Lyrebird Festival | Megalong Valley, NSW
November 23-26, 2023. Presented by the Bowerbird Collective
The Lyrebird Festival
Megalong Valley, NSW
November 23-26
ABOUT
The Lyrebird Festival launches in 2023, from Thursday the 23rd to Sunday the 26th of November, celebrating the spectacular Megalong Valley with music, art, food & wine, talks & nature walks. Founded and directed by the Bowerbird Collective, this event brings together some of Australia's finest musicians for a series of spellbinding concerts.
An iconic Australian species, and an evolutionary marvel, the lyrebird represents all that is sacred in the bush. They can be heard in the Megalong Valley imitating the calls of hundreds of other species, as well as producing their own thrilling sounds.
The Lyrebird Festival brings together art, science and conservation, and includes local culinary delights, intimate, world-class performances and an immersive, interactive experience of Janet Laurence's 'Elixir Lab'.
All events have been scheduled to allow for plenty of time moving between each location. All concerts and other events can be booked separately, or together with a festival pass. Pricing includes a 'Pay what you can' option.
SCHEDULE OF EVENTS
Full Schedule, Summary
Thursday 23rd
7:00pm - Concert 1 - 'Life on Land's Edge' - strings
5:00pm-7:00pm - Elixir Lab Opening (by invitation)
Megalong Tearooms open and serving late!
7:30pm - Concert 2 - 'Nocturnal' - solo guitar
8:45pm-9:45pm - Guided Frogging Walk 1
Saturday 25th
7:30am-8:30am - Deep Listening Walk 1
11:00am-5:00pm - Elixir Lab - Janet Laurence immersive art
11:00am-12:00pm - Concert 3 - Guitar & Cello recital
1:30pm-2:00pm - Vocal Edge, free choir performance at the Tea Rooms
3:00pm-3:45pm - Talk 1 - Glenn Albrecht, The Symbiocene
3:45pm-4:30pm - Talk 2 - Janet Laurence
Megalong Tearooms open and serving late!
7:00pm-8:00pm - Concert 4 - Chamber Folk concert - strings & shakuhachi
8:30pm-9:30pm - Guided Frogging Walk 2
6:30am-7:15am - Sunrise, Music & Yoga
7:30am-8:30am - Deep Listening Walk 2
9:30am-10:30am - Talk 4 - Andrew Skeoch
11:00am-5:00pm - Elixir Lab - Janet Laurence immersive art
11:00am-12:00pm - Concert 5 - Sunday Soirée - string quartets
12:30pm onwards - Summer Feast - Megalong Restaurant
3:00pm-4:00:pm - Talk 5 - Passive Architecture
4:30pm-6:00pm - Closing Concert - 'Where Song Began' - strings, guitar & shakuhachi
Thursday, 23rd of November
7:00pm-8:30pm - Festival Opening Concert - Life on Land's Edge
Megalong Community Hall
Tickets: $5-45
This performance will take you on an epic journey alongside migratory birds as they connect continents and cultures. A cinematic concert experience, Life on Land’s Edge draws on art, science, and music from across the ages. Spectacular footage and soundscapes set the scene for two of Australia's most adventurous musicians. Be immersed in one of nature's greatest stories. 'Life on Land's Edge' was awarded the Independent Arts Foundation Award for Innovation in 2022. The 60-minute performance is followed by a Q&A.
Simone Slattery | violin, vocals
Anthony Albrecht | cello
Concert Program:
Simone Slattery - Invisible Connections (2020)*
Philip Glass - Opening (1981)
Anne Cawrse - Sanctuary (2021)*
Chris Williams - (Codex) on the Flight of Birds (2021)*
Corrina Bonshek - Far Eastern Curlew Lament (2021)*
Corrina Bonshek - Between Sea and Sky (excerpt, 2022)*
Anne Cawrse - Ruddy Turnstone (excerpt, 2021)*
Dai Fujikura - Star Compass (2020)
Gambirra Illume - Wind Birds (2022)*
Vivaldi - Violin Concerto in B flat major RV 583, Andante (c.1720)
Simone Slattery - The Godwit and Curlew (2020)*
* New Commission
Friday, 24th of November
5:00pm-7:00pm - Elixir Lab - Exhibition Opening
Tickets: Free, By Invitation
The Megalong Tearooms open late serving small charcuterie options.
