AACTA Awards Sydney, Australia



It's the hottest ticket in town - the who's who of the Australian film and television industry are here at the AACTA awards.

The mega event is being held at the world famous Sydney Opera House and was broadcast via Channel 9 at 9.30pm.

The 4 legged star of Red Dog, Koko, was notably absent at the red carpet of the Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts Awards - alas his film is nominated for 8 awards.

The red carpet at the first-time awards ceremony at the Sydney Opera House played host to some of Australia’s most internationally acclaimed actors including Cate Blanchett, Olivia Newton-John and AACTA President, and Aussie of the Year, Geoffrey Rush.

Cate Blanchett looked great in gold.

Olivia Newton-John performed for the audience and wore a conservative black dress.

Newton-John’s co-star in 'A Few Best Men', Xavier Samuel, who rose to international fame as Riley Biers in 'The Twilight Saga: Eclipse', praised the state of the Australian film industry.

“The Australian film industry is thriving. I think Red Dog is a terrific film,” he said.

“The important thing is Australians are going to see Australian films.”

Director of Red Dog, Kriv Stenders, also commented on the quality of current Australian films saying his movie faced strong competition from all of the nominated flicks.

“What’s wonderful is it’s a year where we’ve got great films, and great filmmakers and great creative teams,” he said.

“I think it’s a really good sign of the times.”

He apologised for the absence of the Koko - the star of the film.

“Sometimes we have to let him be a dog,” he said.

Model Miranda Kerr, wife of Hollywood actor Orlando Bloom, wore silver for the night with a Collette Dinnigan gown and confided to press she had not yet seen the top nominated film of the night.

“I really want to see Red Dog,” she said.

“I haven’t seen it but I’m dying to see it.”

The AACTA awards recognise excellence in Australian film and television.

It also has an international awards section, which took place in Los Angeles on Saturday with presenters Nicole Kidman, Russell Crowe and Liam Hemsworth.

The Music News Australia agency congratulates everyone involved in the success of the AACTA Awards.













Websites

Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts (AACTA)

Australian Film Institute

The Lantern Group

Sydney Opera House

Music News Australia

Eva Rinaldi Photography

Eva Rinaldi Photography Flickr

Jack White comes out with new album

The front man Jack White said on Monday that he will unveil a unaccompanied album, "Blunderbuss," on April 24, with totally new songs printed by him and symbolizing his individual intelligence of eloquence.

I have postponed creation records under my own name for a extended time but these songs experience like they could only be obtainable under my name. These songs were printed from scrape, had not anything to do with anybody or something else but my individual look, my own colors on my own picture," White said in a report on Monday.

Recorded in Nashville, Tennessee, "Blunderbuss" is the first solo album from White, 36, who gained fame as lead singer, guitarist and pianist in the Grammy-winning two-piece band The White Stripes with his ex-wife Meg on drums. The band officially split in February 2011, after 14 years together.

The "Seven Nation Army" singer is also a member of rock bands The Raconteurs and The Dead Weather.
Ahead of the release of "Blunderbuss" in April, fans can get a taste of the first single, "Love Interruption," which will be available to listen to online and purchase from Monday.

Stravinsky: The Rite of Spring (SACD review)

Also, Firebird Suite; Scherzo a la Russe; Tango. Ivan Fischer, Budapest Festival Orchestra. Channel Classics CCS SA 32112.



When Igor Stravinsky (1882-1971) premiered his ballet The Rite of Spring in Paris in 1913, the audience pretty much rioted. Regular theatergoers used to elegant, refined dance music had no idea what Stravinsky was up to with his primitive, often fierce rhythms describing some kind of ancient fertility rite. The composer didn't subtitle it "Pictures from Pagan Russia" for nothing.



