The Festival of Small Halls (FOSH) will return to the region this month.
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Celebrated songwriters Ash Bell and Sara Tindley and emotive troubadour Melanie Horsnell will feature on the Resilience Tour of NSW.
Consisting of 15 performances, the tour is the 26th edition of this regional music tour, and a special edition tour targeted at bushfire-affected communities.
"With floods, a mouse plague, and of course the pandemic, the terrible bushfires of 2019/20 seem a lifetime ago," said festival producer Eleanor Rigden.
"While we do hope the simple joy of gathering, celebrating community and immersing in a wonderful music show will play a part in communities bouncing back from every disaster that has unfolded, a key element of this tour will be preparation.
"One thing that disaster-impacted communities tell us they want is to be better prepared for the next disaster. So, each show will feature some form of education, a way to build key relationships, or raise funds for the local Rural Fire Service - all curated by local communities to suit their unique needs," Ms Rigden said.
Famous for their larger-than-life folk festivals, Woodfordia's Festival of Small Halls presents a program inspired by strength and power of small communities - their indominable spirits made up of acts of kindness, selflessness and courage.
Melanie Horsnell is known for emotive melodies and powerful lyrics.
Her performances thread 20 years of writing and performing for her first solo acoustic performance of original material, delivered in the one-woman-and-guitar format Melanie has taken to living rooms, street corners, festival tents, bars and theatre stages. She was also recently a part of the Golden Guitar nominated band The New Graces.
Ms Horsnell said she is particularly excited to be doing the tour.
"Regional shows are really the best, the connection with community, the beauty of the area that you are travelling to, the people that you meet on the road and at the show," she said.
"These intimate shows really fill the soul."
- Sara
Joining Melanie on the tour are duo Ash and Sara. The musical collaboration of these two friends was born out of a shared disillusion with the music industry and a love of singing together, and has given rise to their debut EP Going Out Clothes, which has landed them on stages across Australia, with only guitar and banjo in hand.
Their music is great storytelling, fine writing and bare bones instrumentation. At its heart, it is the magical interplay of two great vocalists stripping things back to only the essential.
"It's such a privilege to be welcomed into these generous, fun, resilient small communities and to experience (and become a part of) the history of the area through their unique and character-filled halls," Sara said.
The Festival of Small Halls Resilience Tour 2022 will be at at Yarrowitch Hall this Sunday June 5 from 3pm.
Word is there will be a surprise warm up act by young singing sensation Lane Pittman who has relatives living in the village.
"This will mean a great deal to all the music lovers in our area," said Yarrowitch local Louise Clarke.
"It will also be a great opportunity to get everyone together after a tough few years. And we don't often get to enjoy top quality live music so close to home."
The tour then continues on to Deepwater June10 and Mallanganee on the June 11.
For a full list of locations, more info and to buy tickets, visit www.festivalofsmallhalls.com