UPDATE (12th November)   We have  made it to $5,000!

Thank you SO MUCH!

We are so grateful for your support and are happy to tell you that  we have reached our first goal of $5000. Thank you everyone for getting the campaign up to this point so quickly.   This means we can repay half the monies owing for the CD/DVD production. When we reach $5000, the campaign will continue, so we can try and work toward our mini stretch goal of $8,500 so three quarters of the monies owing can be paid back.  Even getting partially towards it would be a great help.

If there is anyone out there who has been meaning to make a pledge and/or share this campaign on Facebook, now is the time to do it!   By pledging before November 30th you get to take advantage of the great rewards available.

The Mountain Choir has collaborated with the Weindorfer Memorial committee to produce the following video to celebrate the life and achievements of Gustav Weindorfer.  The following link to the 2020 Weindorfer Memorial tribute features The Mountain Choir.

2020 Weindorfer Memorial featuring 'The Mountain Choir'

THE STORY

The Mountain Choir is raising funds to cover the production costs of our unique and moving work The Mountain and to help this fabulous musical story reach as many people as possible. The Mountain is a choral song cycle written by Paul Jarman and Bonnie Nilsson celebrating the beauty of Cradle Mountain and the legacy of pioneers Kate and Gustav Weindorfer. Consisting of 6 songs, it showcases the high calibre of choral performance of which Tasmania is capable and highlights the history and unique natural resource that we have in Cradle Mountain.

The choral work is complemented by photos relating to the lives of Gustav and Kate and the beauty of Cradle Mountain, skilfully captured by our wonderful technical assistant Heather Reid and her son Patrick. The unique appeal of each piece is enhanced by this carefully curated series of images, resulting in a stunning visual and aural walk through the history of Cradle Mountain, its environs and its pioneers.

We are so excited to have this to share, but of course, the recording process costs a substantial amount of money. We need your financial support to cover the costs of producing the CD/DVD package, by pledging a donation or pre-ordering a package.  If you come on board now, you will get to hear the album before anyone else does!

THE DREAM

The dream began in 2013, when Crescendo choir, directed by Elizabeth Sandman, commissioned Paul Jarman to compose a choral piece, The Mountain, woven around Cradle Valley pioneers Kate and Gustav Weindorfer. This piece captured Gustav and Kate's special love for each other and for the Cradle Mountain area. Following the success of this piece, Paul and his partner, and fellow composer, Bonnie Nilsson were then commissioned to create more pieces woven around the iconic Cradle Mountain and its pioneers, reflecting the story of Cradle Mountain, through the lives of Gustav and Kate Weindorfer. They gained inspiration in particular from the book Three Indians and a Caterpillar by Anton Lade and spending time as artists in residence in the Cradle Mountain National Park. Choir members actively participated in the writing process of these pieces, staying with Paul and Bonnie at Cradle Mountain, walking and workshopping their ideas with them, and as such were personally touched by the story of The Mountain. 

PERFORMANCES

In 2016 Crescendo premiered The Mountain at Government House in Hobart as part of Festival of Voices and performed it there twice more in 2018 as an invited guest performer of the Governor. In 2017 Crescendo was honoured to be invited to perform the work as a special guest at the National Choral Festival in Brisbane, where it once again brought audience members to tears. In culmination, Crescendo shared this work and the story of Cradle Mountain, performing in July 2018 to much acclaim in England and Salzburg, Austria. Their final performance was in Spittal, the home town of Gustav Weindorfer, where it wowed the audience. Many of these Crescendo members have continued their association with The Mountain project, forming The Mountain choir to produce this recording in January 2020.

COMPOSERS PAUL JARMAN AND BONNIE NILSSON

Paul and Bonnie’s affinity with the Tasmanian landscape is evident in The Mountain. They have the ability to bring to life history through music in a way that is appealing to a wide range of audiences.  Paul has said that they have made a career from the learning, sharing and telling of stories through song and that to share this work with students is what inspires them most. They felt that by being located at Cradle Mountain they were able to focus on the meditation of mind, body and spiritual fitness that allowed them the space to create the best music that they could. This was of huge benefit to them as writers and composers.  Their work is inspired from a place that is both real and honest.

Initial Goal

Our inital goal  is to raise $5,000 to cover the cost of the videography.

Stretch Goals

$12,000

If we achieve our initial goal, this stretch goal would  cover the remainder of the costs for the  CD/DVD production and pressing and basic advertising

$15,000

Icing on the cake would be to cover the costs of a full publicity campaign, to enable this fabulous work to reach as many people as possible.

$30,000 

We may be dreaming.....  our long-term ambition  is to orchestrate The Mountain.

$50,000 

If there was any possibility that this stretch goal could be reached, this would help us tour the work extensively.