7:30pm-8:30pm - Concert 2 - Nocturnal - Solo Guitar
The Old Stables
Tickets: $5-$65 inc. a beverage and nibbles
Witness the spellbinding NSW premiere of 'Nocturnal', a multimedia recital for solo guitar by internationally renowned soloist Andrew Blanch. This 50-minute work explores the cultural and ecological significance of the night with stunning projections, soundscapes and some of the highlights of the solo guitar repertoire.
Andrew Blanch | guitar
Concert Program:
Giulio Regondi - Reverie-Nocturne Op. 19
Tristan Coehlo - Nocturnal I*
Erik Satie - Gnossiennes: No. 2, Avec etonnement
Tristan Coehlo - Nocturnal II*
Tōru Takemitsu - Equinox
Tristan Coehlo - Nocturnal III*
Johann Sebastian Bach - Fugue BWV 1001
Tristan Coehlo - Nocturnal IV*
Benjamin Britten - Nocturnal After John Dowland, Op. 70
8:45pm-9:45pm - Guided Frogging Walk 1
Tickets: $10
Join amphibian expert Oliver Kelly (University of Newcastle) for a late-night frogging experience in the pristine grounds of Werriberri Cottage in the Megalong Valley.
Saturday, 25th of November
7:30am-8:30am - Deep Listening Walk 1
Tickets: $10
Join one of Australia's foremost nature recordists Andrew Skeoch at a secret location in the Megalong Valley. Experience deep listening to nature. Andrew will guide a small group of participants into a sensitive, auditory perception of the environment around us. In silence, and walking slowly to calm our usually over-active minds, we will immerse ourselves in nature’s soundworld. Andrew will conclude by offering interpretation of what we’re hearing; identifying species by call, discussing vocal behaviours and why creatures use the sounds they do. Ticket holders will be provided with instructions to get to the easy-access location. Walking shoes and reasonable fitness are recommended.
11:00am-5:00pm - Elixir Lab
The Dairy, Megalong Valley Team Rooms
Tickets: $10
Experience Janet Laurence's extraordinary Elixir Lab, an immersion for all the senses. The Elixir Lab is specially created for this event in response to the produce and herbal gardens of Lot 101, Megalong Valley. Tickets are sold in 30-minute blocks, with each group limited to 20 people. The meeting point is the Megalong Valley Tea Rooms.
Ticket holders will meet at the Megalong Valley Tea Rooms and be guided on a 5-minute walk across the field, before spending 20-minutes in The Dairy. Guests should be at the Megalong Valley Tea Rooms at least 10-minutes prior to their booking time.
11:00am-12:00pm - Concert 3 - Guitar and Cello Recital
Megalong Creek Estate Winery
Tickets - $5-$65 inc. a beverage, with optional cheese plate and lunch add-ons
Guitarist Andrew Blanch and cellist Anthony Albrecht join forces for a morning of ravishing music from the baroque to Brazil.
60 minutes without interval. Guests are encouraged to stay on at Megalong Creek estate as the cellar door opens at midday.
Graze box & Wine Tasting for 2 - $25 (A light share graze box including cheese, crackers, olives, salami, fruit & nuts. Perfect to accompany a wine tasting of our 6 MCE wines).
*Lunch option 1 - plated meal of a deep dish chunky steak pie with side salad & wine tasting - $25pp
*Lunch option 2 - plated meal of a vegetarian pie with side salad & wine tasting - $25pp
Concert program:
Works by J.S. Bach, Piazzolla, Villa-Lobos, Saint-Saëns and Latin American composers
1:30pm-2:00pm - Vocal Edge
Megalong Valley Tea Rooms
Tickets: Free
A free performance by this wonderful local choir.
3:00pm-3:45pm - Talk 1 - Glenn Albrecht, The Symbiocene
Megalong Community Hall
30minutes followed by a Q&A.
Tickets: Registration by donation
Hear eco-philosopher Glenn Albrecht discuss his vision for a better world by transitioning from the human-dominated Anthropocene to an era in which we again live in harmony with nature, the Symbiocene.
3:45pm-4:30pm - Talk 2 - Janet Laurence
Megalong Community Hall
30minutes followed by a Q&A.
