Katie Noonan & Karin Schaupp to Play Dunstan Playhouse, 26-27 July

Two of Australia's most loved female artists - songstress Katie Noonan and classical guitarist Karin Schaupp - will perform songs from their 2012 album Songs of the Southern Skies in the Dunstan Playhouse on 26 & 27 July.

This performance explores music close to home and close to their hearts, featuring some of Australia and New Zealand's best classical, folk, jazz and pop songs - from the Finn Brothers, Cold Chisel, Nick Cave, Icehouse, Bic Runga, Gurrumul, The Easybeats, Vince Jones and Gotye, through to traditional folk songs, a piece by Richard Charlton and composition by Elena Kats-Chernin - written especially for Katie and Karin.

The performances will also feature "Bora Ring", a song composed by local composer and organist Andrew Georg. In 2012, Georg won a nationwide art song composition competition for young composers, which was judged by Noonan and Schaupp along with esteemed industry colleagues. Award winning youth choir Young Adelaide Voices will also join Noonan and Schaupp on stage for their special rendition of Gotye's "Heart's A Mess".

A feast for lovers of all styles of music, this collaboration brings together two artists at the top of their game, true masters of their fields - artists who have enjoyed the challenge of stretching their musical boundaries, and have become great friends along the way. Noonan has four ARIA Awards and six platinum album sales to her name, whilst Schaupp has been lauded around the world as one of the best classical guitarists of her generation. What began as a chance encounter at a festival almost nine years ago, resulting in an impromptu performance of a couple of short songs, has now led to a significant ongoing musical partnership.

"Katie and I had a HUGE shortlist and it's been very hard to whittle it down to just one programme! We really are spoilt for choice in our own musical backyard," explains Schaupp. "We have spent most of our professional lives in very different musical worlds, but we also share a lot of common ground, an unspoken intuitive understanding of the substance of the music, regardless of its style. Our collaboration allows us both to expand our musical worlds, but it also means we put a new spin on this music, while remaining respectful of its origin," Schaupp says.

Katie explains, "this project brings together my two main musical loves - classical and pop music. As an artist I love blurring the boundaries of genre and hearing musical worlds collide. This project is a wonderful opportunity for Karin and I to do exactly that! Karin is a wonderful, virtuosic and sensitive player and combined with our fantastic arrangers and some of Australia's leading composers, it is really great to hear these songs we know and love come to life in a new and exciting way!"

Premium tickets are $48, Adult $45, Groups 6+ $40, GreenRoom $22.50; Season subscriptions include Adult $40, Concession $35. For bookings, call BASS 131 246 or online at www.bass.net.au.

For further information visit: www.adelaidefestivalcentre.com.au.

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