If you are in Oamaru, make sure that you go to the Music Festival.
The Music Festival first started back in 1938. It was not a regular event like it is now. Organiser Carol Campbell vaguely remembers sitting downstairs with all the schools and singing.
It was all massed singing then and there were no solo performances. But it isn't just singing now. There's a bit of drama and dance also involved. Children also decorate the foyer with artwork as well.
Carol Campbell's favourite part is to train and conduct large groups of children to produce quality singing. She also likes to make it fun for the kids and the appreciative audiences. There is a board of teachers that run it and Carol Campbell organises it.
Any primary or intermediate school can join in. It is entirely up to your school choir teacher if you have to audition to get into the choir. After the schools have learned their songs, they have two massed practices that are run by Mrs Campbell.
But if you are just interested in watching the kids perform, it is held in the Oamaru Opera House, usually in August. The cost is about $4 to get in for adults and $1 for kids.
SEE YOU THERE!
Click here to check out a site about the Otago Festival of Arts
By Regan, Neal and Eden