You only have to look at a map to see that Jimbour House is a long way from your typical opera venue.

A very long way, in fact.

Nearest town? Dalby, Queensland, about a half-hour drive away. Population 13,000 or so. Nearest metropolis? Brisbane, about 180km to the east as the crow flies.

And yet, over a couple of decades, Jimbour has become something of a magnet for opera and fine music fans, drawing audiences from across Queensland and from as far away as Darwin, Hobart and Perth for its annual music festival held in the grounds and surrounds of the magnificent, heritage-listed mansion built in the 1870s on the lands of the Barunggam people.

Opera at Jimbour. Photo © Queensland Music Trails.

This year, on the weekend of 5–7 May, the house will host one of its biggest and most musically diverse events to date: Opera at Jimbour, a series of indoor and outdoor concerts featuring internationally renowned opera soloists from Opera Queensland, the chamber players of Ensemble Q, and a 26-piece orchestra from Queensland Conservatorium Griffith University.

The program includes gala events on Jimbour’s Eastern Lawn, chamber music concerts in what was the station’s aircraft hangar and a series of intimate, salon-style recitals in Jimbour’s opulent Drawing Room.

“This place really is a bit of an anomaly on the landscape of the Western Downs, a truly amazing 19th-century mansion in the middle of nowhere,” says Joel Edmondson, CEO and Creative Director of Queensland Music Trails. “Jimbour is an incredibly well-kept piece of heritage architecture but more than that, it’s owned by a family that is passionate about opera and equally passionate about sharing that love with as many people as possible.”

The event has evolved markedly over the last three years, Edmondson explains. “For a long time, it was a big concert on the lawn out the front of the house and that was great, but now it’s a three-day festival of music that takes place in the grounds and in the house itself.”

“It’s not just the house as a scenic backdrop to a show anymore. It’s something quite rare in a place like Australia – the chance to experience the music of the period the building was imagined and built in. It’s a bit like a time machine in that way.”

The Hangar at Jimbour House. Photo © David Chatfield/Queensland Music Trails

The music programming for the gala concerts leans toward the popular and accessible – Mozart, Beethoven, Rossini and Donizetti, for example. The Hangar Concerts series is more adventurous, with its blending of classic works by Vivaldi and Brahms programmed alongside 20th-century masterpieces by Barber, Copland, Messiaen and Schoenberg, as well as Australian composer Paul Dean.

“The Hangar Series is the result of one of those happy accidents,” Edmondson tells Limelight. “To find a disused space like a hangar that is acoustically brilliant was pure serendipity. You can’t ever plan for things like that.”

Jimbour’s Drawing Room is also open to the public for intimate soirées featuring world-class singers and pianist Alex Raineri. “It’s a bit of a throwback to the idea of the 19th-century salon,” says Edmondson. “We used to put these little VIP events in the Drawing Room after the main show, but they were so lovely we thought they should be open to anyone, not just the privileged few.”

Opera at Jimbour events can draw upwards of 3,000 attendees to the site. Some come from local towns and hamlets. Many make the trip from Brisbane. Some drive for 10 hours or more, says Edmondson. “One of the great things for us is that the event has developed a hard core of regulars who come from as far away as Perth and Melbourne – and they do it year after year.”

“We have a huge campsite and a big space that becomes a food market where people spend a lot of their time. It’s not just a music event in that way. The whole idea behind Music Trails is about bringing people together with music as a gateway into the history and culture of a place.”

Jimbour is also something of a getaway for the artists, says Edmondson. “They’re singing into these amazing evening vistas for a start, but also it’s a chance to bring the thing they love to new audiences and to connect with people who might not be regulars in the city opera houses. It really is a special event for everyone involved.”

And dress code?

“Just smart country casual,” says Edmondson. “We not the Paris Opera. But maybe leave the dog in the back of the ute.”

Opera at Jimbour is held on the weekend of 5–7 May at Jimbour House, Queensland. For information, visit Queensland Music Trails.