Matters of Interest

Winter Festivals

The Hon. J.M. GAZZOLA (15:24): In July, we saw a bustling and busy Adelaide hosting some fantastic events this winter, shining a light on our wonderful music scene once again. The Umbrella: Winter City Sounds festival warmed up 104 venues, with 300 events across the city and Adelaide suburbs from 14 to 30 July. This is the second year of the festival, which has been orchestrated to help increase the number of people visiting the city during winter.

Venues and artists exceeded those of the inaugural 2016 festival, and 90 per cent of this year's 1,300 performers were local musicians. Former minister Snelling said, 'Adelaide has a rich tradition of showcasing the arts, and Umbrella: Winter City Sounds is testament to what a city can do for musicians, audiences, visitors and venues when we collectively get behind live music.'

A significant highlight for the winter calendar was the Australian Independent Record Labels Association (AIR) awards, which has added to the growing winter events scene in Adelaide. The 2017 11^th AIR awards were held on 27 July for the first time at the Queen's Theatre. It is a privilege for Adelaide to host the event, confirmed until 2019. This is just one of the events supported by the state government's live music fund.

The awards recognise independent artists and labels. The Premier welcomed artists and representatives from around the nation, and local act A.B. Original won five awards. AIR also staged an Australian-first industry conference known as Indie-Con, with panels, workshops and presentations being held on 27 and 28 July at Tandanya. The sold out event was introduced by AIR general manager Maria Amato. I would like to thank Maria for her commitment to AIR and artists and her wonderful words. Approximately 200 people attended the conference, of which around 75 per cent came from interstate. Indie-Con is described as a wonderful networking opportunity with insights and counsel from industry leaders. The event presented over 30 guest speakers and industry figures from interstate and overseas.

To coincide with the opportunity presented at these events, MusicSA launched a mini event called Scouted. Scouted, held on 28 July, took place on selected stages in the East End, showcasing 15 talented, unsigned South Australian artists to industry leaders. The AIR awards and Indie-Con drew in overwhelming media engagement and all press coverage, shining a spotlight on Adelaide. The Umbrella festival is also said to have received significant exposure over a variety of media platforms.

The last week of July was rounded out by the Craft Brewers Conference, at which around 440 interstate, 66 overseas and 100 South Australian brewers, delegates, exhibitors and speakers attended. The Adelaide Beer and Barbecue Festival topped off the weekend. Wayville Showground was loaded with a terrific bounty of music, food and craft beer for the three-day event. The festival played host to 63 brewers and sold out 12,000 tickets. The shed was like a show bag hall for beer tasting and had an exciting atmosphere to boot.

Friday night kicked off with minister Maher setting the tone for the evening with a swag of beer facts and a nod to former prime minister Bob Hawke. The Royal Adelaide Beer and Cider Awards, run by the Royal Agricultural and Horticultural Society of South Australia, enticed 224 entries from 50 breweries, with local winners including Pirate Life, Vale Brewing and Coopers.

It is estimated that 50 people were directly employed by the festival, with a total of about 600 people working at the event across all brewers, including chefs and contractors. It is also estimated that approximately 1,500 interstate visitors were at the festival. We are pleased that by engaging with the music industry we are supporting a number of other industries. I am thrilled that the government recognises the music industry as a very real economic contributor.

In a recent study conducted by EconSearch looking into the economic contributions of the music industry to South Australia, the 2015-16 financial year saw the gross state product of the music industry as a whole in South Australia to have made an estimated contribution of $375 million in this period, including $221 million from flow-on effects, with an overall employment contribution of approximately 6,300 jobs, which includes nearly 1,800 jobs from flow-on effects. This increased winter activity is a positive step for venues, for artists and our state's vibrancy and economy. Adelaide is open for business and open to all. Let's ensure we keep it that way.

On a sad note, I would like to acknowledge the sudden unexpected passing of Mick Dalby. Mick was an excellent South Australian musician. Our thoughts are with Julie, Lewis, Tom and the family and friends of Mick.