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Bundanoon DanceFest 2025
June 6th - 9th
Having established itself as a major social dance event in the calendar, the Bundanoon DanceFest is set for 2025. A strong team of dance callers have put up their hands to contribute to the weekend. We'll have all the usual dance forms presented by Australians finest teachers.
As usual the teachers will be supported by a special confluence of musicians keen to provide the LIVE Music for wonderful dancers.
Online Ticket Sales are nowclosed.
The program is up and viewable and the music will be added as it becomes available. The Program as PDF is also available now.
In future Bundanoon DanceFest will be run under Australian Social Dance and Music Inc
Membership of this organisation can be arranged at the DanceFest. Ask at the Main Hall desk.
The first AGM of AUSDAM will be held at Bundanoon on the Saturday at 5.30 in the Main Hall.. All Welcome.
You are also welcome to add your interest to the database for AUSDAM at this AirTable Site
Bush Traditions Autumn Gathering 2025
Hall Showground, 21 - 23 February 2025
The Autumn Gathering was held in and around the Pavilion on Hall Showground over the past weekend. Those of us who were there had an enjoyable time playing our music and chatting.
The Showground is an idyllic spot quite rural in its aspect and worth using for other events. Camping is free, and there was enough space for several dozen tents and vans. There are motels and B&Bs close by, and a 250M walk to a cafe and decent meals.
The Pavilion is boasts a verandah on the NE side with a clear view of gumtree. No houses in sight. It was quiet and sufficiently away from residential buildings to avoid the negative effects of sound spill.
The Hall Association has used its income from hall hire to upgrade the Pavilion: new kitchen, hall ceiling, toilets and showers. Its quite smick! The floor is solid enough for dance, at least 8 sets, but could use some attention.
Bush Traditions Spring Gathering 2024
Thanks to the contributors who made the 2024 Bush Traditions Gathering such a pleasant weekend of music and friends in the delightful ambience of the Goulburn Club.
In no particular order: Wayne Millar; Helen and Tony Romeo; Peter Kohler; Alan Swift; Tony Stuart; Stuart Leslie; Ralph Pride; George Bolliger; Shayne Kerr; Ray Mulligan; Stuart Simms; Doreen; Lesley Ferrier; Richard Officer; Vanessa Bonetti; Elaine Elmers; Moir Holmes; Brian Gutkin; Mike Martin; and the Saplings
The accent on participation is what distinguishes Bush Traditions events - with opportunities to play, sing, recite, chat,...
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The highlight of the weekend, for many of the participants, was
On The Wallaby
A production featuring songs, poems yarns and skits
about humpin' bluey, goin' on the wallaby, and waltzin' Matilda
cobbled together by Dave Johnson
The finale with Ralph Pride leading My Old Black Billy
with the whole cast behind him in resounding chorus
was truly splendid.
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Bundanoon DanceFest 2024
The rain bucketed down on the week leading up to and including the Friday night welcome Bush Dance, but this did not deter our valiant dancers. The weekend numbers were healthy and the atmosphere was just what we have grown to expect. The music was strong and underpinned the fine calling of the team of teacher/ callers.
A novelty this year was local line dance teacher Heather Rowe who had the entire hall dancing not to the customary C&W but to Australian bush classics instead. Heather got lots a very positive feedback from the attendees.
Autumn Gathering 2024
Gunning 23 - 25 February 2024
This was held and there was a relaxed and informal gathering of folk who enjoyed the camping and music experience.
Further info pending.
Dancing in Fetters in Freemantle 2024
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The exhibition was hosted at the Freemantle Prison 16 Sep 2023 to 28 Jan 2024
Over 45,000 people visited the Dancing in Fetters exhibition!!
In December the Prison had the highest month of visitations on record.
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Bush Traditions Spring Gathering 2023
The 2023 Bush Traditions Gathering happened again on the Labor Day Long Weekend October at the Goulburn Club. A weekend of fine music, interesting workshops and grand company in a delightful olde-worlde venue. Thanks to our hosts and in particular to Mary Booth and Ron McLaughlin for their support.
Bundanoon DanceFest 2023
The DanceFest happened in Bundanoon over the June long weekend. The weather was kind, the music was excellent and the dancing was fantastic, enjoyed by all who turned up. Dancers and musicians travel great distances to attend this festival of social dance, Melbourne and Brisbane and many places in between. We had Bush, Bavarian Ballroom/New Vogue, Colonial, Contra, English Country, Estonian, Scottish, Scandinavian, Irish. The Festival is a favourite of many experienced dancers and the standard of dancing is high. This allows callers to chance their reputations by calling new and often quite complex sequences. Some fell apart but most succeeded, often spectacularly. A memorable moment for me was to witness Peter Foster call a complex dance sequence with six quadrille sets in close formation. I don’t remember what Peter called it so I shall call it Foster’s Ratchet. In this sequence dancers perform a number of movements within their sets and then at the end of the sequence dancers turn their backs on their set and exchange places with dancers in adjacent sets. Yep, there are dancers on the edge who do a meanwhile before dancing on. Thus are the sets repopulated and the sequence repeated. Extraordinary stuff!
