Music keeps family on move

Image of Christine Burke from Folk Redlands.

THE musical term "allegro" – meaning a brisk and lively tempo – applies right through the lives of Victoria Point couple Christine and Patrick Burke.
The Burkes, who are about to celebrate their 20th wedding anniversary, keep reaching new highs as mainstays of the Redlands’ musical community.
Christine was a student of Our Lady’s College at Annerley and Patrick attended St Laurence’s College, South Brisbane, when they met in the mid-1980s.
They soon formed a top-40 band, Soft Edges, and kept the teamwork going through the years in a string of bands including Late Edition and Thornlands, taking the name of the suburb where the couple settled on acreage.
In the mid-90s they set up a recording studio in a shed on their property -- beginning a Redlands music institution.

THE name, The Sound Shed, moved in 2000 to Capalaba, where the Burkes opened a much-needed music shop, supplying instruments, amplifiers, sheet music and all the equipment that professional and amateur musicians need to pursue their consuming interests.
The couple has just ended a highly successful sale to mark the shop’s eighth anniversary, which they promoted in the Classifieds.
Maton, Takamine and Tanglewood guitars, as well as Jordin student electric guitars and Lag acoustics, and Mapex drums were among the bargains during the six-week-long sale, Christine says.
But the retail "face" of The Sound Shed represents a diverse business, which also employs as many as nine music teachers, has about 500 registered students, conducts programs in schools and offers a wide range of sound production services.

CHRISTINE says Patrick has had a hectic spring with the business providing sound systems, lighting and engineering support for five venues during the Redlands Spring Festival.
Patrick’s schedule has also included operating the Redland Bay turf farm and landscaping business, SOS Turf, which he formerly ran in partnership with his dad, John, now retired.
Despite all the pressures of business, Christine and Patrick continue to make appearances with "Thornlands", which kept its name despite their move a few kilometres south.

THE couple is happy both their children now play instruments, although "we never pushed them", Christine says.
Kathryn, 12, a Year 7 student at St Rita’s College, plays guitar; her brother, Sean, 11, plays trombone in the band of Iona College, where he is in Year 6.
The family’s musical involvement also includes Folk Redlands, with Christine and Patrick involved in organisation as well as performance.

Christine Burke verified this account on October 15, 2008. This column appeared in The Redland Times, Cleveland, Redland City, Queensland, Australia.