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NZ Herald
a day ago
- NZ Herald
Bay News: International acts to headline Bay of Islands Jazz and Blues Festival
He first toured Australia in 2002 and was awarded a slot at the 2005 Byron Bay Blues and Roots Festival. From Japan for the Bay of Islands Jazz and Blues Festival is the trumpet-playing Chihiro Yamazaki and the Route 14 Band. Chihiro Yamazaki (aka Anna) plays trumpet with the Route 14 Band from Japan, described as a new-generation instrumental group. They play 'Tokyo Brass Style' and have had over 20,000 in CD sales during their indie era. They now belong to the major Universal Music label. From Australia comes Dale Robbins, Dave MacMillan, Lost in Transit and Acid Bleed, an original five-piece band that plays a virtuoso blend of Hot Gypsy Swing Jazz with a Latin Groove. Their repertoire covers a broad range from familiar standards to plucky originals. Performing at the Bay of Islands Jazz and Blues Festival for the first time is Sonorous, a powerhouse blues rock trio from Taupō. The international line-up of talent is blended with New Zealand's contribution to the jazz and blues scene with long-time crowd favourites Continuum, the nine-piece band from Rātana Pā, Whanganui, and Mark 'Fatt Max' Hill, born and raised in London and whose musical exploits span over 20 years which included 'years of dodging community diet classes'. Northland's musical contribution is in the form of the familiar Jam Sandwich, The Legacy Band, Quartz and the perennial Nairobi Trio. Among the first-time performers at the festival is established musician Grant Haua. He has been the primary singer/songwriter/guitarist on eight studio albums and two live albums over the years. He said one thing led to another and he ended up meeting percussionist Michael Barker [Neil Finn, John Butler Trio] and they hit it off straight away and formed Swamp Thing. For the following eight years, they wrote and toured regularly. Also performing at the festival for the first time is Sonorous, a powerhouse blues rock trio from Taupō, featuring Lucian McDermott (lead vocals and guitar), Khani Te Mete (bass), and Cooper Paalvast on drums. The Out of Office group are first-timers too. They are four Auckland-based musicians who describe themselves as 'white collar who frequently sneak out of after-work drinks to improvise and jam with a wide repertoire of jazz, funk and soul classics'. Bay of Islands organisations celebrate win At the recent Northland Regional Council Environment Awards, two Bay of Islands organisations took out two prizes. Project Island Song, based in Russell, won the Environmental Action to Protect Native Life award and the Bay of Islands International Academy, based on the Purerua Peninsula near Kerikeri, won the award for Environmental Action in Education. Project Island Song began with a small group of enthusiastic Bay of Islands locals in 2003. Their combined dream was to return the islands of Ipipiri, in the eastern Bay of Islands, to an archipelago of sanctuaries thriving with native habitat, lush vegetation and alive with the dawn chorus. Children from the Bay of Islands International Academy learning that what comes up, must come down. Seven of the major islands, with their associated islets and rock stacks, make up what is known as Ipipiri in the eastern Bay of Islands. In the past 16 years, since 2009, Project Island Song volunteers have planted 40,000 native trees on several of the islands. Over 42,000 endangered species have been reintroduced. The islands have enjoyed pest-free status since 2009, which has allowed the wildlife and the bush to thrive. On your bike. Children learn to ride in a safe environment at the Bay of Islands International Academy. Between 2012 and 2022, Project Island Song volunteers have reintroduced eight species of birds, reptiles, invertebrates, and plants, and plan to reintroduce another 13 vulnerable species. They partner with local hapū Ngāti Kuta and Patukeha, the Department of Conservation, the Guardians of the Bay of Islands and private landowners. The Bay of Islands International Academy is a public school located on the Purerua Peninsula, 15 minutes northeast of Kerikeri. It opened in January 2013 in the existing buildings and grounds of Te Tii School. The school was given the new name to reflect the community's 'aspirations of international-mindedness'. Receiving the Environmental Action to Protect Native Life award at the recent Northland Regional Council Environment Awards. From left: William Fuller representing the Guardians of the Bay of Islands, Rana Rewha for Ngāti Kuta, Marara (Binnie) O'Neill for Patukeha, and Laura Meyer of DOC. The academy honours the historical linkages and the wāhi tapu (sacred place) of the local hapū of Ngāti Rehia and Ngāti Torehina. The stated mission is to build a 'vibrant community with shared values and positive reciprocal relationships'. The aim is for ākonga (learners) to support personal growth, natural curiosity and cultural and global competency. The school motto is 'Kia ako kia tupu tahi tātou, Learn and Grow with us'. The principal, Chris Bell, said it was a privilege for the school to receive the award for Environmental Action in Education. 'This is a great credit to our dedicated students and teachers who are passionate about our place in the taiao,' he said. Teaching them young. Two volunteer children digging on one of the islands of Ipipiri for Project Island Song. The school offers bilingual te reo learning and has a wide range of activities. For the holiday programme, these activities include turning cardboard tubes into a chicken in bird creations or making trains. There is also making pizza and bread for afternoon tea, fishing for eels in the Waipapa River and (also in Waipapa) inline skating and putting 'hidden' veges into muffins to name but a few of the activities on offer.
