belgrave abuzz with buskers

Local singer/songwriter Ben Kelly and myself were
judges for one of the solo stages. We were treated to
a great array of busking performances throughout the
day and had great fun, the spirit of the day was terrific. 

I had a great time over the weekend at the Belgrave Buskers Festival.

The event, held for the second time, was organised by the Belgrave Traders Association with the assistance of a Shire of Yarra Ranges community grant. 

Busking spots were dotted throughout the town, so buskers
could put their hat down to drum up trade.

The traders would like the festival to become known as the festival that marks the last weekend of summer, and at 33 degrees, the weather was certainly summery.

Here I am pictured with Justine Walsh, local spoken word artist.
Justine won the Darren Jones Encouragement  Award, an award
given to the artist recognised with great potential who could
reap great rewards from encouragement.

Onlookers were treated to an enormous array of buskers from solos, duos, groups, youth and primary aged performers.

Sean Carroll provided great entertainment with a
mix of covers and originals, our last performer for the
day, he was working hard in the heat. Sean took out
second prize in the solo category.

The streets were alive with music and people enjoying the sights and sounds of Belgrave. Community Radio station 3MDR (97.1) provided a live broadcast of the day as well. The entertainment continued into the night with Belgrave's live music venues providing performance time for buskers.

This yarn bombed cherry tree from the End of the Line Festival
provided another busking spot for aspiring performers.

There was drumming in the park and spoken word performance, To the ends of the 'Verse, as well. I'm really pleased to learn that the spoken word event will become a regular monthly event in Belgrave, thanks to Chocolate Sensation for the venue and Justine Walsh for her commitment to see it happen.

Jared Duffy covered some classic rock songs as part
of his perfomance, he took out an encouragement award
for his efforts.

I must particularly thank Belgrave Trader's Association coordinator, Marina Dennis. Marina did an amazing job pulling the event together, her dedication and passion for the arts in the region is a wonderful asset for the community.

The youth stage saw some great entertainment from those
young budding performers in our community.

I'm already looking forward to next year's festival!

The undercroft of the stables at Earthly Pleasures provided
a great stage for duos.

Winners were:
Primary (under 11s)
1st Anya    2nd Heath
Youth (12 to 16 years)
1st Jack   2nd Justin
Solo (open age) Stage 1
1st Mel Wilkinson
2nd Sean Carroll
Encouragement awards to Rudy the One Man Band and Jared Duffy
Solo (open age) Stage 2
1st Sally Carter
2nd Glenn Scolyer
Encouragement awards to Ella Ruby and Carol McCoy
Duo (open age)
1st Kate Crowley and Michael Waugh
2nd Kaitlin Marie Duo
Group (open age)
1st D'caf
2nd Jakk's Azimuth
Encouragement awards to River Tribe and Melting Pot
Darren Jones Encouragement Award
Justine Walsh

Congratulations to you all and to organisers for a great day in Belgrave.



This cherry tree was yarn bombed just in time for the festival,
thanks to Danni from Walk in Wardrobe.