Adelaide Guitar Festival Strikes a Chord
Guitar heroes are gathering at Adelaide Festival Centre for a four day celebration of the world’s favourite instrument.
The 2018 Adelaide Guitar Festival features 19 international artists, five world premieres, two Australian and four Adelaide premieres as well as workshops, masterclasses and artist talks.
Running from August 9-12, music lovers will be treated to an impressive line-up of local, national and international artists across all genres of guitar.
Master musician Tommy Emmanuel bring his incredible technique, artistry and charisma to opening night, along with special guests Pedro Javier Gonzalez and Richard Smith. Grammy-award winning legend Albert Lee, whose long career has included collaborations with Eric Clapton and Joe Cocker, shares his decades of dedication on Saturday night.
The Guitar Festival Symphony Gala will be another highlight, as will the Festival Finale featuring South Africa’s Derek Gripper in his only Festival appearance, along with Chrystian Dozza from Brazil, Australia’s Grigoryan Brothers and China’s Beijing Guitar Duo.
Television and media personality Julia Zemiro joins Adelaide Guitar Festival this year, hosting the Festival Finale as well as bringing her irreverent brand of interviewing to “In Conversation With…”, interviewing a variety of festival artists in this free event.
Cutting-edge performer Kaki King will light up the stage with her extraordinary imagination and a burst of colour with her innovative performance on Sunday before Perth’s formidable Abbe May hosts an all-star night of female performers at Clam Jam. South Australian musicians in this year’s festival include The Family Bushdance, Wanderers, Kelly Menhennett, Hana and Jessie-Lee and more.
Using projection mapping, textures, skins, and luminous
The 2018 Adelaide Guitar Festival program also included more than 200 gigs across SA during Guitars in Bars, a precursor to the festival, and Resonance, where world-class musicians perform in hospitals, community centres and homes for older people across South Australia from 28 July – 10 August.
Adelaide Guitar Festival Artistic Director Slava Grigoryan says: “We are putting on a four-day feast for music-lovers, with a huge range of styles and artists to enjoy. Each one is a stand-alone master musician – as a group they are an overwhelming force. From legends like Albert Lee and Tommy Emmanuel, world premieres and unique combinations of artists, to our unique community events Resonance and Guitars in Bars, Adelaide Guitar Festival is taking over the city. I urge you to give in to the power of strings!”
Adelaide Festival Centre CEO and Artistic Director Douglas Gautier says: “This year’s festival has brought together musicians with the greatest artistry, imagination and sheer love for their instrument. The enormous range of genres represented, combined with the powerful community engagement elements of the 2018 program, show why the guitar is the most democratic of instruments.”
Adelaide is the first and only UNESCO City of Music in Australia. As the leading winter guitar music event in Adelaide, Adelaide Guitar Festival is proud to celebrate and contribute to this status as a UNESCO City of Music.
For more information visit www.adelaideguitarfestival.com.au
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