The score's pounding beat also helped shape the path of subsequent twentieth-century music, making Stravinsky not only controversial but genuinely revolutionary. In these times, we accept The Rite as an established classic, but, obviously, it wasn't always so. Which brings up the subject of how to approach it today; certainly, it still needs a good deal of fire and passion in its presentation, such as the renditions we've heard from Sir Georg Solti and the Chicago Symphony (Decca) or Leonard Bernstein and the New York Philharmonic (Sony). Maestro Ivan Fischer and his Budapest Festival Orchestra, though? Not so much so on this present disc.



In the Rite's "First Part:  Adoration of the Earth," Fischer handles the lyrical portions of the score splendidly, delicately and airily, with plenty of atmosphere. But he seldom seems to let loose as one might expect, despite a fairly quick pace throughout. It's not that the performance lacks energy; it has energy to spare. It's just that Fischer's interpretation seems a touch static at times, providing fewer thrills than it might.



The conductor has more success with the "Second Part: The Sacrifice," where he seems to be getting more in touch with Stravinsky's intensions. Here, Fischer combines his exceptional lyricism with the composer's intense desire to conjure up a full breakthrough of spring after a frozen Russian winter. Thank the tympanist, too, for his efforts in this regard. Nevertheless, the aforementioned Solti and Bernstein recordings, along with others from Boulez (Sony), Muti (EMI), and Stravinsky himself (Sony) have already provided us with plenty of beauty and excitement in the work; as a result, it's hard for Fischer's account to compete easily.



Where the current disc does excel is with the accompanying pieces. The 1919 suite of seven movements from The Firebird comes off especially well, very mysterious, moody, and exotic. The Scherzo a la Russe and Tango show us an older, lighter, more-playful Stravinsky, music in which Fischer appears to take particular delight.



This is a recording that the folks at Channel Classics seem to have meant as an audiophile demonstration piece, but it's also one that a person might have to own an SACD multichannel playback system to appreciate fully. The engineers recorded the performances at the Palace of Arts, Budapest, in 2010, and the two-channel stereo sound to which I listened on this hybrid disc is wonderfully cohesive, with a lifelike sense of stage depth and a wide stereo spread. Overall transparency, though, is only average, with a slight veiling of the midrange; a faint, thick blurring of detail; and a good deal of ambient hall resonance. Bass response, too, could be a bit stronger as well as dynamic impact, at least in the "First Part" of the Rite. By the "Second Part," however, the dynamics kick in a little better. It's a realistic sound, to be sure, if a tad distant unless played relatively loudly, in which case the music becomes a tad rough. So, on the one hand we get natural, potent sonics and on the other hand we get a somewhat heavy, clouded showing. I have no doubt that in its multichannel format the sound should come up even better than what I heard.



JJP

SCOOBY-DOO LIVE! MUSICAL MYSTERIES



Life Like Touring is proud to bring SCOOBY-DOO LIVE! MUSICAL MYSTERIES to Sydney during the April school holidays. Tickets are selling fast and Scooby-Doo fans are urged to book now to avoid disappointment, as past tours have been a sell-out! In this fun new show, Scooby-Doo and the Mystery Inc. The gang have been called upon to help solve an epic mystery.

SCOOBY-DOO LIVE! MUSICAL MYSTERIES features big musical numbers including the evergreen Scooby- Doo theme song, ‘Scooby-Doo, Where Are You?’ alongside fun new songs including ‘We’re Mystery Inc.’, ‘Round Every Corner’ and ‘A Musical Mystery’.

This rollicking live theatre show brings everyone’s favourite cartoon series to life in a bright and hilarious way. Filled with wacky new characters and hilarious antics, the all-new SCOOBY-DOO LIVE! MUSICAL MYSTERIES has young audiences on the edge of their seats in traditional Scooby-Doo fashion from the moment the lights go down. “Scooby-Doo is one the most beloved and iconic characters in all of popular culture and we are thrilled to be able to bring Scooby and the gang to our Australian and New Zealand fans in a way that is truly spectacular, with a live show that the entire family will love,” says Preston Kevin Lewis, Managing Director, Warner Bros. Consumer Products, Australia and New Zealand.

