2012 Festival Headliners
We have a feast of headline acts for the 2012 Festival of the Elements in Porirua. As soon as we have information to hand we will post it on this site. For details of performance times, please view our Festival Programme.
Headline Acts - Festival of the Elements 2012
So far we have the following acts lined up for you (more to be confirmed soon):
- Rodger Fox’s Wellington Jazz Orchestra
- Maria Kapa
- Tribal Rising
- Glenn Colquhoun
- Apirana Taylor
- Rosy Tin Teacaddy
- Gavin Bishop & Piripi Walker
Bookmark this page - we will be adding more information on our Headline Acts very soon!
Rodger Fox's Wellington Jazz Orchestra (featuring Erna Ferry)
Wellington’s premier big band featuring the capital's finest jazz talent. Founded by New Zealand jazz-big band legend RODGER FOX this band covers all bases.
Sizzling ensemble, playing stunning soloists and the desire to give people a good time through music.
Members of the WJO have performed with some of the biggest names in jazz including John Fedchock, Bill Cunliffe, Steve Houghton, Dick Oatts, Alex Sipiagin, Bob Sheppard, Bruce Forman, Charley Davis, Denise Perrier, Alan Broadbent and Jim Pugh …….to name but a few. This experience impacts on the band in a very positive way and it is hoped the band can further develop this link with national and international artists and become the jazz orchestra of choice for visiting jazz musicians.
Erna Ferry
Erna Ferry has come to jazz via years of performing in commercial and blues based band throughout the Manawatu region in New Zealand, as well as experience in performing Theatre with roles in major musical productions the likes of Slice of Saturday Night , Hair and The Best Little Whore House in Texas.
Since discovering jazz, Erna has performed at all the leading jazz festivals throughout New Zealand, namely the Tauranga, Rotorua, Bay of Islands, Manawatu and Wanganui festivals.
Career highlights so far have included winning the 1993 Wellington Jazz Quest, support artist to American vocal star Al Jarreau as well as touring New Zealand with leading American Jazz performers Bruce Forman - Guitar, Bill Cunliffe- Piano, Holly Hofmann - Flute and Jon Papenbrook - Trumpet.
Apirana Taylor
Apirana Taylor is of Ngati Porou, Te Whanau a Apanui, Ngati Ruanui, Te Ati Awa and Ngati Pakeha descent.
He is a poet, short story writer, novelist and playwright, actor musician, painter and storyteller.
Apirana has held writer residencies at Massey and Canterbury Universities and Rangi Ruru, St Andrew’s College and Hagley High School. He has twice been invited to both India and Italy to read his poetry.
He earns a living as an artist and frequently tours nationally and internationally reading his poetry in schools, libraries, tertiary institutions and prisons.
Rose Tin Teacaddy
There’s a wisecrack in everything from Rosy Tin Teacaddy - you come for the cracks, but stay for the wise. Their lovingly polished songs catch all that life throws and throws it back harmonised, humoured and hopeful.
Singing about the mating rituals of the 1940s New Zealand town dance, the miraculous survival stories from Mt Tarawera’s eruption, and choosing a crossword over doing the dishes, they have left audiences all over the country grinning across three years and two acclaimed albums.
A gentle car-crash of indie, folk and alt-country with two guitars, two voices and a gift for the story-telling gab, Betty Grey and Billy Earl of Rosy Tin Teacaddy will keep you riveted among flights of fancy, dedications to loss and rants from the confessional booth.
Gavin Bishop & Piripi Walker
Gavin Bishop and Piripi Walker will be presenting a talk and taking part in a book launch at this year's Festival of the Elements. The book in question is the te reo version of the widely popular New Zealand book, The House That Jack Built.
The brilliantly-illustrated book by Gavin Bishop is based on the centuries old nursery rhyme and was given high acclaim after its first publication in 1999.
Now it has been given new life with a re-print and the eagerly-awaited te reo translation.
Julia Marshall of Gecko Press describes the book as a story of our modern history which ranks among some of the best in New Zealand literature.
Gavin Bishop is a children’s writer of international as well as local reputation. As a picture book author and artist, he has published some 30 books that have been translated into eight languages and won numerous awards.
Piripi Walker is an Independent Translator, editor, Mäöri language teacher and radio prducer/broadcaster, trading as Tokomapuna Maori Language Services and Totika Publications.
Maria Kapa
Maria Kapa is a lyric soprano of Te Arawa/Whakatohea descent with an extensive and varied career.
She has sung as a lead vocalist for a number of commercial bands in New Zealand and Australia, she has performed as a soloist at National conventions, festivals and concerts, while living in Brisbane Australia and has had major roles in musical theatre. Maria has roots in Kapa haka, performing at Regional and National level when younger and tutoring voice for a number of local Kapa Haka teams one of which was Te Matarae I o Rehu, this year’s National winners.
Maria’s passion for opera emerged while studying performance and voice at Waikato University where she completed a Bachelor of Music with Honours. In 2009 she won the Highest aggregate for her region in the New Zealand aria and has since then, gone on to provide stellar performances at major concert events locally and around the motu.
Maria will perform for you some of her own compositions, some well known Te Arawa songs as well as some of her favourite arias to showcase the diversity of Maori musical ability in a modern Aotearoa. She will be accompanied on piano by Bruce Greenfield.
Glenn Colquhoun
Glenn Colquhoun is a poet and children's writer. His first collection The art of walking upright won the Jessie Mackay best first book of poetry award at the 2000 Montana book awards. Playing God, his third collection, won the poetry section of the same awards in 2003 as well as the reader's choice award that year. He has also written four children's books and published an essay with Four Winds Press entitled Jumping ship. In 2004 he was awarded the Prize in modern letters. He has recently returned from a Fulbright scholarship to Harvard University where he was working on a collection of medical essays. He works as a GP on the Kapiti Coast.