JW, Mark Atkins and Fiddlers Feast to appear at Festival Inter-Celtique

John Williamson, Mark Atkins and Fiddlers Feast are among artists to appear at Festival Inter-Celtique, the world's largest Celtic festival, staged in Lorient, Brittany, France.

This year, FIL, as it is known, is honouring Australia for its 36th festival which will take place between July 28 and August 6.

The FIL attracted more than 700,000 people last year and, because of its Australian focus, is expecting even larger attendance for the "Year of Australia".

Australia's participation, under the artistic direction of folklorist Warren Fahey AM, will present a thematic gala concert "telling the Australian story" at a VIP event including Australian Ambassador to France Penny Wensley AO, senior French political and business leaders, invited guests and members of the international music media.

There will also be a major Australian pavilion, styled on an Australian country "pub" with restaurant, bars and exhibitions, which will operate for the 10 days of the festival with performances throughout the day.

John, one of Australia's most recognisable voices and award-winning songwriters, will perform at both the gala concert and the pavilion and head an Australian Cabaret Night. He will also perform at the launch of the Rugby Tri-Nations Cup which will be broadcast live to the Pavilion.

Indigenous didgeridoo virtuoso Mark Atkins (at right) has played with classical ensembles to rock bands. At the FIL, he will open four massive Nuit Magic spectaculars with his solo didgeridoo lifting into a massed pipe band tribute to Australia.

Fiddler's Feast (previously known as Fiddler's Festival) is Marcus Holden, Mark Oats, Clare O'Meara, Rodney Ford, John Coker and Gary Steel and are described as "a powerhouse of Australian Celtic music that flies down bush tracks, over blue mountains and zips down through the Australian city highways".

Other Australian artists performing at this year's FIL include folklore collector and interpreter of old bush songs and dance music Dave de Hugard, internationally recognised duo Mara! (Llew and Mara Keik), one of Australia's most successful and respected indigenous ensembles for dance, song and lore, Descendance, Victoria's high-energy, Scottish-Australian band Claymore, led by William Hutton, world-renowned Celtic music group Brother, a pioneer of Australia's folk music revival Martyn Wyndham, highly talented harpist Christina Sonnemann, the group Tantallon (John, Caroline and Malcolm Bushby, Sirocha Bruckland and Annie Parnsell), good-time Celtic ceilidh band Murphy's Pigs and three of Australia's most celebrated pipe and drum bands – the City of Adelaide Pipe Band, the Ipswich Thistle Pipe Band and the Queensland Irish Pipe and Drum Band.

As well as hosting performances, the Australian pavilion will feature an exhibition responding to the enormous public interest in Australia among young French people, with major presentations on Australia's tourism, education and lifestyle.

Australia's participation at the 36th FIL has been supported by grants from the Australia Council for the Arts (the Federal Government's arts funding organisation), the Australia-France Foundation and the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade.

The support of the Australian Rugby Union, Qantas Airways, Cathay Pacific and Singapore Airlines is also acknowledged.

Lee on Better Homes...

Aussie artists "walk the line"

In a special, limited season performance in Sydney, Australian artists are to pay tribute to Johnny Cash, the man, his music and his life story.

Country stars Catherine Britt, Mike Carr, Beccy Cole, Travis Collins, Adam Harvey and Jake Nickolai will join Brian Cadd, Richard Clapton and Rick Price for eight shows at the Star City Ballroom from Tuesday July 18.

Tickets go on sale from Ticketmaster from 9am Monday June 12.

Hot rising star Catherine Britt returns directly from Nashville to take part in “Aussies Walk the Line”.

"I didn’t want to miss this at all," she said. "One of the great things about Johnny Cash was that he collaborated brilliantly with other artists, he was open to new kinds of music and approaches and then he could take those influences and turn them into something unmistakably his own. He has been a huge inspiration."

Brian Cadd’s hit presence on Australian radio has spanned four decades and his tribute will be that of a true contemporary.

"Johnny Cash was a great storyteller," he said, "He could draw you right into the song and bring the characters to life like no one else.  I think that was one of the things that made him so popular here in Australia. Aussies have always loved a good story."

"Aussies Walk The Line" is being staged by Rob Potts Entertainment Edge and CMC (Country Music Channel).

Further info, and tickets – www.ticketmaster.com.au.

Beccy to perform on the APRA Awards

Beccy Cole, meanwhile, has been booked to perform on this year's APRA (Australasian Performing Right Association) Music Awards on Monday night (June 5).

Beccy will join End Of Fashion, Lior, Jade Macrae, Joel Turner & The Modern Day Poets as performers on the night.

Special guest presenters will include former Song of the Year recipient John Butler, Joe Camilleri, Chit Chat Von Loopin' Stab, Bernard Fanning, Tim Freedman and Maya Jupiter, with others yet to be announced.

To be hosted by Jonathan Biggins, the APRA Music Awards is an annual celebration of Australian songwriters, honouring both composers and their publishers.

Those with access to subscription television will be able to watch a special presentation on the MAX channel called "They Write The Songs". This special will premiere on Sunday June 18 at 8.30pm and will feature special interviews and artist profiles along with presentation and performance highlights from the Awards.

Keith talks about his new album

Keith Urban told reporters backstage at last week's American Academy of Country Music Awards that he was about halfway through making his next record.

CMT.com reported he is shooting for a new single in August. Because he'll be in the studio most of the American summer, his tour dates are limited – but not completely wiped off his calendar.

