Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
see both traditional and modern forms of Polynesian music: modern hip-hop, throbbing
Cook Island drums, or island-style guitar, ukulele and slide guitar.
Gareth Shute wrote this music section. He is the author of four books, including
Hip Hop
Music in Aotearoa
and
NZ Rock 1987-2007.
He is also a musician and has toured the
UK, Europe and Australia as a member of the Ruby Suns and the Brunettes. He now
plays in indie soul group the Cosbys.
Classical & Opera
Early European immigrants brought their own styles of music and gave birth to local
variants during the early 1900s. In the 1950s Douglas Lilburn became one of the first in-
ternationally recognised NZ classical composers. More recently the country has pro-
duced a number of world-renowned musicians in this field, including opera singer Dame
Kiri Te Kanawa, million-selling pop diva Hayley Westenra, composer John Psathas (who
created music for the 2004 Olympic Games) and composer-percussionist Gareth Farr
(who also performs in drag under the name Lilith).
A wide range of cultural events are listed on
www.eventfinder.co.nz
. This is a good place
to find out about concerts, classical music recitals and
kapa haka
performances. For
more specific information on the NZ classical music scene, see
www.sounz.org.nz
.
Rock
New Zealand also has a strong rock scene, its most acclaimed exports being the revered
indie label Flying Nun and the music of the Finn Brothers.
In 1981 Flying Nun was started by Christchurch record store owner Roger Shepherd.
Many of the early groups came from Dunedin, where local musicians took the DIY atti-
tude of punk but used it to produce a lo-fi indie-pop that received rave reviews from the
likes of
NME
in the UK and
Rolling Stone
in the US.
Billboard
even claimed in 1989:
'There doesn't seem to be anything on Flying Nun Records that is less than excellent.'
Many of the musicians from the Flying Nun scene still perform live to this day, includ-
ing David Kilgour (from the Clean) and Shayne Carter (from the Straitjacket Fits, and
subsequently Dimmer and the Adults). the Bats are still releasing albums, and Martin
Phillipps' band the Chills released a live album in 2013.