Don’t miss this Australian-made musical that’s fast becoming a family favourite! SCOOBY-DOO LIVE! MUSICAL MYSTERIES tours Theatre Royal, Sydney and Riverside Theatres, Parramatta during the April school holidays – book now at ScoobyDooLive.com.au

Scooby-Doo’s been delighting families on the small screen for more than 40 years and today, with over 360 episodes aired in 16 countries nearly 50 times per day and over 500 million DVDs sold worldwide, Scooby-Doo is universally adored by boys and girls of all ages. He’s the only dog that makes scary fun, loves solving a good mystery and is totally cool. The latest animated television series, Scooby-Doo! Mystery Incorporated, can be seen daily on Cartoon Network in 2.9 million homes throughout Australia and New Zealand.


Tuesday 10 April
RIVERSIDE THEATRES
Corner Church and Market Streets, Parramatta
Call the box office on 8839 3399
Thursday 12 to Saturday 14 April
THEATRE ROYAL
108 King Street, Sydney
Call Ticketek on 132 849
SCOOBY-DOO LIVE! MUSICAL MYSTERIES

Sydney Kids Meet Scooby - Doo!

 
As one of the most beloved and iconic characters of all time,
treat when Scooby-Doo comes to visit, ahead of his brand new
family musical SCOOBY-DOO LIVE! MUSICAL MYSTERIES that
opens in Sydney (City and Parramatta) during the April school
holidays. Details at ScoobyDooLive.com.au

Kids at The Children's Hospital at Westmead will receive a special treat when Scooby-Doo comes to visit, ahead of his brand new family musical SCOOBY-DOO LIVE! MUSICAL MYSTERIES that opens in Sydney (City and Parramatta) during the April school holidays. Details at ScoobyDooLive.com.au

3.30pm Tuesday 31 January
Westmead, Darcy Road, Westmead, Sydney NSW

SCOOBY-DOO LIVE! MUSICAL MYSTERIES
ALL-NEW FAMILY MUSICAL ON ITS WAY TO SYDNEY

Life Like Touring is proud to bring SCOOBY-DOO LIVE!
MUSICAL MYSTERIES to Sydney during the April school
holidays. Tickets are selling fast and Scooby-Doo fans are urged to book now to avoid disappointment, as past tours have been a sell-out! In this fun new show, Scooby-Doo and the Mystery Inc. gang have been called upon to help solve an epic mystery.

SCOOBY-DOO LIVE! MUSICAL MYSTERIES features
big musical numbers including the evergreen Scooby-Doo theme song, ‘Scooby-Doo, Where Are You?’ alongside fun new songs including ‘We’re Mystery Inc.’,
‘Round Every Corner’ and ‘A Musical Mystery’.


This rollicking live theatre show brings everyone’s favourite cartoon series to life in a bright and hilarious way. Filled with wacky new characters and hilarious antics, the all-new SCOOBY-DOO LIVE! MUSICAL MYSTERIES has young audiences on the edge of their seats in traditional Scooby-Doo fashion from the moment the lights go down.


“Scooby-Doo is one the most beloved and iconic characters in
all of popular culture and we are thrilled to be able to bring Scooby and the gang to our Australian and New Zealand fans in a way that is truly spectacular, with a live show that the entire family will love,” says Preston Kevin Lewis, Managing Director, Warner Bros. Consumer Products, Australia and New Zealand.


Don’t miss this Australian-made musical that’s fast becoming a
family favourite! SCOOBY-DOO LIVE! MUSICAL MYSTERIES tours
Theatre Royal, Sydney and Riverside Theatres, Parramatta during
the April school holidays – book now at ScoobyDooLive.com.au


Scooby-Doo’s been delighting families on the small screen for more than 40 years and today, with
over 360 episodes aired in 16 countries nearly 50 times per day and over 500 million DVDs sold worldwide, Scooby-Doo is universally adored by boys and girls of all ages.

UNDEROATH + DREAM ON, DREAMER Sidewaves announced!



