Music master spreads word of peace

Guitar legend Billy TK Senior says his peace mission is more important than his music. Photo/Devyn Staines

Music is the vehicle but peace is the message Billy TK Senior wants to bring to the world.

Dubbed "the Maori Jimi Hendrix", Billy TK will play a unique concert in Wanganui next summer.

It will be held at Bricksticks, Wanganui's historic brickworks, which have been converted into the home and studio of furniture-maker Greg Betts.

The concert will combine his rock and blues music with his message about peace - something he's passionate about.

"In my younger days, music was my focus, but now peace is my focus, and music supports that. Everyone has inner peace, it's just a matter of finding it. It's important for everybody to find it because there will be no world peace without inner peace."

The January 17 concert will start with a welcome and guided meditation from Billy TK, followed by 45 minutes of music. The second half of the show will be his talk about peace.

He will be joined on stage by musicians Ara Mete, Tini Rangatira, and others. The event will conclude with a shared supper.

While music followed by a peace talk may sound like an unusual combination, for someone brought up in the Ratana Church it's not.

"That's quite normal for the Ratana faith. Music is part of our way of life."

Billy - who grew up Wiremu Te Kahika in Palmerston North and is now based in the West Coast town of Karamea - is known to New Zealand music lovers. Of Ngati Kahungunu and Maniapoto descent, he is still revered for his guitar playing with the band Human Instinct in the late '60s and early '70s.

He describes his music as "ethnic fusion of rhythm melody and harmony with rock, blues and funk influences". He's been billed alongside the likes of Joe Satriani, UB40, Elvis Costello, and the John Mayall Blues Band.

The Bricksticks concert is part of a major tour next summer, beginning in Auckland in December. He will play at the Prana Festival in the Coromandel on New Year's Eve, and the Ratana Festival in late January. He will then tour Australia and spend three months in Europe.

The concert is limited to 100 people, with tickets selling for $10. Tickets are being sold through Bricksticks, see their website for contact details www.bricksticks.co.nz.

Those who want a taste of Billy TK's music can hear him at the Whanganui Musicians' Club at 7.30pm on Friday at the Savage Club Hall, Drews Ave. Tickets $10.