Canberra Canberra ( ) is the capital city of Australia. Founded following the federation of the colonies of Australia as the seat of government for the new nation, it is Australia's largest inland city and the eighth-largest city overall. The ci ...

is home to a number of important musical venues and institutions, including the

Llewellyn Hall The ANU School of Music is a school in the Research School of Humanities and the Arts, which forms part of the College of Arts and Social Sciences of the Australian National University. It consists of four buildings, including the main School of ...

performance venue, part of the

Australian National University The Australian National University (ANU) is a public research university located in Canberra, the capital of Australia. Its main campus in Acton encompasses seven teaching and research colleges, in addition to several national academies and ...

School of Music, and a number of

music festival A music festival is a community event with performances of singing and instrument playing that is often presented with a theme such as musical genre (e.g., rock, blues, folk, jazz, classical music), nationality, locality of musicians, or h ...

s including

Canberra International Music Festival The Canberra International Music Festival is a music festival based in Canberra, Australia. It was founded by Ursula Callus (1939–2001), former President of Pro Musica Incorporated. The first Festival was originally called the Canberra Inter ...

, Canberra Country Blues & Roots Festival and the National Folk Festival. The local music scene includes many bars and nightclubs for local performers, mostly clustered in Dickson,

Kingston Kingston may refer to: Places * List of places called Kingston, including the five most populated: ** Kingston, Jamaica ** Kingston upon Hull, England ** City of Kingston, Victoria, Australia ** Kingston, Ontario, Canada ** Kingston upon Thames, ...

and the

City Centre A city centre is the commercial, cultural and often the historical, political, and geographic heart of a city. The term "city centre" is primarily used in British English, and closely equivalent terms exist in other languages, such as "" in Fren ...

Popular music

Jack Lumsdaine John Sinclair Lumsdaine (18 November 1895 – 28 August 1948) was an Australian singer and songwriter. His best known songs celebrate Australian personalities Donald Bradman, Phar Lap and Sydney Harbour Bridge. He was highly sought for adverti ...

wrote and recorded the songs ''Canberra's Calling to You'' and ''Queanbeyan'' in 1938, the sesquicentenary of European settlement. Promoters and record labels in Canberra include Capital City, Dream Damage, Hardrush Music, Hellosquare Recordings, KP Records (Distributed internationally by WIDEawake Entertainment),Bad Sounds, Canberra Musicians Club, Canberra Music Workshop, Metaphysical Productions (Hip Hop), Vacant Room Records and Birds Love Fighting Records.

Venues

Venues for music in Canberra that are bars, clubs, community organisations or businesses that hold music based events including halls and other spaces that are available for hire. * The Abbey * A Bite to eat *

Albert Hall The Royal Albert Hall is a concert hall on the northern edge of South Kensington, London. One of the UK's most treasured and distinctive buildings, it is held in trust for the nation and managed by a registered charity which receives no governm ...

* ANCA Gallery * ANU Bar (Lic/AA & 18+) * ANU School of Music Big Band Room * Balcony Room Tuggeranong * The Basement (18+ & U18) * Belconnen Arts Centre * Belconnen Youth Centre * Burbidge Outdoor Amphitheatre * Burns Club, Kambah * Canberra Theatre Centre (Lic/AA) * Charnwood Scout Hall * Civic Youth Centre (AA) * Corroborree Park Function Room * Crosbie Morrison Amphitheatre * Deakin Scout Hall * Deakin Soccer Club * Downer Community Hall * Eucalypt Lawns * Evatt Scout Hall * The Eye at Canberra Business Events Centre * Floresco in the Gardens Cafe * The Folkus (Lic/AA) * The Front Gallery & Cafe * Garran Scout Hall * The George Harcourt Inn (18+) * Gordon Darling Hall * Goolabri * The Great Hall * Griffin Centre Hall * Griffith Hall * Gungaderral Homestead Hall * Harmonie German Club * Hippo * Kendall Lane Theatre * Kings Hall *King O'Malleys * Lake Ginninderra Sea Scout Hall * Lake View Ballroom * Larry Sitsky Recital Room * Llewellyn Hall * Macarthur Scout Hall * Majura Community Centre Function Room * Majura Hall * The Marble Foyer * Members Dining Room at Old Parliament House * The Merry Muse (18+) * Narrabundah Hall *

Australian National Botanic Gardens The Australian National Botanic Gardens (ANBG) is a heritage-listed botanical garden located in , Canberra, in the Australian Capital Territory, Australia. Established in 1949, the Gardens is administered by the Australian Government's Departme ...