UNDEROATH have evolved and thrived during a decade-long progression that has elevated them into a realm that few bands can lay claim to. Their latest album Ø (Disambiguation) is an artistic rebirth, which empathically surpasses its predecessors…“it’s a master-class in compelling, ambitious heavy music” – Rock Sound

With a reputation for adrenaline charged live performances UNDEROATH will bring the mayhem for two exclusive sidewaves in Sydney and Melbourne


DREAM ON, DREAMER, are one of Australia’s biggest success stories in 2011. Signing to influential US powerhouse Rise Records and with the release of their stellar debut album ‘Heartbound’ which has propelled the band to stages across the globe. 2012 is set to get even bigger for DREAM ON, DREAMER.

Katy Perry appearance in Las Vegas


Katy Perry is sensation a slight less blue most recently. The pop star started swinging an electric-blue bob not extended after news bankrupt that husband Russell Brand had cased for divorce late last year. But Perry, who steps out in Las Vegas this weekend, seems to have dipped her hair in the dye once again. 

On Friday night, KP hit a charity event dressed in a beaded frock, her razor-cut 'do colored in a rich turquoise. The party at the Vegas outpost of nightspot 1OAK was hosted by GiveLove.org, an organization devoted to improving public health in Haiti. 

But although newly separated Perry reportedly put on a good face, one source told amNewYork the "Waking Up in Vegas" singer seemed "subdued." The pop star "pretty much sat in the same spot the whole night" as her friends danced, according to the source. 

While Katy has always been adventurous about her hair hues, post-split, she seems, anecdotally at least, to be hitting the bottle — of dye — with increasing frequency. 

Brand and Perry announced the end of their marriage on December 30, after 14 months together. The exes have been a keeping a rather low profile ever since. The comic is set to perform on March 4 at New York's Radio City Music Hall as part of an Amnesty International benefit, while Perry may turn up next at the Grammy awards on February 12, where she's up for two statues. She was spotted earlier this month shooting an Adidas ad, not long after wrapping two concert dates in Indonesia and the Philippines.

Faure: Requiem (CD review)

Also, Cantique de Jean Racine, Elegie, Pavane, Super flumina Babylonis. Philippe Jaroussky, countertenor; Matthias Goerne, baritone; Paavo Jarvi, Choir and Orchestre de Paris. Virgin Classics 50999 070921 2.



Another Requiem? The public seems to love Requiems, which, considering they're masses for the dead, may seem a little odd until you recognize that the best musical settings for the Roman Catholic Requiem Mass are among the greatest music created. No, I'm not just talking about Mozart's or Berlioz's or Brahms's or Verdi's famous Requiems, which are somewhat dark, solemn, and heavy as befitting the occasion, but Faure's Requiem, which in comparison seems almost like a fairy tale. It's always fascinating to hear a new recording, a new interpretation, of it, like this one from Maestro Paavo Jarvi and the Choir and Orchestre de Paris.



Gabriel Faure (1845-1924) remarked of his work, "It has been said that my Requiem does not express the fear of death, and someone has called it a lullaby of death. But it is thus that I see death: as a happy deliverance, an aspiration toward happiness above, rather than as a painful experience. My Requiem was composed...for pleasure." For this reason, Faure's Requiem has become one of the most celebrated settings of the mass, perhaps almost as famous as those mentioned above.



Anyway, after initially writing the Messe de Requiem in D minor for soprano, baritone, mixed choir, organ, and orchestra, Op. 48, in 1888 using a chamber orchestra and small choir, Faure, at the urging of his publisher, had second thoughts and revamped it in 1898-1900 for full orchestra. He apparently was happy with that arrangement for the rest of his days. So that's the way folks played it until the 1980's, when British composer, conductor, editor, arranger, and all-around musicologist John Rutter found Faure's original manuscript for chamber orchestra, which Rutter himself and several other conductors have played and recorded. Still, it's the lineup for full orchestra and chorus that most people probably know best, and that's the one Jarvi and his forces perform here.



