Tim Chuma's Photos

with Wayne Jury and Sarah Carroll
Queenscliff Uniting Church, Sunday 10th September 2023

Due to doing the Sydney Rd Traders Association Festive Art on Windows painting that weekend for the last four years and having a break before that I have not seen the Tides of Welcome Choir since 2016 when I last went to Queenscliff Music Festival. It was always quite an endeavour for me to get down there for the festival and was the only time I would go out of Melbourne for an event each year.

I responded to the request for photos and memories of the choir for their 20th anniversary and have enjoyed seeing them pop up in my feed. Also getting to see what happened in the festivals after I stopped attending. I do still keep in touch with one of the current choir members who is a ratbag and rebel and see another one at gigs in town occasionally.

I can remember it was actually Sarah who first asked me to come see the choir in 2005 for the festival and I had to get dropped off in Queenscliff especially by my auntie for the first few years due to the bus being too early on the Sunday (I was getting back to Geelong quite late on the late night bus). It was a lot better once I started staying down there and for the last couple of years at Sarah's place.

The choir did move around the festival quite a bit over the course of performing there. I do remember them coming up to Melbourne for Sarah's album launch and RRR BBQ day one year. Due to not living down on the Bellarine Penisula I only saw them at the Queenscliff Music Festival each year which was still great to see them there. There are people I only saw once a year when I came down for the festival and they still remembered me each year.

Before the show there was a slideshow of the choir's previous appearances with a lot of my photos in it. I did like seeing the ones from events I had not attended and festivals before and after my run of photographing them.

Due to being choir directors both Sarah and Wayne jury did a set with them alternating songs and also singing together.

It was a great show and they sung a lot of songs I remembered. I did try and get some funny photos of Amanda but she was too quick for me. Afterwards there were drinks and nibbles in the section where the gallery is which we ended up staying for a bit. I did try and get some milling around photos and some of people if they wanted. I even ended up getting the 2nd album by the choir that I did not know existed.

Even though I had to have the day off work due to being too far from Melbourne to get home that day I was glad to have gone. Hopefully I will get to see the choir again the future.

Links:
https://tidesofwelcome.weebly.com/
https://www.facebook.com/sarahcarrollukulelequeen
https://www.waynejury.com.au/