Tickets: $5
Acclaimed artist Janet Laurence will discuss her creative practice and its links to the environment.
Evening - Festival Feasting at Megalong Restaurant
Lot 101
Tickets: Restaurant Pricing
Chefs from Lot 101 will create an extraordinary culinary experience using local produce across multiple courses.
The Megalong Tearooms will be open serving small charcuterie options.
7:00pm-8:00pm - Concert 4 - Chamber Folk
The Old Stables
Tickets: $5-$65 inc. a beverage and nibbles
Chamber-folk from the wilds of Tasmania and beyond. An evening of profound, nature-inspired music.
Concert Program:
New music by Where Water Meets, Night Herons and the Bowerbird Collective
8:30pm-9:30pm - Guided Frogging Walk 2
Tickets: $10
Join amphibian expert Oliver Kelly (University of Newcastle) for a late-night frogging experience on a pristine Megalong Valley property.
Sunday, 26th of November
6:30am-7:15am - Sunrise, Music & Yoga
Megalong Valley Tea Rooms Lawn
Tickets: Free by registration
Yyan Ng | shakuhachi
7:30am-8:30am - Deep Listening Walk 2
Tickets: $10
Join one of Australia's foremost nature recordists Andrew Skeoch at a secret location in the Megalong Valley. Experience deep listening to nature. Andrew will guide a small group of participants into a sensitive, auditory perception of the environment around us. In silence, and walking slowly to calm our usually over-active minds, we will immerse ourselves in nature’s soundworld. Andrew will conclude by offering interpretation of what we’re hearing; identifying species by call, discussing vocal behaviours and why creatures use the sounds they do. Ticket holders will be provided with instructions to get to the easy-access location. Walking shoes and reasonable fitness are recommended.
9:30am-10:30am - Talk 4 - Andrew Skeoch
Megalong Community Hall
45minutes followed by a Q&A.
Tickets: $5
Andrew Skeoch talks about his new book, Deep Listening to Nature. How can we engage our hearing to connect more deeply to nature around us? Through vibrant recordings and spectrogram analysis that displays the beauty of birdsong, Andrew will guide you into hearing the languages of nature; developing your auditory awareness, identifying species by ear, recognising behaviours and repertoire, and finding empathy with the voices of other beings. You’ll hear the environment around you in a whole new way.
11:00am-5:00pm - Elixir Bar
The Dairy, Megalong Valley Tea Rooms
Tickets: $10
Experience Janet Laurence's extraordinary Elixir Lab, an immersion for all the senses. The Elixir Lab is specially created for this event in response to the produce and herbal gardens of Lot 101, Megalong Valley. Tickets are sold in 30-minute blocks, with each group limited to 20 people. The meeting point is the Megalong Valley Tea Rooms.
Ticket holders will meet at the Megalong Valley Tea Rooms and be guided on a 5-minute walk across the field, before spending 20-minutes in The Dairy. Guests should be at the Megalong Valley Tea Rooms at least 10-minutes prior to their booking time.
11:00am-12:00pm - Concert 5 - Sunday Soirée
The Old Stables
Tickets: $5-$65 inc. a beverage and nibbles
A program of exquisite music for string quartet and trio by Australian women, as well as the NSW premiere of 'Passenger Pigeons', a collaborative composition by the Bowerbird Collective.
Simone Slattery | violin, vocals
Emily Sheppard | violin, vocals
Katie Yap | viola, vocals
Anthony Albrecht | cello, vocals
Yyan Ng | shakuhachi
Concert program:
Music for string quartets and trios by Australian composers including Alice Chance, Emily Sheppard, Simone Slattery and more.
12:30pm onwards - Summer Feast
Megalong Restaurant
Tickets: $200
Chefs from Lot 101 will create an extraordinary culinary experience using local produce across multiple courses.
3:00pm-4:00:pm - Talk 5 - Passive Architecture
Megalong Community Hall
Tickets: $5
Renowned architects Brian Zulaikha and Simon Anderson will discuss their work in passive design, moderated by local journalist Clare Joyce.
4:30pm-6:00pm - Closing Concert
Megalong Community Hall
Tickets: $5-45
The grand finale, featuring performances by all festival artists, including the Bowerbird Collective's 'Where Song Began', a multimedia concert given five stars by Limelight Magazine.
