Farm shed musicals up for art award

A TASMANIAN arts organisation is in the running to take out a national award for its quirky acoustic installation which transformed a number of farm sheds into concert venues during last year’s Ten Days on the Island festival.

Big Hart’s The Acoustic Life of Sheds is a finalist in the award for excellence in a regional area in the high profile national APRA/AMCOS Art Music Award.

The Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra is also up for a gong.

During last year’s Ten Days on the Island festival five farm sheds in the Wynyard area were transformed into concert halls with power pop performed in a calving shed at Flowerdale, haunting experimental music filling a hay barn at Boat Harbour, opera ringing out in an old stables and steel guitar bringing a shearing shed to life at Table Cape.

The winners of the Art Music Awards will be announced in Melbourne on August 21.

The Art Music Awards are presented each year by the Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA) and the Australian Music Centre to recognise achievement in the composition, performance, education and presentation of Australian music.

Big HART was founded in Burnie by Tasmania’s Australian of the Year 2018 and theatre director Scott Rankin, 25 years ago.

It has won 45 awards and worked with more than 50 Australian communities.