Theatrette *

National Carillon The National Carillon is a large carillon situated on Queen Elizabeth II Island in Lake Burley Griffin, central Canberra, in the Australian Capital Territory, Australia. The carillon is managed and maintained by the National Capital Authority o ...

National Library A national library is a library established by a government as a country's preeminent repository of information. Unlike public library, public libraries, these rarely allow citizens to borrow books. Often, they include numerous rare, valuable, o ...

Foyer * National Library Theatre * New Acton Courtyard Stage and Cinema * Northside Community Service * Oaks Estate Community Centre * The

Old Canberra Inn The Old Canberra Inn is one of the earliest licensed pubs in the Canberra region, Australia. The building pre-dates the city itself. It is located in the present day suburb of Lyneham. The original slab hut was built in 1857 by Joseph Schumack ...

(18+) * Piano Bar * PJ O'Reilly's Civic (18+) * PJ O'Reilly's Tuggernong (18+) * Polish White Eagle Club * The Pot Belly (18+) * Reflections Room Tuggeranong * Richardson Scout Hall * Rose Cottage Canberra * Royal Theatre Canberra Convention Centre *Sideway * Smiths Alternative * Street Theatre 1 * Street Theatre 2 * Theatre 3 *

Tilley's Tilley's Devine Café Gallery is a well-known café in the suburb of Lyneham in Canberra, Australia. It was named after Matilda 'Tilly' Devine, an English Australian gangster and madame from Sydney. When the café first opened in 1984, it wa ...

* Transit Bar (18+) * Tuggeranong Cabaret Space * Tuggeranong Theatre * Tuggeranong Youth Centre * UC Refectory * Waramanga/Fisher Scout Hall * The Warehouse (AA) * Wesley Music Centre * Weston Creek Community Centre * Westside Acton Park * Woden Youth Centre (AA) * Yarralumla Scout Hall * KnightsBridge Penthouse

Other venues

Halls and out door areas where events are usually arranged by an entity other than the venue owner or caretaker.

Art music

Canberra hosts the

Canberra Symphony Orchestra Canberra Symphony Orchestra (CSO) is the professional orchestra of the Australian Capital Territory based in Canberra, the national capital of Australia. History Officially formed on 14 March 1950 and registered as an amateur ensemble, the C ...

, which regularly performs at Llewellyn Hall at the

ANU School of Music The ANU School of Music is a school in the Research School of Humanities and the Arts, which forms part of the College of Arts and Social Sciences of the Australian National University. It consists of four buildings, including the main School of ...

. Llewellyn Hall also features subscription series from touring groups such as the

Australian Chamber Orchestra The Australian Chamber Orchestra (ACO) was founded by cellist John Painter in 1975.Verghis, Sharon"Bach with more bite pays off" ''Sydney Morning Herald'', 2 September 2005. Richard Tognetti was appointed Lead Violin in 1989 and subsequently appo ...

and

Musica Viva Australia Musica Viva was founded in 1945 by Romanian-born violinist Richard Goldner, with the aim of bringing chamber music to Australia. The co-founder was a German-born musicologist, Walter Dullo. At its inception, Musica Viva was a string ensemble perf ...

