Photo: Baby et Lulu band
A Music Hunter event at Baroque Room Katoomba | Captured by Brigitte Grant
About Meg Benson – "The Music Hunter"
Music Hunter has been the nickname for Meg Benson since 2010, given by musicians, audiences and friends. While Meg now works under her own name, the nickname—and the philosophy behind it—live on.
Over more than fifteen years, Meg has conceived, curated and produced approximately 300 live music and community events, earning a reputation for creating welcoming experiences that combine outstanding artists with strong audience engagement.
Her work sits at the intersection of live music, community development and creative producing. Drawing on a background in counselling, psychotherapy and community work, she creates events that are welcoming, connected and accessible.
Meg combines creative producing, audience development, visual design, marketing, stage presentation and lighting to create distinctive live music experiences from concept to completion.
Originally based in the Blue Mountains, Meg produced and curated projects including Katoomba Live and Local, Katoomba Solstice and hundreds of Music Hunter events. She has also contributed to major festivals including the Woodford Folk Festival, Blue Mountains Music Festival and Live at the Village.
Music Hunter has never been a booking agency or traditional promoter. It reflects Meg's passion for discovering exceptional live music and creating memorable experiences where artists, audiences and place come together.
Since relocating to Kandos in 2022, beside Wollemi National Park and the Mudgee wine region, Meg has continued this practice through Sunset on the Rocks, community broadcasting and collaborations with artists, venues and community organisations.
Meg is still a Music Hunter—bringing together artists, audiences and communities through live music experiences that celebrate connection, creativity and place.
Live music is good for your health. We've known this anecdotally for ages, & now the scientists have weighed in. Listening to live music promotes mental & physical health & wellbeing.
Musicians need audiences and audiences need music.
It's not just a transaction, it's a very special thing. Music Hunter is about nurturing the connection between us.
Making a contribution feels good. So does being a part of something big.
Volunteer to crew or help out. Music Hunter gigs are built on community inclusion.
THE MUSICIANS
The kinds of musicians who play Music Hunter gigs aren't necessarily your mainstream FM-friendly joes. These people are virtuosos from across Australia and around the world.
Some of them play rare instruments, even instruments they have made themselves.
Or they might play rarely performed styles, or blend traditional and contemporary forms to create something unique. They might be well known or not so well known, but they will always be extraordinary musicians who perform at the fringes and on the edges.
Whatever the case, the musicians who play Music Hunter gigs are deeply talented people who care about the music they play and the audiences they play to.
Photo: Music Hunter presented Terje Insunset from Norway with his ICE MUSIC in the Carrington Ballroom 2011
THE AUDIENCE
Music Hunter audiences are made up of adventurous souls who dare to go beyond the classics and the safe territory of the charts. Our audiences are curious explorers. They like to take a chance on something they've never heard before. That's how you experience the joy of discovery. And once they've experienced a Music Hunter concert, they always come back.
custom music hunting
Weddings, parties, functions, whatever. It's not always easy to find the right musicians that suit the mood and the crowd for your do. So who do you call?
Music Hunter founder Meg Benson loves nothing better than tracking down the exactly right brilliant musos to play at your do. Meg knows a huge number of musos who can play in all sorts of genres and styles, and who can cater to a mixed audience of still listeners and irrepressible dancers.
FYI Meg can also artfully dress your space in a style befitting the audience and occasion. You give her the brief - elegant, quirky or playful or outrageous - whatever you need, Meg delivers.
Join the Music Hunter community
'Music produces a kind of pleasure which human nature cannot do without.'
Confucius
Photo: Music Hunter presented Cielo Vivo by Annalouise Paul at Kindle Hill Performance Space