GMF news

Gozleme, wood-fired pizza, gin cocktails, Indian food, beer and cider on tap, ice-cream sundaes and local wine will all be on offer to complement the awesome Australian music at Grampians Music Festival 2018.

Festival Director Carly Flecknoe said the committee were rapt to have secured some great food and beverage partners and vendors for the 2018 fest, including Patient Wolf Gin for the VIP cocktail bar, Blue Pyrenees for the boutique wine garden, and Prickly Moses, which will once again bring its popular Beer Bus.

Carly said food vendors would aim to please all palates with offerings such as South African street food, pulled pork and beef, curry, coffee, wood-fired pizza, Turkish gozleme and a bright-pink ice-cream van serving soft serves, ice-cream sundaes and other icy treats.

There will also be a fundraising barbecue run by the Halls Gap Primary School, and the town’s cricket and golf clubs.

“We think our 2018 food and beverage partners are really going to add to the festival’s colour and excitement,” she said.

“Sipping a gin cocktail while eating wood-fired pizza, watching the sun set behind the Grampians ranges and listening to some of the country’s best up-and-coming artists – what’s not to love about that?”

Patient Wolf Distilling Co. was founded by two mates, Matt and Dave. Their boutique distillery is based in Brunswick, and they will supply the VIP Tent with delicious gin cocktails, which are under wraps for now!

Prickly Moses’ mobile brewery made an appearance at GMF’s debut performance in February 2017 and was an instant hit with everyone – attendees, artists and crew alike. The beer bus and its passionate staff return in 2018 for another outing on the Valley Floor, offering a range of hand-crafted beers and ciders on tap.

Local winery Blue Pyrenees Estate, will provide an inviting and intimate atmosphere for GMF’s wine garden, which is sure to add to the atmosphere and complement the amazing new Australian music playing on the Valley Floor Stage.

GMF’s 2018 line-up was announced in October, attracting the attention of some of the industry’s hard hitters, including Triple J, for the fantastic range of up-and-coming talent it has secured. Check out the full line-up and other festival details at www.grampiansmusicfestival.com. Tickets can be purchased at www.eventbrite.com.au – search for Grampians Music Festival.

Follow GMF on Facebook – facebook.com/grampiansmusicfestival – and Instagram @grampiansmusicfestival

Grampians Music Festival has received a $13,000 grant for marketing the event through the Victorian Government’s Creative Victoria Music Works grant program, providing a financial boost for the festival.

Festival Director Carly Flecknoe said the grant would be used to boost GMF’s marketing and public relations efforts, including an increased  digital footprint and inventive on-the-ground marketing initiatives.

“The backing and support of Creative Victoria through the Music Works grant not only provides financial support to the festival but gives our volunteer committee confidence that the festival we’re creating fits perfectly in Victoria’s thriving music scene,” Carly said.

“The grant from Creative Victoria is fantastic news for the festival and will allow us to initiate a range of creative and innovative marketing activities that aim to capture our target market and get music lovers to Halls Gap for the first weekend in February.

“With the festival in only its second year, it’s great to see Creative Victoria and the State Government give GMF a vote of confidence for the value it brings to the state’s music scene and the Grampians community.”

Victorian Creative Industries Minister Martin Foley this week announced $550,000 in Music Works grants, which aim to help and support Victoria’s diverse and bustling music industry through a financial injection. The grants are part of the government’s $22.2 million Music Works initiative and will give support to local musicians, music industry professionals and industry organisations to create, develop and showcase Victorian contemporary music to audiences at home and abroad.

“This latest round of grants will boost our music economy, create opportunities for those who make music and those who work behind the scenes, strengthening our reputation as the heart of live music in Australia. With the The Music Works initiative, we are investing in our music industry at all levels,” Mr Foley said.

Music lovers can experience big beautiful mountains and huge sounds from Australia’s best new bands at the second annual Grampians Music Festival in February 2018. All the information  about Grampians Music Festival can be found at www.grampiansmusicfestival.com.au.

