Resilience is a modern buzzword musicians and those in the performing arts have continued to practise, book performances and roll with the COVID punches in an heroic way that also says something important about the future of the arts in our region.

It was disappointing to hear the discouragement felt by local music students when they saw the arts only being COVID rescued as a political afterthought, but there seems a growing momentum building on the foundation of support from Albury Council, our local media and community.

IN OTHER NEWS:

On behalf of St Matthews' music association thanks to individuals and businesses that have enabled us to continue to support students and teachers across a range of schools, enable master classes and provide venues for HSC exams, audition spaces and, most importantly, to assist those who really need it to discover their potential across a variety of musical genres .

Our most recent scholarship, the Aunty Nancy Rooke Scholarship, will focus on assisting young Border students of Indigenous heritage.

Scholarships have also been awarded to children with disabilities as well as those whose musical star is already rising.

Through our music association we started the Albury Chamber Music Festival, which will run between November 5 and 7 after being COVID-cancelled in 2020.

The festival is also showing a harvest in new musical groups coming together having met on the ACHMF stage and in introducing ensembles and musicians to Albury who are making return visits around Albury this year.

It was the late, great Tim Fischer, the original patron of St Matthews Music Association, who wanted to see that the personal and corporate benefits of music should be shared across the community.

He'd be stoked to see that because of the support of the community be believed in his vision is still going like a train.

How long will our communities put up with the way we are treated by major political parties before saying "enough is enough"?

First, we had the Nationals put an amendment to the Senate to stop the additional 450 gigalitres of water being taken from our farmers, which we all know would be a disaster for northern Victoria and southern NSW.

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As usual it got nowhere, because the Liberals and the Labor/Greens quickly knocked it on the head. So yet again the Nats get railroaded by the Liberals at our expense.

But wait; we have our trusty local member for Farrer (and Cabinet minister) Sussan Ley who will surely come to the rescue of her constituents. Won't she?

She will surely impress on her Liberal colleagues the absolute fact that if we stop wasting water and manage it more effectively we can protect the environment and at the same time make sure our farmers have the water they need to grow our food.

But no. The only comment I've seen her make on the issue is that she was not surprised the Nationals didn't get support because "government members from the Coalition understood the importance of working cooperatively and cohesively".

You can submit a letter by sending an email to letters@bordermail.com.au. Your letter must contain your full name, as well as an address and contact phone number, which are not for publication.