First there was Kylie Minogue at Sirromet, singing in the rain to 12,000 fans at day on the green.
And more recently, about 300 gathered at Ormiston House to commemorate the 50 years since the first opera was staged on its grounds. Where day on the green has a no umbrella policy, Ormiston House did put up a number of marquees protecting its opera buffs from any serious weather and the umbrellas created a colourful queue at the drinks station.
Despite most Kyle fans aged from 30 to 50 and the opera fans kicking off from where this age group left off, it is easy to draw parallels between the two events.
Yes, there was significant rain. And yes, I feel sure the organisers would have preferred that there wasn't.
But what was great about both was that the rain didn't dampen our Redland spirit. In fact, some said that the rain enhanced the experience.
No matter what the musical preference, a little bit of rain (let's be honest, a large outpouring) wasn't going to stop anyone from enjoying themselves.
A concert of any description is about the senses. And while hearing is the most affected, a true concert experience activates all five. These concerts saw patrons concentrating on the music just that little bit more, overlaid as it was by the sound of the skies sending its own polyphony.
Visually, the singers became ethereal visions, seen as they were through a misty lens, but let's face it,who doesn't look better through a misty lens?
These concerts involved food and wine and good company. This, the people did in abundance, herding themselves away from the drips and huddling under ponchos and umbrellas.
I feel proud to be a part of a community that sees a glass half full. I feel proud that so many people stand together and make the best of things. There may have been a few people who headed home, there to shelter in the dry. But I don't know them.
The people I know were there for the music. They were there for the company. They were there for the experience. And they took that and made it the best experience they could. These are the people I live next door to, the people I meet at the shopping centre, the people who know how to live. See you at the next event, raining or not.