Concert Program:
Where Song Began includes...
Arvo Pärt - Fratres for solo violin, 1977
Sarah Hopkins - Reclaiming the Spirit, 1993
Vaughan Williams - The Lark Ascending, 1917
Chris Williams - bird, songs, seas, 2017
Ross Edwards - Ecstatic Dance No.2, 1990
Johann Heinrich Schmelzer - Cucu Sonata, 1664
J.S. Bach - Prelude from Cello Suite No.1, c.1720
David Lang - Anthochaera carunculata (Red Wattle Bird), New Commission, 2017
Ngarra Burra Ferra - Traditional Indigenous hymn
... and afterwards, Boccherini Fandango, guitar quintet!
*The Bowerbird Collective reserves the right to change event details, including the performers and program, without notice.
2023 ARTISTS
Simone Slattery
Anthony Albrecht
Emily Sheppard
Katie Yap
Andrew Blanch
Yyan Ng
Janet Laurence
Andrew Skeoch
BIOGRAPHIES
The Bowerbird Collective is gaining an international reputation as multimedia storytellers and performers crossing the arts/science divide. They won a 2020 Ruby Award for their work 'Where Song Began', and the 2022 Independent Arts Foundation Award for Innovation for 'Life on Land's Edge'. They have close relationships with major conservation organisations including BirdLife International and the East Asian-Australasian Flyway Partnership to communicate conservation objectives through performance, both live and digital.
They have produced more than 250 concerts on tours throughout regional Australia in the last five years. Their albums of threatened birdsong and frog calls, 'Songs of Disappearance', released with BirdLife Australia and the Australian Museum FrogID project respectively, reached the Top 5 on the ARIA Albums chart in 2022, ahead of Adele and Ed Sheeran. The Bowerbird Collective created the musical soundtrack to 'Our Country', a 2022 production by Australian Geographic, Northern Pictures and Tourism Australia.
Patron for Conservation: Dr. Jane Goodall
Patron for Country: Professor Anne Poelina
Violinist and composer Simone Slattery is one of Australia's most versatile young musicians and creators, with a passion for music from a wide range of eras. She performs across Australia and internationally as both soloist and ensemble member, holds a PhD from the University of Adelaide, and was a 2019 Churchill Fellow. Simone has collaborated with artists and ensembles in Japan, Korea, the UK, Canada, the USA and throughout Europe, and has toured extensively across regional Australia. Her performances have been reviewed as "virtuosic" and "infinitely expressive". She has appeared with the Australian Brandenburg Orchestra, Australian Haydn Ensemble, Ironwood, Pinchgut Opera, Van Diemen's Band and New Vintage Baroque.
A co-founder of the award-winning Bowerbird Collective, Simone's compositions have been performed across the world, and her artistic creations described as "stunning". Recent productions include Where Song Began, Invisible Connections, and the World Migratory Bird Day Virtual Choir. Simone was commissioned by the Art Gallery of South Australia to create the soundscape for 'Clarice Beckett - The Present Moment', an acclaimed retrospective of one of Australia's greatest artists, in early 2021.
With an international performance and production career, Anthony Albrecht has developed a reputation as an impresario of world-class events characterised by generosity, outreach and connection to issues of social justice, conservation and sustainability. He is co-founder and CEO of the Bowerbird Collective, an organisation devoted to forging stronger connections to the natural world. With a passion for making classical music accessible and relevant in the 21st century, cellist Anthony Albrecht began producing concerts shortly after graduating from The Juilliard School in 2014. Committed to musical outreach, Anthony has undertaken a self-managed solo tour of over 80 concerts in regional Australia called 'Bach to the Bush'. He is founder and director of the Lapwing Music Festival in the UK.
A musician known for his "dramatic flair" and "fluent and virtuosic" performances (Seen and Heard International, Sydney Morning Herald), he has appeared with Pinchgut Opera, Van Diemen's Band, the Australian Romantic & Classical Orchestra, the Australian Haydn Ensemble, New Vintage Baroque (NYC) and Il Pomo d'Oro. Recent solo engagements include an appearance in the woods of East Sussex as a guest of Sam Lee's 'Singing with Nightingales' project, a recital at the Handel and Hendrix House in London, a performance of Haydn's Cello Concerto in D at the Newcastle Music Festival and as concerto soloist with the Adelaide Baroque Orchestra.
