Majors Creek Festival, November 9-11

To be held November 9-11 this year, the festival will feature headliners including The Band Who Knew Too Much, This Way North and Jaron Freeman Fox and the String Contingent. Mr Tim and the Fuzzy Elbows, usually a children’s act, will also be doing a late night act this year.

The Majors Creek Festival, originally called Music at the Creek, was the brainchild of Braidwood Folk Club founder, the late Peter Gillespie. Peter’s daughter, Hannah, carries on the Gillespie family’s musical tradition and is now the festival’s artistic director.

While the headline acts have been locked in, Hannah says that all applications for performing spots will be finalised​ by mid August.

Over 25 years, the festival has had 729 different acts. This year’s festival will feature around 25 musical acts plus a further 15 or so other acts such as dance and choir.

“We try to limit the number of acts we have so that we focus on quality rather than quantity,” said Hannah.

In the early days of the festival there were as many as 70 acts over the weekend. Musicians played only one show during the festival. “It must have been chaotic,” said Hannah, of the number of acts in those early days. “Now we like to have quality acts playing three shows over the festival. There are open mics for local performers.” 

The festival is proud of its sustainability record. In 2001 the festival instigated a zero waste policy, when Hannah’s uncle, longtime zero waste advocate, Gerry Gillespie, introduced a total waste reduction system with zero waste going to landfill from the event. The festival won a Banksia Award that year.

The festival now focuses on a composting program with all organic waste being removed from the site for composting on a local farm. The removal of food waste from the waste stream enables a more efficient recycling program. The toilets on the site will also be composters.

Super Early Bird tickets will be available from 10 August to 9 September, then Early Bird tickets from 10 September to 7 October, after which gate prices will apply to all ticket sales. Children under 12 are free and Youth tickets are available for minors aged 12-17. Concession Tickets are available only to holders of an Australian Pension Card, Full Time Student Card, Health Care Card, or DVA Gold Card. 

Camping is available and free but sites cannot be reserved in advance. The campsite will be divided in ‘Owls’ (for late night revellers) and “Fowls” (for the early risers), so if you’re camping, be sure to locate yourself in the right spot.

The festival organisers have advised that drinking water is limited and campers should bring water to cover drinking and washing-up requirements.