Using the traditional arrangement of the work, Jarvi takes a fairly straightforward approach to the score, never rushing anything, and in the process sounding a tad old-fashioned, which I count an entirely good thing. He does bring out some intense dynamic contrasts, though, the choir sometimes falling into such a quiet hush, it will tempt you to turn up the volume. Resist.



Baritone Matthias Goerne has a voice like rich honey, a voice that flows over the listener in golden tones. In the soprano part, we hear countertenor Philippe Jaroussky, who does a beautifully commendable job. Faure meant for his Requiem to be placid and loving, and in this regard Jarvi and company succeed nicely. "It is as gentle as I am myself," the composer once commented. Maybe it's this quality of gentleness that has sold it to audiences over the years, and certainly it's the quality Jarvi exploits to the fullest.



The Requiem concludes in a glow of fairy dust, and this magical ending Jarvi also accomplishes successfully. It's a lovely production all the way around.



Because the Requiem is brief, a little over half an hour, the disc offers the four short choral couplings noted above. These come off well, too, with the Pavane especially light and airy.



Virgin recorded the performances live at the Salle Pleyel, Paris, in 2011. The sound is fairly close up on the orchestra, with the choir slightly recessed. There is adequate detailing, although it is a tad thick and soft overall, with a big left-to-right stereo spread and abundant ambient bloom without too much reverberation. While the orchestral sound is also a touch one-dimensional, perhaps because of the close miking, it is, fortunately, not at all hard or edgy.



Finally, I'm happy to report that the Virgin producer and engineers spared us any applause, so the disc maintains to the end the meditative mood of the music.



JJP

Any Questions for Ben? To Premiere In Sydney, Australia



We hear that the Sydney premiere of the rom com Any Questions For Ben? is coming up in Sydney, Australia in less than a week.

With a big name and ultra talented cast, this movie is set to do extremely well in a tough market.

St George Open Air Cinema is tipped for the premiere showing, and actress Rachael Taylor is in Australia to do the honours.

Promo

For 27-year-old Ben (Josh Lawson), life couldn’t be better. A well paid job, friends, parties, girls and nothing to tie him down. But when he is invited back to his old school to join several other ex-students including Alex (Rachael Taylor) and Jim (Ed Kavalee) in talking about their personal achievements, something goes wrong. Ben is the only speaker not to be asked a question by the school kids. This triggers a year of soulsearching and looking for answers in all the wrong places.

From his best friend Andy (Christian Clark) whose solution is that they both take another holiday, to his mentor Sam (Lachy Hulme) who loans him a sports car in the belief that there’s nothing like excessive speed to resolve emotional turmoil. Not even Ben’s father (Rob Carlton) or friends Nick (Daniel Henshall) and Em (Felicity Ward) can offer much in the way of meaningful guidance.

Of course, it’s not easy seeking enlightenment in nightclubs, or on the ski fields of New Zealand, and when you start dating a Russian tennis star things can get really complicated. As the poster boy for a generation desperate to tick every box, Ben begins to suspect that the meaning of life may well reside in the things he's already doing - and a girl he used to know.

Stars: Josh Lawson, Rachael Taylor, Daniel Henshall, Felicity Ward, Christian Clark, Jodi Gordon
Director: Rob Sitch
Distributor: Roadshow Films
Cinema Release: 9 Feb 2012

Websites

Village Roadshow Australia

St George Open Air Cinema

Working Dog

Eva Rinaldi Photography Flickr

Eva Rinaldi Photography

Media Man News

Music News Australia

MORNING OF THE EARTH - THE ORIGINAL FILM AND MUSIC - CELEBRATES 40 YEARS WITH AN EAST COAST CONCERT TOUR


What was the surfing scene like 40 years ago? Surfers did not have to wear leg ropes.  Michael Peterson was the current Australian champion and Bali took off as a surf destination for many surfers. Let’s go back there....

