Choirs offer a Sunday feast of musical talent at Waikato A&P Show

Waikato Rivertones Chorus is one of the groups which will be performing at the new choir festival at Waikato A&P Show this weekend. Photo / Supplied

Seven choirs and choruses are polishing their repertoire for the inaugural Choir Showcase in Hamilton on Sunday.

They will perform 40 songs, which include a rendition of He Hōnore in te reo by a combined choir including Roopu O Kihi, the Kapa Haka group from IDEA Services. He Hōnore is a prayer for honour and peace to the land.

A Facebook recording of the song taken at practice has been viewed more than 31,000 times.

The Choir Showcase is a new event at the annual Waikato A&P Show at the Claudelands Events Centre in Hamilton East.

"This is part of the A&P Show so make a day of it," says event convener Tony Dixon.

Choir Showcase starts at 1.30pm and finishes by 4pm. Tickets are $15 and include the A&P Show.

They hope the choir festival will become an event where talent is recognised and excellent community singing becomes a tradition, Mr Dixon said.

The Mosaic Waikato Modern Choir from Cambridge, known for its magic, is expected to astound the audience.

The Ōhinemuri Singers have been singing for over 75 years and have 25-30 singers while the Waikato Rivertones, an award-winning chorus of women aged nine to 70+ years with more than 20 years singing experience and is known for its four-part a cappella harmony.

The Rivertones have represented New Zealand at several International Sweet Adeline Competitions, the most recent in Las Vegas.

World winners of the Harmony Classic contest in San Antonio, Texas, the choir sings everything from heart-felt ballads to lively toe-tapping up-tunes with choreography.

The Te Aroha Singers Community Choir is known for its annual major concert, love for workshops and collaborative projects with other choirs.

Male Voices Waikato, a traditional male voice choir going since 1995 covers pop, gospel, classical, jazz, folk, musicals and contemporary and Mighty River Harmony, 40 men singing four-part harmony.

They have won six New Zealand bronze medals, one silver medal and one gold medal.

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
The A&P Show is October 26 to 28. The choral festival will be on the Sunday afternoon starting at 1.30pm. It will become a regular feature of future A&P shows.
Tickets are $15 for adults and $8 for under 10s. Discounts for groups of 10 or 20.
Tickets are available online here.
Door sales will be available.
More information at the Waikato A&P Show website.