TICKETS WILL BE AVAILABLE ON THE DOOR

An elegant suite of electro-acoustic salon music, Vienna Dreaming is based on the life of Keegan’s Great Grandfather Heini Portnoj who arrived in Australia in 1940. A Viennese pianist and Austrian refugee, Portnoj’s discovery of a new country and wistful longing for his homeland is strikingly recounted through a contemporary lens.

Matt Keegan (composer, tenor saxophone, clarinet), Veronique Serret (violin), Ben Hauptmann (guitar), Frejya Garbett (musical director, synthesizer), Brendan Clark Jnr (electric bass), Miles Thomas (drums).

With special guest opening performance from Lloyd Swanton - solo bass.
"an outstanding and imaginative Australian bassist and composer,” - Billboard Magazine

VIENNA DREAMING // Friday, April 16th, 2021 // Doors 7:30 pm // Tickets: $35 ea

Location: The Boiler House @ The Hydro Majestic Hotel, Medlow Bath. 52-88 Great Western Highway, Medlow Bath.

"Its strength lies not only in the imagination brought to bear, but in Keegan’s empathy for his subject."

[4⭐] - John Shand, Sydney Morning Herald.
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VIENNA DREAMING is a suite of music I have composed and dedicated to my great grandfather, Heini Portnoj (1895-1984). Heini grew up in Vienna and was a working musician and composer in the great music city before his career was cut short by the rise of the Nazi’s. As an Austrian jew his life was also in danger. Thankfully he managed to escape the city with his wife Annie and her child Elizabeth, my maternal grandmother. They ended up as refugees in Australia’s Tatura internment camp and at the conclusion of the war Heini went on to have a successful career as a pianist, accompanist and operatic singing coach here in Australia.

I was commissioned to compose this music to commemorate Heini’s life by my Aunt and family historian, Julia Trainor. I was afforded some time as an artist in residence at the musicians cottage at Bundanon Trust to work on this music.

I decided to write in the style of program music and deliberately used a combination of acoustic and electronic instruments to create an other worldly dream like atmosphere. I was keen to keep the music in an ethereal realm and have endeavoured to evoke general feelings and imagery rather than try to recreate specific sounds of the past.

THE VIENNA DREAMING STORYBOARD

Vienna Overture
An old man sitting by himself in a large chair gazing out the window on a rainy afternoon. Strains of distant music float through his mind and he is transported to a world he once knew. Suddenly we are in old Vienna but we drift away all too soon.

The Femina
A dreamlike impressionistic view of couples dancing in the once grand Viennese club where Heini was the musical director for 9 years.

Annie
Love at first sight in the city of music – an accompaniment to meeting his wife for the first time.

Foreboding

Confused feelings as things change for the worse in the city. The coda shifts abruptly to a reflective mood as the feeling that the city has changed forever sinks in.

Escape
Time to leave Vienna. Reflections on how it must have felt to flee the city he loved.

The Not Knowing
A stark and soulful expression of the thoughts and feelings Heini must have had about the many family members and friends that were lost forever in the war. He never found out their fate.

"As consistently strong as the suite was, the opening Vienna Overture was
especially compelling, with the main waltz-time theme materialising from
skimming fragments of sound, dissolving back into those fragments and
reassembling itself yet again – an evocation of an elderly Portnoj musing on an
impossibly different time and place, long, long ago."

- John Shand, Sydney Morning Herald - Read more

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THE EXPERIENCE

The Mountains' original party palace, The Hydro Majestic Hotel, is home to 'The Boiler House. Featuring the best views overlooking the Megalong Valley, The Boiler House is THE place to dine during the day, and on select evenings, reopens to showcase touring Regional and International live music acts.

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DINNER & REFRESHMENTS

The Boilerhouse is a fully licensed restaurant and bar, and a light tapas menu will be available to purchase from on the night (no bookings necessary).

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THE SCHEDULE

Date: Friday,16 April 2021.

Venue: The Boilerhouse @ The Hydro Majestic Hotel, Medlow Bath. 52-88 Great Western Highway, Medlow Bath.

Doors Open: 7:30 pm

Lloyd Swanton: 8:00-8:30 pm

Vienna Dreaming: 9:00-10:00 pm

Tickets: $35 per person

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IN THE EVENT OF COVID-19 RESTRICTION CHANGES

In the event of COVID-19 related restrictions increasing, and the event is unable to proceed, all tickets will be automatically refunded.

In short: there is no risk in booking event tickets with Music in the Mountains. We're in this for the long-haul and are optimistic about the future of live music!

TERMS, CONDITIONS & CANCELLATIONS

Tickets are non-refundable unless one of the following conditions are met:
1. Government COVID-19 restrictions prevent The Hydro Majestic Hotel from undertaking this kind of activity or force the closure venue as a whole; or
2. ALL musicians are unable to perform due to feeling unwell/sick.
Tickets will not be refunded due to 'change of mind' or failure to read the 'event description' in full.