2017 will mark the second year of Macarthur’s local event Music In The Vines which celebrates all things art, music and wine. Returning after a massively successful debut year featuring Troy Cassar-Daley as the headliner, this year features a stellar line-up with the likes of Dean Ray, The Settlement and Jade Alice, among many others.
Music In The Vines president Pieter Badenhorst is excited about the line-up, which aims to create a family-friendly atmosphere for the day.
“I’m very excited about the line-up. Personally, I have been a big Dean Ray fan since the X Factor. I’ve seen him performing a lot of times and I think he is a great artist. He can cater for both young and old, which is great seeing as our festival is really focused on being a family environment. We also have the Settlement playing who are a local band, and who are starting to grow and become a lot more known in the region – so we are very happy with them playing as well,” he says.
Pieter originally became involved in the event with hopes to give back to the local community of Macarthur, after moving there with his wife a few years ago. The local focus is major for the event, and aims to help out many local musicians and businesses.
“Music In The Vines is a non-for profit organization, but it is great because it means people from outside the area travel to Macarthur and see what we have to offer. The first thing that we do is, we try to give a lot of local artists an opportunity to play alongside someone who has national recognition. So that way, they get a door into the industry themselves,” Pieter explains, before expanding on the advantages of the festival for the local economy.
“Basically we get a lot of people into the community, which helps people use the accommodation, use local shops and even the music itself. All of our stages are sourced through local groups in the area. We have estimated that we gain between $30-70,000 back into the local community.”
After the successful first event, Pieter and the other organisers have taken on board feedback collected from the attendees to ensure that this year’s event is even better than the last.
“One of the biggest feedback that we got was that it needed to be later, and made into more of an evening event. We’ve basically made it so that it starts at 11am and goes until 11pm at night. We have added a few extra bands, and extended it to a night festival as well.”
With the event being family friendly and featuring attractions such as food, art and craft stalls (including face painting), Music In The Vines puts a huge focus on trying to create a safe and comfortable environment for all attendees – regardless of age.
“I think our venue lends itself to more of a picnic/day out atmosphere. It’s not just a party atmosphere for people to get drunk, but instead to cater for a very broad audience. It’s for everyone but isn’t specifically catered for the 20 and 30 year olds.”
When & Where: Music In The Vines @ Suffoir Vineyard, Macarthur – March 4
Written by Alex Callan
