New project to give Taranaki musicians the tools and resources to boost their career

The project will help Taranaki musicians boost their careers. Photo/ Unsplash

A new project will help Taranaki musicians gain practical tools and resources for their careers.

Taranaki-based musician and promoter Andre Manella from Manella Productions has teamed up with Matt Sephton, a freelance sound engineer and electronic music producer based in Coromandel, to host a new project – Ngā Waiata Poipoia.

The project is aimed at empowering musicians with tools to help sustain a fulfilling career in music in Aotearoa.

Initially running as a pilot programme to help refine the idea and determine the project's scope, Ngā Waiata Poipoia's main focus is a unique weekend retreat - held from August 19 to September 2 - with a selected group of musicians from across the Taranaki region.

The programme is designed to reduce barriers that people face when working towards a career in music, particularly those who are living rurally, and to give people practical tools that can otherwise take years to develop. It is followed up with ongoing support and goal setting with Manella and Sephton.

Five musicians will stay on location in Opunake, where they will spend time together learning through practical workshops and special sessions, covering topics such as preparing songs for performance, home recording techniques, booking tours and applying for gigs, music production and writing an effective artist bio.

Participants come out of the weekend with a live music video filmed and produced on site, a press kit with professional photo and artist bio, learned skills, and perhaps most importantly, inspiration to embrace a career in music knowing there is support and a community of people around them.

Over the weekend special guests join the weekend sessions to bring additional expertise including musician Barnaby Weir from The Black Seeds and Fly My Pretties; Rebecca Johnson from TAFT and Womad, producer and musician Graeme Woller from the band Into The East and photographer Joaco Dibbern.

Funded through Manatū Taonga / The Ministry for Culture and Heritage's Te Urungi: Innovating Aotearoa programme, Manella and Sephton hope this pilot will help to refine the programme's potential scope and guide the development of a business plan with an aim to eventually roll it out on a national scale.

■ Applications are now open until the end of June at www.ngawaiatapoipoia.co.nz.