Funded by CREATE NSW and the Live Music Office as part of the Live and Local Western Sydney Music Strategy, in October 2017 Blacktown launches the Beats and Bites Festival through the Blacktown Arts Centre.
‘Bite’ your way through our diverse cuisines while you listen to a curated music program of some of the region’s best artists and music ‘beats’.
Across six locations every Wednesday in October, the city will be activated with an eclectic program of 24 performances, featuring over 45 artists.
Local artist Michael David, a finalist on THE VOICE, will be performing in his Jazz Quartet on the Big Sounds stage in the Village Green and on the mix stage at Oregano and Oil as a solo artist.
Shohrat Tursun of Traditional East Turkistan, now modern day China, will be performing on the Simply Strings stage, showcasing the ancient stringed instrument of the dutar. The artist will be performing infront of the Main Street Medical Centre and the Coffee Time Café, along with violin, cello, a harp and flute duet, as well as oud and kanun throughout the month long program.
The festival has something for everyone, depending on what mood you are in, each Wednesday lunchtime caters to a different music and food experience. You can bring your lunch and visit the Arts Centre Courtyard to see the Contemporary Filipino-Australian Art Exhibition and music of Balik Bayan. Or get your heart racing at the ‘Something About Africa’ stage while feasting on traditional Ethiopian Cuisine at Blacktown’s famous Abyssina restaurant and newly opened Gursha Ethiopian restaurant and Café.
For more information contact: Events unit 9839 6000
LOCATIONS/MUSIC PROGRAM
- Village Green – BIG SOUNDS (bands, ensembles)
- Renee’s Pizza
- Food truck
- Visitors Information Centre – WOMEN OF THE WEST (female choirs, singer/songwriters)Enjoy food at:
- El Jannah
- Happy Chicken
- Curry Paste (Indian)
- Pasteur (Vietnamese restaurant)
- Oregano and Oil – THE MIX (DJ’s, contemporary music)
- Main St Family Medical Centre – SIMPLY STRINGS (cross cultures).Enjoy food at:
- Coffee Time
- Chef’s Coffee Lounge
- Simply Kebabs
- Galaxy Food Market (Nuts and Coffee House) – SOMETHING ABOUT AFRICA (music from Africa)
- Abyssina Ethiopian Restaurant
- Gursha – Ethiopian Restaurant and Café
- Galaxy Food Market (nuts and coffee house).
- Blacktown Arts Centre – BALIK BAYAN, CONTEMPORARY AUSTRALIAN- FILIPINO ART EXHIBITION & MUSIC
- Bring your own lunch and sit in the courtyard beneath the recycled art installation
