Whether he was worried about his beloved Aston Villa’s chances in this weekend’s League Cup final clash with Manchester Utd, or maybe it was a case of first night flutters, but Nigel Kennedy’s latest collaboration with the Sydney Symphony took a little while to warm up.

As always keen to bend genres and break down the stuffiness of classical music concert etiquette, the 53-year-old English “cat with a Strad” is touring with a program of works by two disparate musical geniuses in Johann Sebastian Bach and Duke Ellington.

Switching throughout the evening …

A R Rahman is all set to rock the stage at Sydney Festival 2010.The Mozart of Madras will perform live at the annual fest. One of the prevalent annual arts festival of Australia, the event brings under one roof a wide range of Australian and international show.

A special free outdoor concert will be performed by the music maestro on 16th January. It will be a part of the fest. Rahman also aims to shed light on the recent attacks on Indian students in Australia. He will also try to encourage …

Irish trad star Sharon Shannon makes a welcome return to Oz in the new year as she plays shows in Sydney and Perth.
Sharon kicks off her Aussie tour at the Riverside Theatre in Parramatta, before landing in Sydney to play three nights as part of the Sydney Festival.
The Clare musician will then round off her tour with one-night at the Becks Music Box in WA as part of the Perth International Arts Festival on February 7.
Sharon Shannon 2010 Tour Dates
January 27 :: Parramatta, NSW :: Riverside Theatre
January 29 –  31 …

They say there’s no such thing as a free lunch, but when it comes to gigs, some of the best bands are getting up there for nix.
This can certainly be said for the Jager Uprising Christmas Party that will have hot up-and-coming indie rock outfit Children Collide headlining festivities. The band from Melbourne released their debut album The Long Now last year that spawned the single Social Currency. Members Johnny Mackay, Heath Crawley and Ryan Caesar have won over both the critics and the crowds as they’ve been touring with …

Nevada (ANI): Oscar winner musician A.R. Rahman will headline the world famous “Sydney Festival 2010” in Australia on January 16. Rahman’s two-and-a-half hour free and exclusive music-dance performance will also see over 40 Bollywood dancers, singers, and musicians at outdoor Parramatta Park near Sydney, starting 7-30 pm.

Festival website says about Rahman: “Sydney Festival is proud to celebrate this inspiring and multidimensional artist”. New South Wales Premier and Festival President Nathan Rees reportedly described Rahman as “without doubt one of the world’s great talents”. Acclaimed Indo-American statesman Rajan Zed has applauded …