. The Royal Military College Band is based at Duntroon. Other groups that present classical and jazz concerts in Canberra include the

, Art Song Canberra, Brew Guitar Duo,

, Canberra City Band, The Canberra Jazz Club, The Gods Cafe, The Griffyn Ensemble, Guitar Trek, Salut Baroque!, Seven Harp Ensemble, Stopera, Australia, Stopera, and Wesley Music Centre. Canberra is also home to a number of community and youth ensembles and organisations including Music For Canberra (resultant of a merge in 2015 between Key Arts Organisations Music For Everyone & Canberra Youth Music, funded by ArtsACT), the

Canberra Choral Society The Canberra Choral Society (CCS) is an auditioned symphonic choir in Canberra, Australia. The choir is known both for traditional choral repertoire, and new music. A key focus for the choir is an annual "Come and Sing" program, in which up to ...

, Canberra Chamber Orchestra, Musica da Camera, and the National Capital Orchestra.

Musical artists

Some of Canberra's notable local artists include: *

Alchemist Alchemy (from Arabic: ''al-kīmiyā''; from Ancient Greek: χυμεία, ''khumeía'') is an ancient branch of natural philosophy, a philosophical and protoscience, protoscientific tradition that was historically practiced in Chinese alchemy, C ...

Armoured Angel Armoured Angel were an Australian thrash and death metal band from Canberra, which formed in 1982 as Metal Asylum. The band's founding mainstay, Glen "Lucy" Luck provided bass guitar. They pushed the musical boundaries of the local thrash me ...

The Aston Shuffle The Aston Shuffle is the name of Australian electronic music producer and DJ Vance Musgrove. They were initially a group until Mikah Freeman left in 2021, with Musgrove continuing on as a solo artist. In addition to DJ gigs and a recording care ...

Artificial
*

The Bedridden The Bedridden was an Australian cult band that performed and recorded, somewhat sporadically, between 1989 and 2002. The Bedridden reunited for a series of concerts in 2005 to promote a live album that was recorded in 1998. The band were noted ...

Cellblock 69
*

Citizen Kay Citizen Kay is an Australian Canberra-based hip hop artist. Citizen Kay's EP ''Demokracy'' was nominated for ARIA Award for Best Urban Album at the ARIA Music Awards of 2015. Citizen Kay's debut album, ''With the People'', was nominated the ...

Biblemami
*

B(if)tek B(if)tek was an Australian electronic music duo comprising Kate Crawford and Nicole Skeltys, which formed in Canberra in 1994. They released three albums, ''Sub-Vocal Theme Park'' (1996), ''2020'' (2000) and ''Frequencies Will Move Together'' ...

* Big Dave *

Coda Conduct Coda Conduct were an Australian hip hop duo consisting of Sally Coleman (born 1992) and Erica Mallett (born 1993). In addition to performing as Coda Conduct, the two are known as Sally & Erica, who presented the breakfast show program on natio ...

Dark Network
* Dressed For A Funeral *

Doug Anthony Allstars The Doug Anthony All Stars (or Doug Anthony Allstars, DAAS, D.A.A.S. or stylised as D⋆A†A☭S) were an Australian musical comedy, alternative rock and vocal group who initially performed together between 1984 and 1994. The group were an aco ...

* The Ellis Collective * Faceless (Fvceless) *

Franklyn B Paverty Franklyn B Paverty is an Australian bush band that has performed mostly in and around Canberra. It has entertained audiences with its repertoire of predominantly Australian folk music, bush ballads and music for bush dances) varied occasionall ...

Genesis Owusu Kofi Owusu-Ansah (born 1998 Ghana), known by his stage name Genesis Owusu, is a Ghanaian-Australian singer from Canberra. He is the younger brother of fellow hip hop rapper, Kojo Owusu-Ansah Citizen Kay. Owusu's debut studio album, ''Smili ...

* Groovy Daughter * ARCHIE *

Hands Like Houses Hands Like Houses are an Australian rock band from Canberra. Formed in 2008, the group is currently signed to Hopeless Records and UNFD. Their debut album, ''Ground Dweller'', was released on 13 March 2012 and charted at number 141 on the Billbo ...

