Mr Coomey is one of seven RMO's recently appointed by MusicNSW [the state music body funded by Create NSW] to help foster tighter relationships between artists, venues, industry professionals and councils in their respective region.

"Music is a vital part of the Central West's economic, cultural and tourism sectors, and in this role, I want to help our music offerings grow through synergetic relationships between relevant parties," Mr Coomey said.

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"This region is well known for its food and beverages, and it's the same with our music: we've got musicians who have both grown up here and moved here, and their key connection to community is through song, which is something that should be celebrated and promoted further."

Mr Coomey is no stranger to the Central West, having spent the last five years raising awareness about original music, arts and culture across the region through his self-managed venture: 100 Mile Groove.

Over the next year, Mr Coomey will look to host a series of networking events, conduct surveys and censuses, and build relationships to benefit all relevant music parties across Bathurst, Orange, Dubbo, Mudgee, Lithgow, Cowra, Blayney, Oberon, Parkes, Forbes and Condobolin.

"We've got some very creative music industry professionals in the Central West; not just musicians, but audio engineers, studio operators and media producers," he said.

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"I've also observed a strong desire from people across the region to engage with live music, and there's a growing number of venues who are putting more energy and resources into their live offerings."

MusicNSW has launched a Facebook group- MusicNSW: Central West- as a central communication hub for people working within the music industry, and is in the process of preparing events catering for professional development.

A big focus of Mr Coomey's role will be the growth of original music in the Central West, which has lost ground over the last few decades in favour of cover artists.

"When you look at venues offering live music across the Central West, our data shows 80 per cent mainly focus on hiring cover acts," he said.

"This is in contrast to the 80 per cent of regional performing artists who create original music, so there's a clear gap in opportunities for people to perform what they've produced."

"While it's all well and good to hear familiar material, those songs were once new as well, so I'd like to think our local music fans would eventually be willing to support our original creators as opportunities grow."

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A major objective of the program is to help establish a regional touring network to provide greater gigging opportunities for local and touring musicians.

"The end goal is to try and build a reliable network of venues in key Central West localities to raise further awareness and appreciation for our local musicians writing their own songs," Mr Coomey said.

"As there's six other RMO's doing the same thing across the state, we feel the success of this program could revolutionise the live music sector in NSW."

With the state government recently injecting $24 million into live music venues across NSW, Mr Coomey said there's real potential for regional music to thrive post-COVID.

"During COVID, people reached to music for comfort, but I think many found it couldn't replace the unity of an audience; live music is like nothing else, and I can only see good things from this initiative," he said.

For more information, visit the MusicNSW: Central West Facebook group or email Mr Coomey: patrick@musicnsw.com.

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