Brisbane-born violist Katie Yap started out her musical life playing the violin, but after being converted by her high school teacher Loreta Fin, has officially joined the dark side and hasn't looked back since!
Now based in Melbourne, she performs at the highest level in modern and historically-informed ensembles including the Australian World Orchestra, Australian Chamber Orchestra, Van Diemen's Band, and Academy of Ancient Music (UK). Her greatest love is chamber music, and she's a founding member of Wattleseed Ensemble, the Chrysalis Harp Trio, and prog-baroque quartet Croissants & Whiskey.
She is artistic director of Wattleseed Ensemble, and 3MBS's women-in-music festival Music, She Wrote. Winner of the 2022 Freedman Classical Fellowship, her project explores the nexus of folk, baroque, and new music styles, and a life-long fascination with improvisation.
Emily Sheppard is a Tasmanian violinist, violist, improviser and composer who is inspired by unconventional and resonant places and spaces, as well as science and the environment. Trained at the Australian National Academy of Music in Melbourne, she is in the Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra and Van Diemen's Band and has collaborated with Paul Kelly, Katie Noonan, DJ Spooky and Michael Kieran Harvey.
Emily spent four weeks in residency in Tasmanian caves in 2017, supported by Arts Tasmania funding. Throughout this period she composed several new works for solo viola/violin, incorporating extended techniques such as alternative tunings, prepared violin and singing while playing. She has curated performances in Hastings Cave, Marakoopa Cave and Mt Wellington/kunanyi observation shelter, supported by Arts Tasmania and Hobart City Council grants.
Emily has toured Europe with the Australian Youth Orchestra, and has played at festivals all over Australia, including Mona Foma, Dark Mofo, Ten Days on the Island, Darwin Festival, Brisbane Festival, Melbourne Festival, Canberra International Music Festival, Cygnet Folk Festival, Fractangular and A Festival Called Panama.
Amongst the exciting emergence of a new generation of classical musicians, guitarist Andrew Blanch stands out. Armed with formidable talent, passion, and conviction, Andrew has carved out his own path to much acclaim. His independently-released album 'Spanish Guitar Music' (2015) and accompanying self-managed tour marked the auspicious beginnings to an active and multifaceted musical career today.
As a performer Andrew's musical vision is broad and ambitious: an acclaimed soloist of traditional and contemporary repertoire, a key collaborator in eclectic ensembles small and large, an active commissioner of new works and an arranger himself, and noted both for his personal connection with the general public and his appeal to critics alike with a multitude of competition prizes and critical accolades, including winning the Adelaide International Guitar Competition in 2019.
Yyan Ng is a multi-instrumentalist, improviser, composer, collaborator. Yyan sings and plays acoustic guitar, wadaiko (taiko drums), Shakuhachi, and various stringed, percussion and woodwind instruments. He leads a few contemporary bands and the Launceston Taiko group Taiko Oni Jima, and has been involved in various projects as a guitarist and percussionists.
He is core member of chamber folk trio Where Water Meets, and plays with as a Wadaiko and shakuhachi duo with Brian Ritchie, with contemporary folk trio with Skyglass (Anne Norman and Emily Sheppard), and with five piece experimental jazz band Late Hall. He has led and directed, and played in projects for MONA FOMA, Ten days on the island, Dark MOFO, Cygnet Folk Festival, and Junction Arts Festival. He has also played all over Australia in festivals such as Woodford folk festival, National folk festival, Falls Festival, Australian Wooden Boat Festival, Taste of Tasmania, Festivale etc.
Janet Laurence is a leading Sydney-based artist who exhibits nationally and internationally. Her practice examines our physical, cultural and conflicting relationship to the natural world. She creates immersive environments that navigate the interconnections between organic elements and systems of nature. Within the recognized threat of climate change she explores what it might mean to heal the natural environment, fusing this with a sense of communal loss and search for connection with powerful life forces. Her work is included in museum, university, corporate and private collections, as well as within architectural and landscaped public places.
