Fresh Ears intergenerational gig bringing the Wagga generations together through music

The Fresh Ears Intergenerational gig features Aussie indie rock icon Tim Rogers, lead singer of You Am I, and the show will allow the older generations to relive their 90's rock memories, while bringing the love of that music to the 'fresh ears' of their young ones in a child-friendly environment.

The one-off show is at Wagga City Library on Sunday April 16 at 11 am - a time of day that'll suit parents, grandparents and young children alike - and Wagga council community development officer Victoria Lowe said the event is about bringing people together.

"Research suggests bringing people of different ages together in an intergenerational program can provide benefits for all involved," she said.

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"These benefits can include providing stimulation for older people and younger people learning from older people and increased awareness and understanding between generations.

"In addition, exposure to cultural experiences during early childhood contribute positively to a child's learning and social development."

Josh Harper will be going to the show with his daughters Jamie, 3, and Zsa Zsa, 3 months, as well as his dad Grant.

Grant, 58, Josh, 34, and his brother Jake, 35, saw Rogers and You Am I perform at the Melbourne forum just before the pandemic and the family bond over their shared music experiences.

"Moving [to Wagga] from Melbourne I never really expected to see the lead singer of You Am I with my kids, it's really surprising and very exciting," Josh said.

The show brings back memories of Josh's first ever gig for Grant, who remembers dropping him at a Red hot Chilli Peppers show in the early naughts.

"I bought you the tickets and I dropped you and Jake there and you crowd surfed. I didn't go, but I facilitated that madness," he said with a laugh.

The pair have been to around a dozen shows together.

"Dad's old CD collection was very much my introduction to music," Josh said.

"We've got pretty different tastes, but some similar as well," Grant said.

"Josh took me to Big Day Out in Melbourne, we were pretty keen to see Rage Against the Machine ... it was an experience, it was filthy hot."

Music is a big thing in the Harper household, Josh grew up playing piano and attended the Institute of Music in Sydney, something he hopes to pass on to his girls.

Josh and Grant are looking forward to seeing how "wild man" Tim Rogers will translate his rock persona into a small family-friendly audience.

But mainly Grant is happy that Wagga is attracting interesting cultural events, something he said was lacking when he was growing up in the city.

"Wagga is a much more user-friendly place to live now," he said.

Ms Lowe said events like Fresh Ears "add depth to the city's event offering, providing opportunities to showcase Wagga".

Fresh Ears is sold out, but Ms Lowe said it's an opportunity for Wagga council "to test and measure the community's growing appetite for experimentation and innovation in events", meaning similar shows could be on the way to the city.

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