Various venues, Barossa Valley
September 29 and 30

Artistic Director Sharon Grigoryan handpicked some of her favourite performers for this two-day mini-festival filled with good music, good food and good fun. Though it comprised only four concerts, Barossa Baroque and Beyond (BBB) managed to traverse two thousand years of musical variety, from the ancient sounds of native North American flutes, to the very contemporary sampling and looping of Adelaide-based talent Adam Page.

Julian Ferraretto and Dean Newcomb. All photos supplied 

The festival took place in and around Tanunda in South Australia’s Barossa Valley, performing out of a neat circle of nearby venues, and showcasing the regional beauties of scenery and history. The influence of the famed Barossa food culture was never far away, with three out of four events incorporating fine wining and dining. Even this offered a good variety, from a balcony performance at the Peter Lehmann winery, accompanied by drinks on the lawn, to a sit-down concert at the fermentAsian restaurant in town.

At this, the official festival opener, piano-violin duo Joe Chindamo and Zoë Black provided an exciting aural counterpart to the menu. While fermentAsian chef Tuoi Do sent up Southeast Asian...