Ms Strickland said.

The grant is open to anybody involved in the music industry in the Bellarine, Surf Coast and Geelong areas.

For tickets and more information, head to qmf.net.au.

//SPONSORED CONTENT