Hobart Baroque: Haydn Opera and Early Music Festival in Tasmania

Leo Schofield has done it again!

Hobart Baroque Festival from 12-20 April.

A flavour of the opera L'isola disabitata (not from the Royal Opera House Covent Garden cast):

Come il vapor s'ascende; Haydn (L'isola disabitata), Christiane Karg  YouTube

Another (Patricia Petibon - Fra un dolce delirio - L'isola Disabitata)

Tasmania is the place to be this month.

John Glover's Tasmania


At Salamanca Market, Hobart


A nineties hippy selling badges

"Independence for Australia" -

A yellow cross adorned with stars.

No trace of red or blue.

"And haven't you been independent,

All these many years and more ?"

Asked a puzzled Pommy tourist.

"We're still part of the British Empire, mate,

The Queen of England's still Head of State! "

"I'm sorry you feel you're still enslaved.".

We turned our back on Chip-On-The-Shoulder,

With his Southern Cross T-Shirt, his Eureka Flag badge.

We looked at all the antique stalls,

Loaded with British bric-a-brac

Wondering what should be junked

And what should be saved.....

Cracked Coronation Mug ? Cracked cricket bat ?

Some souvenirs of Royal Tours,

A Georgian commode, a Pre-Raphaelite print ?

We bought some really useless stuff:

Three Edison cylinders, a pianola roll.

"Oh Sydney I love you",

"Australia will be there",

"For Auld Lang Syne",

Some patriotic Great War tunes.



It's the sentiment that counts.