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SA live music: State of Play 2

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South Australian producer/director Jethro Heller embarked on a series of documentaries on the local live music scene because he felt his own observations were at odds with the findings of the recent review by British Thinker-In-Residence Martin Elbourne.

To put his theory to the test, Heller went out and interviewed a range of Adelaide music identities – musicians of many genres and ages, hotel publicans, politicians of all hues, respected industry journalists and others who have a vested interest in maintaining a thriving live music scene.  Along the way, he also filmed many of the musicians he encountered playing in live venues.

The first results of his endeavours were presented in State of Play, and the second doco in the series, State of Play 2: Truth, Youth, Beauty and all that Jazz, was previewed at a screening at The Governor Hindmarsh Hotel last week.

State of Play 2 presents a balanced cross-section of the music industry in Adelaide, yet merely scratches the surface of what is happening – hence the need for more episodes still to come.  This surely highlights the vastness of the healthy local scene.  A recent study concluded that there were more “paid” musicians (per capita) in Adelaide than in any other capital city in Australia; it didn’t, however, come to a finding on how well those musicians were being paid.

Elbourne’s study concluded that Adelaide had a number of world-class venues, possibly too many, and suggested the problem lay with the talent available. This assertion, repeated early in Heller’s documentary, was greeted with howls of protest from the largely music industry audience at the State of Play 2 screening at The Gov.  Having seen at least three world-class local acts in this town over the last couple of weeks, I was also astonished.  This is the driving force behind State of Play 2 – to attempt to scratch away at the surface and find out what is really happening here.

There are interviews with many industry icons, from singer-songwriter John Swan (brother of Jimmy Barnes and former member of bands such as The Party Boys and Fraternity) to country music veteran Johnny Mac; from The Gov’s manager Richard Tonkin to Capri Theatre organist Claire Baker, from roots/alt-folk band The Timbers to jazz/cabaret duo The Foenander Brothers.  Young musicians on the way up are also represented, including 50 in the City, Lipstick and Jenny Biddle.  All are enthusiastic about their work, but most bemoan the fact that pay rates for musicians seem not to have budged in an upwardly direction for the last 20 years – an astonishing state of affairs.

There is also an insight into the existence of an annual State Government fund of more than $350,000 per annum, supposedly to support local live music, which the documentary suggests is perhaps not being directed to its intended use.

Politicians are interviewed and inject some nice rhetoric into the mix, but not much more.  A brief divergence into the value of music as a remedial force against illness and anti-social behaviour also adds an interesting slant to the production.

You can view this well-made documentary – a vast improvement in quality over the earlier State of Play 1 – free at youviewaustralia.com.au. This is thanks partly to sponsorship from the Australian Hotels Association, an obvious fit with the live music scene, which has enabled Jethro Heller and executive producer Leonie Grace to create this valuable series.

Take a look and judge for yourself.  Watch out for State of Play 3, which is currently in the pipeline.

 

 

 

 

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