Melbourne Culture –
City Guide to the Arts
Melbourne culture is vibrant and alive. You’ll find it in the streets and lanes, in bars and cafes, at numerous festivals, exhibitions and galleries. It is real - supported and lived by the people – and it has earned itself a spot in the international art and music scenes. Melbourne’s style is many things: sophisticated, playful, unconventional and multi-cultural. Melbourne culture comes as naturally as the next latte – it is the undisputed art and music capital of Australia.
Melbourne Festivals
Through the course of the year, you’ll find numerous major Melbourne Festivals such as the Moomba Waterfest and the Melbourne International Comedy Festival; the annual Melbourne International Arts Festival, Melbourne Fringe Festival and the Melbourne Writers festival – each a celebration of artistic expression. These are of course not all. On top of that - if you are lost for something to do on a weekend - there is bound to be one festival or another going on. There are ethnic and community festivals such as the Latin Festival or the Indian Diwali Festival of light, and there are many celebrations such as the Sustainable Living festival, vintage car rallies, Rock, Jazz and Blues festivals.
Melbourne Performing Arts
The performing arts scene is strong in Melbourne. There is the Australian Ballet, the Opera, the Royal Melbourne Philharmonic and the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra. During the summer month you can catch a free outdoor ballet, concert or opera in the Sidney Myer Music Bowl.The Arts Centre Melbourne is normally the centre for these performing arts with a complex of theatres and concert halls located next to the Yarra. During spring and summer there are great live performances in the Spiegeltent in the arts centre forecourt. Throughout the city you’ll find more theatres than in any other Australian city - such as the Princess Theatre, the Regent and Forum with many professional theatre companies in Melbourne producing an ongoing stream of world class theatre and musicals. Here is a guide of
what's on in the arts in Melbourne.
Melbourne Music Scene
Melbourne culture is rich with a lively jazz, rock and pop scene, which has given rise to many internationally known performers such as Olivia Newton-John, John Farnham and the Seekers as well as Crowded House, Nick Cave, Kate Ceberano, Missy Higgins and Anthony Callea to just name a few.Melbourne attracts the greatest international performers on their concert tours. Throughout the year, there are also various free concerts throughout the city. But these are really just the top of the ice berg. Melbourne’s music scene is alive with live music venues.
Melbourne Street Art and Art Installations
Melbourne streets are lined with art installations. There are the historical monuments depicting important Melbourne personae like Batman and La Trobe. And there are the modern art pieces on many of the street corners and along the waterfronts.Another side of Melbourne culture is Graffiti. Melbourne has some of the best street art in the world and is know as 'graffiti capital'. Overnight amazing creations appear on some inviting wall. Many of them works of art, many of them appreciated, there to stay and protected. There are also the buskers performing around town, particularly along the Southbank and Federation Square, creating the colourful feel of a traditional market place.
Art Galleries
Melbourne has a rich art movement and history. In the late 1880s, the
Heidelberg School
was the first large art movement in Melbourne, surrounded by a strong art community. Here is your
Melbourne guide to Australian art
.Today, there are numerous independent and state
art galleries Melbourne
can show off with, and art continues to be well alive in the community.
Museums
There is a
Melbourne museum
for almost any area of life - from natural sciences to hands on experiments for kids, to history, aviation, to trams and railways.Many of these are exciting places of Melbourne culture to visit, and a great way to spend a rainy day. You really get a taste and feel for ‘what it was like’, or’ how this or that thing works’ – a long way from stuffy old Museums.
Melbourne History and Architecture
Melbourne’s history is short compared to European cities. It is just over 170 years old and had its heydays and exponential growth through the gold rush years of the mid to late 1800s. The wealth of that period is reflected in the
Melbourne city guide to architecture
. At the moment, Melbourne is experiencing another peak and it has become the fastest growing Australian city in 2007. Mixed within the old you’ll find pleasing and uplifting modern architecture.
Melbourne Dance
Dance venues are thriving in Melbourne with some of the biggest nightclubs in the world. There are dance parties that take place most of the year, attracting some of the world's best DJs. Melbourne is the birthplace of the
Melbourne Shuffle
, a jazz style dance step performed to electronic rhythmic beats that developed in the 1980s in the underground scene and that continues to evolve to date. Melbourne is hosting the 2008 World Latin American Dance Championships in December, which is held immediately after the Australian Dancesport Championships, also held in Melbourne.
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