The future of the hugely successful Brisbane Baroque hangs under a cloud as details emerge that some performers are yet to be paid.
The festival was in its second year this year, attracting international performers to Brisbane to perform a program of the greatest baroque music in the world.
![Brisbane Baroque festival director Leo Schofield with Member for Davidson Jonathan O'Dea and Jarrod Carland, at the ...](/web/20160618052335im_/http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/content/dam/images/g/p/k/h/3/2/image.related.articleLeadwide.620x349.gpky91.png/1466077386853.jpg)
But now it appears many of the performers who participated in the 2016 festival are yet to be paid nearly two months after the event.
The allegations came as Brisbane Baroque's sister event, Sydney Sings, created by the same producing partnership, Jarrod Carland and Shannon Pigram, and helmed by empresario Leo Schofield, was postponed after Mr Carland became ill.
![Mr Schofield, who is not a director of the company that runs Brisbane Baroque, has declined to comment.](/web/20160618052335im_/http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/content/dam/images/g/n/w/j/7/b/image.related.articleLeadNarrow.300x0.gpky91.png/1466077386853.jpg)
Fairfax Media has made numerous attempts to call Mr Carland and when contacted at his business Studio Jack in Melbourne Mr Pigram told a staff member he was not available.
Mr Schofield, who is not a director of the company that runs Brisbane Baroque, has declined to comment and the representatives from QPAC, which presented the event in association with Brisbane Baroque Limited, have denied any financial responsibility.
The event attracted funding from Tourism and Events Queensland to secure it for Brisbane after the Tasmanian government lowered funding for its original incarnation, Hobart Baroque.
Fairfax Media understands more than 30 artists and organisations are still awaiting payment, including the Queensland Symphony Orchestra, which has not had any communication from event organisers.
"We are currently in negotiations with the event organisers," QSO's interim chief executive Rodney Phillips said.
"We have been in touch with them to inquire what is going on but there has been no official response yet."
Mr Phillips said it was not unusual in the arts for invoices to take a while to pay because of the number of factors involved in making the money available.
But concerns have been raised with such a large number of artists and organisations yet to be paid and with Mr Carland's illness causing the postponement of Sydney Sings and the return of funding for that event to Destination New South Wales, the future of Brisbane Baroque could be in doubt.
Mr Carland and Mr Pigram's company Brisbane Baroque Limited entered a three-year agreement with Tourism and Events Queensland and the state's peak tourism body expects that to be delivered.
"Our expectation is that Brisbane Baroque will continue next year," TEQ's group executive Megan Saunders said.
Mr Phillips said dates for events next year had been pencilled in but were yet to be finalised.