Robbie Melville

Mary Doumany is an Australian harpist, singer and composer. Classically trained, she is fluent across multiple genres including jazz, contemporary, folk and experimental and is known also for creating ground breaking works for harp and other instruments/combinations.

Mary Doumany - vocals/harp Gideon Brazil - saxophones Robbie Melville - guitar

After a 10 year break, raising children, mid life crises and watching the world spin round, Half Bent have gathered a new team of young and inspiring change makers to bring music to the streets of West Brunswick. The festival champions new and creative music, and diversity of thought and artistic practice; but most importantly the festival aims to connect curious listeners and people from all walks of life: with each other, with live music, with their own community.

Sophie Marcheff is a classically-trained guitarist whose practice spans contemporary/experimental classical music, popular Brazilian music, and chamber music (Melbourne Guitar Quartet). Sophie’s original compositions explore contrapuntal textures paired with an understated yet rich harmonic language.

Robbie Melville is a genre-bending guitarist and composer whose compositions incorporate influences of jazz, folk and classical. His latest albums 'Tangled Trails' and 'Music From The Village Square' successfully weave together such disparate elements into a unified, enchanting musical world. Marcheff and Melville draw on their shared musical passions to present solos and duets, original compositions and free improvisations.

The Invisibles is a dynamic Melbourne-based modern jazz trio led by prominent drummer and composer Ronny Ferella. The band frequently performs a blend of improvised American jazz and roots repertoire in a raw, stripped-back fashion.

Nat’s quartet is best known for their reinterpretations of her classical albums – such as their ARIA-nominated jazz lullaby album Forever More, and the critically acclaimed 2023 release Hope Renewed. Their recordings responds to powerful collective experiences: motherhood, climate change, the pandemic, gender disparities and more. Their live shows are deeply moving, addressing themes with enduring relevance – a chance to sit and reflect, feel emotions, and find the silver linings during difficult times. Nat Bartsch Quartet has performed for audiences across Australia, including Phoenix Central Park, Melbourne Recital Centre, Montsalvat Arts Centre, Woodend Winter Music Festival, The Jazzlab, and The Street Theatre.

Juniper Common's very first House Concert!

The Village Square, set in an imagined town some years ago (as all good fairy tales are), is a narrative of love and loss, misfortune and mirth, the graceful and grotesque.

Featuring renowned cellist Zoe Knighton, award winning guitarist/composer Robbie Melville, and the charismatic and much-loved Richard Piper as The Narrator, the fables sparkle with the magic of traditional mythology.

In The Fruit Mechanic, the engine of an obnoxious tourist’s thunderous motorcycle is transformed into silence by an artful greengrocer. In The Fog, a thick cloud descends upon The Village, sending the entire population into a deep sleep until The Dogs discover a way to rouse them. Kind And Sorrowful tells the story of a young man who is saved from drowning by the River Spirit with unforeseen repercussions.

Evocative, enchanting and above all, human, The Village Square is a captivating combination of music and spoken word.