Grampians Music Festival will lower its environmental footprint by initiating a range of actions including asking vendors to use recyclable food utensils and banning the sale of bottled water.

GMF Director Carly Flecknoe said the committee was keen to ensure the festival left as small an environmental mark as possible given it’s held in such an incredible natural location, the Grampians National Park.

Carly said GMF would have a recycling station where attendees can trade recyclables (either those they’ve purchased or those they’ve found on the ground) for a drink voucher, thereby encouraging recycling and helping clean up the site at 7 Valley Drive, Halls Gap.

“The Grampians National Park is a pristine natural environment and we’re really keen to make sure we leave it that way,” she said.

“The committee is passionate about caring for our very special environment, and we know that’s important to our customers too, so we’ve ensured our food and drink vendors stick by our principles by writing specific conditions into their agreements.

All of our bars and food vendors will only be using environmentally friendly and recyclable cups, plates, napkins and utensils, and they won’t be allowed to sell bottled water, which is a huge problem for our waste system.”

Carly said other GMF’s other environmental initiatives include:

• A BYO water bottle policy for attendees, with free water refills from stations around the festival grounds;
• The Festival Program available only in electronic form, negating the need for unnecessary printing;
• The Green Team on duty all weekend – a team of roving volunteers who’ll make sure rubbish is picked up and sorted as they go;
• Offering festival accommodation in recyclable cardboard tents from KarTent; and,
• A designated smoking zone so that cigarette butts are captured and disposed of properly, not left on the ground. The rest of the festival grounds will be strictly no smoking with security policing this.

“We’re really excited for the 2018 festival and our environmental initiatives will help our attendees and vendors really get in the spirit of what it means to attend a festival in such a beautiful, natural location,” Carly said.

GMF’s 2018 line-up was announced in October, attracting the attention of some of the industry’s hard hitters, including Triple J, for the fantastic range of up-and-coming talent it has secured. Check out the full line-up and other festival details at www.grampiansmusicfestival.com. Tickets can be purchased at www.eventbrite.com.au.

Follow GMF on Facebook – facebook.com/grampiansmusicfestival – and Instagram @grampiansmusicfestival

Grampians Music Festival (GMF) and Northern Grampians Shire Council have teamed up to offer five mentorships to young people wanting to gain experience in music events management.

GMF Director Carly Flecknoe said young people from within Northern Grampians Shire would work with the festival committee in the areas of event management, marketing and public relations, finance, artist management, and volunteer management.

“This is a fantastic opportunity to get involved in a really exciting event and gain practical experience right here in your own backyard,” Mrs Flecknoe said.

“The successful applicants will work closely with the GMF committee in the months leading up to the festival, and also work at the festival helping with all facets of the event’s management.

“GMF is in its second year now and the committee is really keen to give our local young people an opportunity to get involved, especially if they’re interested in event management and live music. Organising the festival is a really exciting process and we know our mentees will get a lot out of it.”

Mrs Flecknoe said the mentorship program had been made possible with the generous support of ABC’s Heywire.

The mentorship program runs from 1 November 2017 and finishes on the last day of the festival, Sunday 4 February 2018. Applicants must be aged between 17 and 21 years, be available to attend fortnightly meetings, and be able to work every day on site at the festival, from 2 to 4 February in Halls Gap.

To apply for the mentorship program, download the documents below for more details and an application form.

Applications close 15 September 2017.

GMF Mentor Program poster

GMF Mentor Program info sheet

GMF Mentor Program application form

The Grampians Music Festival committee is well underway with plans for its 2018 festival, to be held in Halls Gap from Friday 2 to Sunday 4 February.

Team GMF is working hard behind the scenes to finalise the line-up, build a new website, create ticketing platforms, and organise festival vendors, and they’re keen to let you know when key release dates will be for the 2018 fest.

Early bird tickets go on sale – 4 September

Full-price tickets go on sale – 2 October

Full line-up announced – 2 October

Will we see you at GMF 2018?