Wolgan Valley Resort and Spa, Blue Mountains NSW

World-class musicians and a luxurious rural retreat combine to make a great weekend of entertainment

Luxury weekend at Wolgan Valley

WHAT thoughts, I wonder, fill the minds of the tourists from concrete jungles such as Tokyo and Manhattan as they slowly descend along the dirt road into the ancient, magical, dramatic Wolgan Valley in the Blue Mountains of New South Wales?

When it's wet, as it is today, the journey is hazardous. Parts of the road are corrugated and jarringly bumpy, but at least these stretches allow the tyres to grip. Other sections of road have recently been graded in preparation for bitumen, and are now butter-like with the rains; those behind the wheel slow to 15km/h, concentrate hard and navigate for the least dangerous driving line in the slurry.

Thankfully we, and several others heading for Emirates Wolgan Valley Resort, have been afforded a transfer from Sydney, and our man Graham is artfully wrangling his AWD along the slippery terrain. Better him than me.

We are heading west to road test a new concept at Wolgan involving several (mostly) classical music performances by members of the Sydney Symphony Orchestra. The plan is to have the orchestra perform by the outdoor pool, at the 1832 Heritage Homestead and in the main dining room, all as meals are being taken.

However, the inclement weather forces last-minute changes, with all performances to be in the main dining room. The poor weather is serendipitous, as it happens, as the acoustics inside are very good, with the sandstone and wood of the building and the bulk of the audience, soaking up the sound before it reaches the glass at the back of the room.

Each piece across the weekend is introduced - mostly by trumpeter Paul Goodchild - with a splash of history about the composer, the era and the music.

"I love chamber music - for me it's the ideal performing environment - and to be able to talk to people about the music, have them very close and then talk to them after the performances, is one of the real joys,'' says Goodchild, who has been with the Sydney Symphony for 35 years (his father, Clifford, spent 38 years with the orchestra).

Orchestra members perform in different combinations over the weekend, with up to 11 musicians playing together at one time. A deal of thought appears to have gone into the program, which includes Tchaikovsky's 1812 Overture, the ragtime stylings of Scott Joplin, Brahms' String Quartert in A Minor and Benjamin Britten's Fanfare for St Edmundsbury.

For example, Britten scored Fanfare for St Edmundsbury for three trumpets. Rather than standing together on the small, slightly raised podium in the dining room, the three trumpeters are placed around the room, and the surround sound effect is mesmerising. Each trumpeter plays a solo before coming together into what appears, at first, to be a bit of a mess. Then, 10 bars from the end, the parts begin to merge into a seamless whole.

At the Saturday gala dinner audience members are given blown-up balloons, brown paper bags and pots and ladles from the kitchen ahead of the finale, the 1812 Overture. For reasons unknown it has not been possible to wheel a row of cannons into the valley for the climactic finale, so at the appropriate moment the audience of about 50 is directed to pop balloons and bags and loudly rattle their pots. The audience, many of whom have been enjoying local wines for some time, drops its guard and joins in, creating a joyous cacophony.

"I do get tired of playing (the 1812) in the orchestra, I must say, as I've played it for the past 30 years in The Domain and another one or two times a year,'' Goodchild concedes. "But playing a different arrangement for brass is a lot of fun, particularly with the audience participation.''

To see world-class classical musicians at such proximity is a thrill and privilege. There is a genuine sense of camaraderie among the players. Although no further Sydney Symphony performances are scheduled at Wolgan Valley Resort & Spa, it's an experience the orchestra hopes to repeat on an annual basis.

The resort, owned by the Dubai-based airline Emirates (a sponsor of the Sydney Symphony), is an environmentally friendly operation set on 1600ha.

What once were pasture lands are slowly being returned to their pre-white settlement state, with cattle and fences removed, hundreds of thousands of indigenous trees planted and two full-time staff employed to remove noxious weeds.

The food at Wolgan is of a high standard, with dishes including seared wild scallops, pan-roasted barramundi and some seriously stinky cheese. The highlight, though, is a rustic, hearty bowl of puy lentils with chorizo.

Accommodation is homely and luxurious. Each of the 36 Heritage Suites has an internal area of 83sq m, a king sized bed, walk-in dressing area, double-sided fireplace, comfy lounges, spacious open-plan bathroom with his'n'her vanities and indoor swimming pool.

Included in the tariff are two activities a day, such as horse riding, mountain biking, guided walks, stargazing and a heritage tour.

For a fee guests can play golf, fly fish, shoot clay targets and learn photography skills, among other experiences.

Field guide Simone takes four of us on a tour of the small, restored 1832 building on the property. In reality It's only a few rooms but Simone's enthusiasm is infectious. The artefacts on the walls, including a mummified fox, documents relating to original and subsequent owners, and the original furniture, put enough meat on the bones to allow her to vividly re-create what life was like for the free settlers 190 years ago.

Although not much is known about the Aborigines who lived and later worked here, Simone says there is evidence the Walker brothers who established the property treated them comparatively well.

James Walker established a cattle outstation in the valley to service his main estate.

His guests included Charles Darwin in 1836.

In 1929, the Webbs family arrived at the homestead and the property remained in their ownership until 2006.

Go2 WOLGAN VALLEY

Getting there:

Wolgan Valley is about a three-hour drive north west of Sydney

Staying there:

Wolgan Valley Resort & Spa has a Winter Escape package valid from July 1 to September 15.

It includes two nights' accommodation in a luxurious double Heritage Suite with private indoor/outdoor swimming pool, breakfast, lunch and dinner daily, non-alcoholic beverages, a select range of local wines and beer with meals, wireless internet and two on-site nature based activities a day. As part of the package, guests can enjoy mulled wine and winter canapés on one afternoon of their stay, marshmallow toasting by the fireplace, and Mudgee port or hot chocolate and marshmallows on turndown each evening. The price from $725 a person, a night, represents a saving of $500 a person.

Ph [phone] or see wolganvalley.com