"The odd part is," Keith said, "when you're making a new record, you're going out to tour and doing all these old songs. And your head is very much in the new record. So that side of it is very discombobulating.

"But we've got scattered shows throughout the summer because I go a little nutty without playing. I'm a little nutty anyway, but we're going to do enough shows to keep my sanity intact."

Keith's dry sense of humor also brought some laughter to the press room when asked if Bette Midler would be indeed performing "his favourite song" – Wind Beneath My Wings – at his wedding to actress Nicole Kidman, as was reported by an Australian tabloid.

"Really? Fantastic!" he deadpanned. "I'm looking forward to that. It's my absolute favourite song now, that's for sure. That would be a killer."

Meanwhile, the latest single from Keith's current album – Be Here – has just entered the Country Tracks Top 30 singles chart in Australia (see update below).

First artists announced for Cavalcade of Stars 2006

The Australian Country Music Foundation (ACMF) has announced the first round of artists appearing on the inaugural Cavalcade of Stars concert to be held in Tamworth during this year’s Hats Off To Country Festival in Tamworth.

Golden Guitar winner and Roll of Renown recipient Rex Dallas will headline the show to be staged in the famous Tamworth Town Hall on Friday July 7 from 7.30pm.

Performing with Rex, in the first group of artists to be announced, will be Clelia Adams, Katie Brianna (pictured), Jason-Lee, Brooke Leal and Alex Watt.

More acts are yet to be confirmed and will be announced shortly.

Rex Dallas is one of Australia’s best known country stars with four Golden Guitars to his credit. He has been touring and performing for more than 40 years and was elevated to the Country Music Roll of Renown in 2000.

Clelia Adams has been taking great strides in her career over the last year or two in particular and has just been announced as a finalist in the European Country Music Awards for material off her latest and widely acclaimed album Heartbeat Highway, the title track of which also won her a TIARA (Tamworth Independent Artists Recognition Awards) trophy this January.

Katie Brianna’s most recent major success was as a finalist in the International Songwriting Competition. She is currently touring and performing widely to promote her debut, self-titled CD, produced by Bill Chambers.

Over the last few months, Jason-Lee has been following up his success at the January country music festival in Tamworth where he made the grand final of Toyota Star Maker 2006.

Brooke Leal’s successes have been many over the last few years, including making the finals of Star Maker, winning the National Year of the Outback Songwriting Award, the 2002 Newcastle Music Award (Country) and the Australian Independent Country Music Awards Rising Star award in the same year.

Alex Watt has been gaining a lot of ground in his career since the release of his debut album Window Down last year. Prior to that, Alex won a string of awards and accolades over a number of years, including becoming a finalist in the 2006 Tamworth Songwriters’ Association National Songwriting Contest, making the finals in the 2006 Australasian Performing Right Association Professional Development Awards, making the finals of Toyota Star Maker 2005 and winning Senior Male Vocal at the Victorian Champion of Champions in 2004.

The Cavalcade of Stars is a new annual event to be staged as part of Country Music Capital’s mid-year festival to raise funds for the proposed new Australian Country Music Hall of Fame to be built in Tamworth.

Organisers have kept the admission price to the concert – just $15, including booking fee – as low as possible in an effort to make the event more attractive to a wider audience.

Tickets can be purchased from Tourism Tamworth on 02 6767 5300 or online at www.tamworth.nsw.gov.au/ticketsales.

Further information about the concert can be obtained from the ACMF on 02 6766 9696 or by visiting www.acmf.org.au.

Entries open for Newcastle Music Awards

Entries have opened for the 2006 ABC Newcastle Music Awards.

Organised and staged by 1233 ABC Newcastle and 92.5 ABC Central Coast, the Awards are open to all original artists and bands residing in the NSW Hunter and Central Coast regions.

Entries close on Friday June 16. Entry forms can be obtained from all ABC Shops and Centres or downloaded from www.abc.net.au/newcastle/musicawards.

This year will be the fifth consecutive year for the wards. The project runs across seven months with the major aim to provide support and airplay to local artists. Artists and bands may also receive valuable airplay time and program support across 1233 ABC Newcastle programs as well as other ABC networks such as Triple J, Classic FM and DIG.

A range of genre categories is available to enter... Rock/Heavy Rock, Pop, Blues and Roots, Classical, Folk, R'n'B/Dance/Hip Hop, Alternative, Adult Contemporary, Country, Jazz and Combined World, Theatre and Gospel.

Apart from category winners, other awards to be presented will include the ABC Music Publishing and APRA Songwriters and Composers Recognition Award, the Hunter Broadcasters' Choice award, Central Coast Broadcasters' Choice, Listeners' Choice, Best Female and Male Vocal, Best Young Talent and the prestigious ABC Music Best Artist Award.

Country winners of the 1233 ABC Newcastle Music Awards to date have been Bob Pigott with Back Verandah (2005), Julie Woodward with Come With Me (2004) and Brooke Leal with Run With Me (2003).

This year's 1233 ABC Newcastle Music Awards will be presented at the Civic Theatre Newcastle, on Friday October 20.

And the WA Country Music Awards

Entries have also opened for the 2007 Western Australian Country Music Awards.

Award winners will be announced in February during the Boyup Brook Country Music Festival.

More than $10,000 worth of prizes, including recording sessions and cash components, will be taken home by winners who will also win a guest performance spot at the Festival.

Categories include Junior, Senior, Open Band and Gospel. 

Entries close on October 1. Entry forms can be obtained by telephoning 08 9765 1657 or by downloading from www.countrymusicwa.com.au.