Otago Daily Times
a day ago
- Otago Daily Times
New neurodivergent show a ‘masterful performance'
THE NEUROSPICE GIRLS, by Lizzie Tollemache Hic Sunt Dracones Wednesday, July 23 Filleul St pop-up space A large and responsive audience gave a warm welcome to Christchurch-based playwright/actor Lizzie Tollemache's wildly engaging, high-energy exploration of the life-long impact of neurodivergence during last week's premiere performance of The NeuroSpice Girls. Described as "a funny and ferocious neurodivergent odyssey, from gut-punching denial to celebration," the show was directed by Kim Morgan, and produced through her local theatre company Hic Sunt Dracones (HSD). The NeuroSpice Girls centres on the challenges faced by Tollemache — as a child in the playground, as a teenager and as an adult, when she could finally set about dealing with her issues. Along the way, she shares intimate details — some hilarious and others heartbreaking — of the many times her unique thought processes led to embarrassment, anxiety and punishment. An entertaining and sympathetic performer, Tollemache's masterful performance was superbly supported by a "Greek chorus" of top notch local actors, Mārama Grant, Lexie Tomlinson, Ellie Swann and Destiny Carvell. Each with their own stories of neurodivergence and challenges, the chorus helped keep the energy levels high and add immensely to the show's frequent moments of hilarity with impeccable comic timing — especially during satiric moments like the wickedly hysterical "therapy for the patriarchy" sequence. They can really sing as well. Alongside its many very funny sequences, The NeuroSpice Girls was filled with relatable moments, such as the triumphant announcement of "boundaries" and the moving sharing of the women's whakapapa through their mothers, grandmothers and great-grandmothers. The HSD kaupapa to "go off the map" and find distinctive venues for each of its productions was brilliantly fulfilled with the space at 24 Filleul St, sourced with support from the Dunedin Dream Brokerage. Clearly, a lot of work went into turning the space into a black box theatre, complete with a simple, effective and adaptive set designed and created by Matthew Morgan. Lighting design by Garry Keirle, sound and music by Matthew Morgan as well as tech support by Jordan Wichman enhanced the theatricality of the piece, while also minimising potential sensory overload. All in all, HSD's production of Tollemache's The NeuroSpice Girls was a triumph, bringing a fresh, informative and thoroughly entertaining approach to an important subject. Congratulations to all involved on a superb show.
RNZ News
2 days ago
- RNZ News
Mixing opera and politics
This audio is not downloadable due to copyright restrictions. Poster for the Wellington Opera production of Verdi's "A Masked Ball". Photo: Wellington Opera Verdi had to jump through a lot of hoops to stage his opera, "A Masked Ball". The idea seemed operatic enough. The intrigue surrounding the assassination of the 18th-century monarch King Gustavo III of Sweden, but the 19th-century censors had other ideas. To have someone shooting a royal just wouldn't do. They forced Verdi to set the opera in Boston in the USA, where there were no kings or queens to assassinate. Next month, Wellington Opera will stage the original uncensored version of "A Masked Ball" with Jared Holt playing King Gustavo and soprano Madeleine Pierard taking on the lead female role, Amelia. Pierard and conductor Brian Castles-Onion spoke to RNZ Concert's Bryan Crump ahead of a three-performance season at the Wellington Opera House starting on 6 August. It's still a rarely staged opera, not because of its politics, but because it's long. Not Wagner long, but still taking three acts with two intervals. Australian conductor, Brian Castles-Onion Photo: Wellington Opera Castles-Onion, however, thinks it's one of Verdi's best. And he thinks Pierard is one of the best-qualified sopranos to take on the lead role of Amelia; a married woman who has fallen for King Gustavo who, unfortunately for her, is not the man she's married to. It's the second year in a row that Pierard and Castles-Onion have featured in Wellington Opera Company productions. Last year Pierard played the title role in Tosca, while Castles-Onion directed Orchestra Wellington in the pit. The company has established a reputation for high-quality productions made without any support from the Government arts funding body, Creative New Zealand. Castles-Onion says he loves the vibe at Wellington Opera. The Australian-based maestro certainly loves conducting opera, with hundreds of performances to his name. He prefers the orchestra pit to the concert hall podium because he loves the human voice. Madeleine Pierard Photo: Robert Cato Pierard prefers the stage to the concert hall because of her love of acting. For her, the challenge as a singer who is a good actor is to keep the body from getting in the way of her singing - given the acting and the music come from the same place. A good singer doesn't have to contort their body to get the message across, she says. Let the voice flow and the music will bring out the drama.