MORNING OF THE EARTH, released in 1972, was the first surf film to capture the nomadic life of Australian surfers. Back by popular demand after sold out shows in Melbourne and Sydney in 2008 and celebrating forty years since its release, Morning Of The Earth - the original film and music - will be Live In Concert again from the 19th January to the 5th February 2012 performing in Melbourne, Dromana, Newcastle, Brisbane and Sydney with more to be announced.  

With the blessing of the film’s creator, Albe Falzon, MORNING OF THE EARTH has been re-edited and remastered to highlight the simple beauty of one of the few true Australian Classic Films and its story - the dream of every surfer to search for the perfect wave (across Australia’s North coast, Bali and Hawaii). The film is still the largest selling surf DVD in Australian History.  Each new generation seems to resonate with the film and soundtrack, having captured the true ethos and spirit of surfing in a unique and inspiring manner. Incredible new footage from film surf makers, such as David Rastovich, will also be shown at the show.  

Albe Falzon said; “Morning of the Earth has stood the test of time and perhaps is more important today in view of the increased number of people on the planet and the demands they are having on its resources and eco systems. We need more than ever to be reminded of this fragile system we have inherited and to a certain extent Morning of the Earth is a reminder that we are all truly responsible for our decisions and actions. It is important that we individually and collectively embody those qualities that will ensure that we live a sustainable life, not one based on over production and over consumption but one based on sensitivity to all life and on all levels on this Earth. Morning of the Earth reflects in a simple way how we can endure and sustain and enjoy our life here and leave a small footprint and a better world in our passing.”
MORNING OF THE EARTH had no narration but instead a soundtrack made up on songs written specifically for the movie.  The soundtrack became a top 10 hit and was the first compilation CD to reach Gold status and has now gone platinum several times over.  Audiences can expect to be taken back to when life was simpler enjoying an array of country-soul and psych folk-songs including ‘Simple Ben’, ‘Making It On Your Own’, ‘Open Your Heart’.    The songs have summer written all over them and as the saying goes ‘great music never dies’ and is well represented here.

Performing at the 40th Anniversary Celebration of Morning Of The Earth – The Original Film and Music Live In Concert- will be original performers Brian Cadd, guitarist Tim Gaze (Tamam Shud) and special guests Mike Rudd (Spectrum), Lior and Gyan.  

Original performer, singer and songwriter Brian Cadd says “Forty  years ago I was privileged to be involved in writing and producing music for a revolutionary new kind of surf movie: MORNING OF THE EARTH. Freedom and breaking the rules was the order of the day and a most unique and eclectic collection of music became the 'dialogue' running under Albe's superb pictures. Four decades on we are finally marrying this music with those pictures again, this time in a live performance setting. Incredibly exciting.   
Guest performing artist Gyan says, “I’m totally thrilled to be involved with MOTE especially having the opportunity to sing one the most beautiful songs from the album ‘I’m Alive’…I have always carried a copy of the record around with me since I left home …it was and still is an all time favorite for me. Growing up so close to the whole surf scene in Torquay was a perfect backdrop for such a record full of such great mantras for our lifestyle.’

Don’t miss this opportunity to see one of the greatest surfing films ever made – reignited with its original soundtrack performed live in concert by a mix of this country’s best classic and contemporary music talent.
MORNIING OF THE EARTH – THE ORIGINAL FILM AND MUSIC LIVE IN CONCERT DATES:
Tickets on sale now

MELBOURNE: REGENT THEATRE
Thursday 19th and Friday 20th January 2012
Tickets via www.ticketmaster.com.au  ph: 1300 11 10 11  

DROMANA, VICTORIA: DROMANA DRIVE IN
Saturday 21st January 2012
Tickets via www.ticketmaster.com.au ph: 136 100  

NEWCASTLE: CIVIC THEATRE
Tuesday 24th January 2012
www.ticketek.com.au   02  4929 1977

BRISBANE: CONCERT HALL - QUEENSLAND PERFORMING ARTS CENTRE
Friday 27th January 2012
Qtix www.qpac.com.au  136 246   

GOLD COAST: THE ARTS CENTRE