The Idea of North The Idea of North are an Australian a cappella vocal ensemble founded in Canberra in 1993, by Nick Begbie (tenor), Meg Corson (alto), Trish Delaney-Brown (soprano) and Andrew Piper ( bass). In March 2002 Corson was replaced as alto by Naomi Cr ...

Koolism ''Koolism'' is an Australian hip hop duo originating from Canberra, Australian Capital Territory. The members are lyricist Hau Latukefu (born Langomi-e-Hau Latukefu, 1976, Queanbeyan, Australia) and producer/DJ/musician Danielsan Ichiban (born ...

Omar Musa Omar bin Musa (born 9 January 1984) is a Malaysian-Australian author, poet, rapper and visual artist from Queanbeyan, New South Wales, Australia. He has released three solo hip hop records (including ''Since Ali Died'') and three books of poetr ...

Peking Duk Peking Duk are an electronic music group made up of disc jockeys and music producers Adam Hyde and Reuben Styles. The pair first garnered attention in 2012 with the release of a Passion Pit bootleg remix. Their biggest hit "High (Peking Duk so ...

* Pod People * Rubycon *

SAFIA Safia may refer to: __NOTOC__ People * Safia (given name) Places * Safia, Burkina Faso * Safia, Yemen * Safia Rural LLG, Papua New Guinea Biology * ''Safia'' (moth), a genus of moth Music * Safia (band), an Australian indie electronica band, be ...

* Sidewinder *

Something Like This ''Something Like This'' is the fourth full-length studio album released by Ben Rector. It peaked at No. 11 on the ''Billboard'' Top Independent Albums charts and No. 41 on the ''Billboard'' 200.Sputnik Sweetheart
* St.Sinner *

Tactics Tactic(s) or Tactical may refer to: * Tactic (method), a conceptual action implemented as one or more specific tasks ** Military tactics, the disposition and maneuver of units on a particular sea or battlefield ** Chess tactics ** Political tact ...

Taka Perry Taka Perry (born 18 October 1998) is an Australian-Japanese music producer, songwriter and artist from Canberra, Australia. His past collaborations include Ruel, Denzel Curry, GoldLink, SIRUP, Thomas Headon, and M-Phazes. Career Taka Perry ...

Teen Jesus and the Jean Teasers Teen Jesus and the Jean Teasers are an Australian rock band formed in Canberra in 2015. The group consists of vocalist Anna Ryan, guitarist Scarlett McKahey, drummer Neve van Boxsel and bass guitarist Jaida Stephenson. Their debut extended play, ...

* The Way Hip Antelopess * Blue Sarah Tonin

Music festivals

National Folk Festival (Australia) The National Folk Festival (NFF) is an Australian family-oriented celebration that has been attended by over 50,000 people. Winner of the National Qantas Australian Tourism Award for Best Festival in 2009, it features over 20 stages with vibran ...

* Corinbank Festival Years active: 2008, 2009, 2010 and 2012) * You Are Here festival *

Metal for the Brain Metal for the Brain was Australia's largest heavy metal music festival. The event was held in Canberra annually, usually towards the end of the year, and featured Australian bands almost exclusively. The festival was established in November 1991 ...

(years active: 1991–2006) *

Stonefest {{Use dmy dates, date=May 2021 Stonefest (sometimes referred to as Stone Week) is an annual festival held at the University of Canberra during week eleven of the second semester to celebrate the laying of the university's Foundation Stone. Stonefe ...

Years active: 2001–2010 *

Spilt Milk (festival) Spilt Milk is an annual music festival that is held in Canberra, Australia and Ballarat, Australia. Spilt Milk was established by Kicks Entertainment. Their first festival was held on Saturday 3 December 2016 in Canberra, ACT. Awards a ...

References

External links

Australian National University School of Music

Music in the ACT – Linking Music Industry Resources in the ACT

SOM Times – Art Music Journalism and Research, Canberra
{{DEFAULTSORT:Canberra Culture of Canberra Australian music by city