Ray Mulligan
Dancing in Fetters at The Rocks 2023
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At the Rocks Discovery Museum from 1 February to 28 April, 2023.
The launch with music and dance organised by David Potter with Sydney musicians and dancers. This component of the launch was supported by Bush Traditions Inc.
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Dancing in Fetters Tour
May 2023 on Norfolk Island
The exhibition is going to Norfolk Island in May 2023 and we have created a week of folk activities associated with convict culture. Workshops each morning (dance,music, song, maybe theatre), free time in the afternoon to explore the island, then an event in the evening (dance, concert, sessions, an act from the play).
It is a wonderful opportunity to see Norfolk Island and to be guided by Don and Sue Brian who have lived there and researched its history. Additionally there will be times when music, dance and song are called for so participation will be guaranteed.
National Folk Festival
CANBERRA 7 - 10 April 2023
A lot happened at the National this year
Collected Tunes Sessions
This was held in the Session Bar with a number of tune leaders taking folk through a new set of tunes.
The Camp (Ngura)
This new festival venue with an Australian content focus got off to a good start under the coordinator Emma Sputnik with Dave Johnson assisting with programming. The marquee was located in a prominent position with a food van, Biggies, providing superb slow cooked meats with native spice rubs.
Festival Bush Orchestra
Held at The Camp with a programme that was a reprise of the nine years Dave Johnson has been leading the Bush Orchestra. The music is available HERE.
And don't forget that it was Graham McDonald who initiated this valuable addition to the NFF, followed by Greg O'Leary.
Slow Tunes Sessions
Held in the Session Bar as usual first thing each morning with Alan and Linda Swift and Wayne Millar. |
Bush Traditions Autumn Get-Together
Gunning, 24 - 26 February 2023
An outdoor, camping oriented, low cost weekend held in Gunning. Most punters camped for the weekend and the air was filled with the sounds of music from the 40 or so who rolled up.
The Showground was excellent for the event with plenty of free camping and reasonable facilities. The hall was found to be disturbingly echoic on the Friday so Saturday and Sunday activities were in the large supper room with convenient access to the kitchen.
All in all Gunning got the thumbs up as a beaut venue for a Bush Traditions music and camping weekend.
Special thanks to Don and Sue Brian for sussing out the facilities and to Ray Mulligan and Moir Holmes for the inspiration.
Bundanoon Sessions Weekend
Queen's Birthday 10-13 June 2022 in Bundanoon
When the Bundanoon DanceFest was cancelled, some regular musicians put in a request for a music weekend in its place.
Essentially this was a music sessions weekend with time slots allocated to some focussed sessions eg Backblocks Tunes, Sea Shanties, etc and other informal sessions.
The music used is available for download: Local Living Legends; Wall-toWall Waltzes; Saturday Slow Session; Backblocks Tunes; Ukranian Tune; Putting in the Lilt
Some feedback
Thanks for the great weekend of Australian trad… I managed to squeeze in the couple of tunes I knew and had especially fun at the Saturday morning slow session.
Gerry Harris
Thanks again for a really wonderful weekend of music playing and learning, and for the organising that went into enabling our gathering again of the Bundanoon music "family".
It was so good to meet up with people again and to have time to sit and chat as well.
We played some really beautiful tunes again and I came home with many new ones to learn as well.
Denise Hibbs
What a great weekend of sessions we shared at Bundanoon over the long weekend.
A big thanks to everyone who contributed, especially Dave for organising venues, programme and the booking system, and to all those who coordinated singing or music workshops/sessions, or those who just came along to be part of it. The music and company were excellent, with plenty of beautiful tunes, lively tunes, interesting tunes, as well as songs, and the hilarious ‘Silly Songs’ session on Sunday night set the tone for a fun and relaxed final evening of song and music.
Carole Helman |
I very much enjoyed Saturday at Bundanoon. Thanks for your organisation.
Ron McLaughlin
Aside:
Ron was at Shayne Kerr’s workshop on the musical saw and I mentioned a saw player I’d invited to a Bush Music Festival in Marrickville in the early 1980s. Would you believe he was Ron’s grandfather’s cousin, known in the family as Uncle Walter!
Dave
Ron sent this info from a 1995 booklet of The Mclaughlin Family compiled for a family reunion gathering:
Walter McLaughlin, 10th child of John and Isabel McLaughlin born 1909 worked on the land most of his life. He later located to Sydney where he worked for CSIRO. Walter is a talented musician on the piano. Of late he has become renowned as a busker at Circular Quay where he plays the gum leaf and musical saw.
In 1972 Walter was World Champion Draughts player. When he was 83 he married Theresa Williams. They currently live in Sydney where Walter still does busking. |
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 The 2025 Australian Heritage Dance calendar, which is generated by Brian Samuels is here.
 Real Folk Videos
Some classic bush music now on YouTube
Updated version (Jan 2025) of the Settlers Session Book is available here.
Website
This website is maintained and developed by David Johnson.
Suggestions and contributions for inclusion welcome.
Last update 5/02/2025 11pm
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