More recently her work has included collaborative and performative exhibitions and events, also with her group of Dirt Witches. Laurence is Adjunct Professor at the University of NSW Faculty of Art and Design. She has been a recipient of Rockefeller, Churchill and Australia Council fellowships; and the Alumni Award for Arts, UNSW. She was visiting fellow of Hanse-Wissenschaftskolleg (HWK) Germany 2017, and Artist in residence at the Australian Museum. In 2015 She was the Australian representative for the COP21/FIAC, Artists 4 Paris Climate 2015 exhibition 21 and the Biocenosis 21 IUCN Marseilles. She was the 2021 recipient of the Antarctic Fellowship and completed her residency there in 2022. She has had many museum and gallery exhibitions including a major solo survey exhibition at the MCA in 2019 and the Yu Hsui Museum of Art in Taiwan in 2020, and featured in Know My Name at the Australian National Gallery in 2022.
Laurence's ongoing projects include:
- Earth Canvas.
- Artists working with Regeneration Farmers, which includes a touring exhibition Australia-wide.
- Treelines Track, Bundanon Homestead: a planted 3km walk of trees that once grew there, telling the story of the transforming landscapes.
Andrew Skeoch is an educator, author, naturalist, environmental thinker, and one of Australia's best-known nature sound recordists.
Over the last thirty years, he has documenting the sounds of wild environments around the planet, and through his label Listening Earth, published over one hundred recordings featuring habitats from most continents. These albums consistently attract Spotify streaming figures in the many tens of thousands a week.
His recordings are featured in the audio installation at Sydney Wildlife World, plus the currently touring Australian Geographic / Northern Pictures immersive installation 'Our Country'. They have also contributed to feature films, including Peter Gabriel's soundtrack to Phillip Noyce's 'Rabbit Proof Fence', Disney's 2016 remake of 'The Jungle Book', and the upcoming 'Force of Nature' with Eric Bana.
Andrew is an experienced public speaker, having given presentations ranging from local community and school groups to university students. He has delivered radio features, keynote addresses and a TEDx talk, weaving spectacular recordings with visual analysis to engage a wide diversity of audiences.
Andrew is president of the Australian Wildlife Sound Recoding Group, a premier association of nature field recordists that encourages skills and passion in a new generation of enthusiasts.
EXHIBITION
Janet Laurence - Elixir Lab
Mixed media installation.
This multi-sensory, immersive experience by internationally renowned artist Janet Laurence will be open 10:00am-5:00pm in an incredibly atmospheric shed, The Dairy, located in the field adjacent to the Megalong Valley Tea Rooms. The Elixir Lab is specially created for this event in response to the produce and herbal gardens of Lot 101, Megalong Valley. Timed sessions in 30-minute intervals will be available for groups of up to 20 people.
Ticket holders will meet at the Megalong Valley Tea Rooms and be guided on a 5-minute walk across the field, before spending 20-minutes in The Dairy. Guests should be at the Megalong Valley Tea Rooms at least 10-minutes prior to their booking time.
FOOD
Megalong Tea Rooms
The Megalong Tea Rooms will be open on Friday, Saturday all day and evening, and Sunday during the day. Friday and Saturday evening will feature a special festival charcuterie menu.
Megalong Restaurant
Megalong Restaurant at Lot 101 will be open for normal service on Thursday and Friday evening, as well as Saturday during the day and evening, featuring a special festival menu. Sunday will feature a Festival Summer Feast from 12:30pm onwards. Reservations can be made via the Lyrebird Festival ticketing page.
Concert Nibbles
Nibbles will be available at most concerts, as specified on Humanitix, however quantities will be limited. You are welcome to bring a plate of food for yourself to eat afterwards!
WHERE TO STAY
The Blue Mountains has many wonderful accommodation options, both in the Megalong Valley, Blackheath, Katoomba and the other villages of the Upper Mountains. The Lyrebird Festival is unable to assist with accommodation requests, but please visit this spreadsheet for some ideas.
Camping is possible at the following locations:
1. Blackheath Glen Reserve (free bush camp, limited sites available)
2. Megalong Valley Farm (paid sites)
3. Old Ford Reserve (free camp)
4. Dunphys Campground (National Park area, 15 sites)
TICKETS
Very limited tickets available. All concerts and other events can be booked separately, or together with a festival pass. Pricing includes a 'Pay what you can' option.
VENUE MAP
A Google Maps guide to the locations of all festival venues.
Contact Us
SUPPORTED BY
©The Bowerbird Collective, 2023