Cairns Airport welcomed visitors with live ensemble performances on Wednesday morning to mark the opening of the Australian Festival of Chamber Music (AFCM).
AFCM is running in Cairns for the first time this year, and organisers expect the week-long showcase of global chamber music to inject more than $3 million into the local economy. The festival runs from Friday 24 July to 1 August.
Music lovers are flocking to Tropical North Queensland as the region hosts one of Australia’s most significant arts events for the first time. Nearly 80 per cent of ticket holders have travelled from interstate to attend, while almost 15 per cent have come from elsewhere in Queensland.
“We are thrilled to partner with the Australian Festival of Chamber Music for its very first time in Cairns,” Cairns Airport Chief Executive Officer Richard Barker said. “This is a fantastic opportunity to showcase our destination to an engaged visitor market, many who have travelled here for a rich, cultural experience.”
The program spans key locations across Cairns, including the Cairns Performing Arts Centre, Saint Monica’s Cathedral and aboard the Spirit of Cairns on the water.
The festival will bring together over 30 of Australia’s finest and internationally acclaimed musicians, including 14 international artists travelling from Germany, France, Ireland, China, the United Kingdom and the United States.
“We have extraordinary musicians from around the world gathering in one of the most beautiful locations on earth to create something truly unique,” AFCM artistic director Jack Liebeck said. “There is an intimacy and energy to AFCM that simply cannot be replicated anywhere else.”
