Gold Coast Folk Festival dominates weekend

The tradition of folk music is all about taking what's come before, building on it and passing it on. Figures like Pete Seeger, Bob Dylan, Woody Guthrie and Joan Baez took the standards and traditions they had been influenced by and added their own unique takes, bringing these classics to a new generation of songwriters. Few events showcase this ability of folk to continually reshape and transmit itself to other songwriters than the upcoming Gold Coast Folk Festival.

Folk music may have begun as a uniquely American genre, but by its very nature, it has engrained itself in the music traditions of even a people as far away as us Australians. Owners of Gold Coast property will see this process in action on 20-21 September for absolutely no charge, when a variety of folk, bluegrass, singer songwriters and blues artists will perform at the festival. 

The event will be held in the Country Paradise Parklands in the rural area of the Gold Coast. Some of the artists who will make their presence felt include 2008 Australian Idol winner Wes Carr, blues musicians Hat Fitz and Cara Robinson, and Australian legend John Schumann, former lead singer of folk-rock band Regrum. 

While for many areas a similar Folk Festival might be the highlight of the year, in Broadbeach and the Gold Coast it's simply one of many fantastic cultural and music events that will take place.