Hello, Friends and Neighbours!

I have very exciting news! I met a wonderful musician while we were at Hamsterfest in Paeroa this past weekend. Maggie Cocco hails from Detroit Michigan and has a dedication to exploring the depth, breadth, and profundity of music. An independent artist, Cocco is based in Whangarei where she composes and runs community music programming between tours. I had the pleasure of attending her workshop, seeing her in concert, and playing with her in the late night jam session and I was struck by the beauty of her voice, her sensitivity in performance and her creative, insightful songwriting. Luckily she is free on our next club night date, and is excited to come be our guest! Put it on your calendar!

Whangateau Folk Club, April Club Night

Monday, 29 April, 7:00pm

LEIGH HALL!!! 4 Cumberland St, Leigh

First half floor singers, second half with special guest Maggie Cocco

$15 at the door, cash or bank transfer includes refreshments at half time.

POP UP FOLK AT THE NIX

Speaking of free refreshments in the intermission, Nat and I will be feature guests at Pop Up Folk in Auckland tomorrow night, sandwiched between Ari Leason and Dave Alley. If you or anyone you know are going to be in the city and interested in some early evening entertainment, do “pop” along!

Saturday, 6 April, 5-7:30pm

Ockham Collective’s The Nix, 6 Nixon St, Grey Lynn

Tea, coffee and biscuits are provided in the two breaks.This is not a licensed venue, so BYO alcohol, and extra snacks if you need it!

Tickets are on the door – either cash or bank transfer

$15 adults

$10 students (13-18 or with student ID)

$5 kids 7-1

6 and under free!

May Special Concert!

I was at Hamsterfest this past weekend because Hot Diggity were the headline act. It was a blast! Hot Diggity will be playing here in Leigh in May, along with a second band, Turkey the Bird from New Plymouth. Turkey The Bird will remind you of the famous Margarita cocktail infused with a hint of “Simon & Garfunkel,” 2 ounces of “Mumford and Sons,” a splash of banjo and served on ice on a sunny day. Catchy folk songs with stunning rich melodies and effortless smooth lyrics. Songs that tell uplifting stories about love and life. Hailing from the New Zealand left coast town, this uplifting band will hit you with beautiful three part harmonies and toe tapping rhythms. Hot Diggity hooked up with these 3 amazing musicians while both bands were guests at Wellington Folk Festival last year. Put this on your calendar, it is going to be a VERY special evening, and I am not just saying that because I’m in one of the bands!

Saturday, 11 May. 7:00pm. $30

Leigh Hall, 4 Cumberland Street

EMAIL ME to reserve your spot! I expect this show will be very popular!

I’m headed away to the USA for a couple months a few days after this show. Nat and Barry will be running the club while I’m away. There are already a couple great shows on the calendar for that time. I’m sorry to be missing them. But I’ll see y’all when I get back!

Jenine

Monday, March 25, Leigh Hall. Special guests: The Pipis

And just like that, it’s time for Folk Club! We will be meeting at Leigh Hall, same as we did for the George and Brad concert in February. This is a regular club night, so all local musicians are welcome to put their name in for a first half floor spot. Email whangateaufolk@gmail.com to request your spot.

The Pipis will play a set in the second half, by repeated request. It’s been a while since we played our home turf. We’ve made up a set list, but if you have any “must hear” songs you want, let me know ASAP and I will see what I can do.

(It’s also been a long while since we took that photo. Gosh, we look young.)

Doors open at 6:45pm for a 7:00pm start. $10 on the door, no bookings necessary. See you there!

Jenine
021 428 568

Whangateau Hall is closed for refurbishment, but that doesn’t mean the music has to stop.  Leigh Hall Committee have graciously offered up their hall to our club until we are back up and running.

New Zealand-born, Nashville-based fiddler George Jackson and Baltimore based American banjoist Brad Kolodner met years ago in a late-night jam session at the hallowed Appalachian String Band Music Festival in West Virginia and have since formed a musical bond that runs deep, across continents and through a number of recorded projects. From the moment the fiddle bow hits the strings and the fingers grasp the fretboard, George and Brad are locked in, weaving their way through ancient melodies made new again. From trance-inducing moody original tunes to classic barnburners, their show has something for serious or casual folk music fans alike. They play with a mischievous curiosity that keeps listeners on the edge of their seats wondering where they’ll go next.

This will absolutely be an incredible evening of outstanding Americana music and not to be missed!  Tickets are $20 and you can reserve your seat by emailing whangateaufolk@gmail.com.  Doors open at 7:00pm and the show starts at 7:30pm.

Leigh Hall is located at the corner of Seatoun Ave and Cumberland St. in Leigh, just 5km from Whangateau Hall.

Mark Mazengarb and Katie Martucci

12 February 2024

All the way from New York, don’t miss Katie Martucci on her tour of New Zealand! Joined by renowned NZ guitarist Mark Mazengarb, this will be a night of world class swing, old time and gypsy jazz music.

“I’m really excited to be able to bring Katie out to New Zealand – I first saw her perform at a festival in the USA and was blown away by her voice and guitar playing!” says Mark Mazengarb, who is organising the tour.

If you like Norah Jones, Django Reinhardt, Swing or Old Time music – you’ll love this show!

Hailing from the rich musical history of the Catskill Mountains in New York State, Katie Martucci grew up singing and playing fiddle and guitar. The daughter of a jazz pianist, she began performing with her father at a young age. By the first grade, she was writing her own songs and playing for tips. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mdGR5cMe8Vk

Mark Mazengarb is a kiwi guitarist who recently spent 7 years touring the USA full-time with American guitarist and singer Loren Barrigar. Mark has performed with many other world class musicians, including Tommy Emmanuel and Frank Vignola.

Doors open at 7:00pm. Show starts at 7:30pm.
Tickets are $20. You can book by emailing whangateaufolk@gmail.com

Alum Ridge Boys and Ashlee

January Club Night: TUESDAY, 30 January 2024.

Club night this month is moved to a TUESDAY to make room for the Auckland Folk Festival.  We have a very special second half guest: The Alum Ridge Boys & Ashlee.  They will be fresh off their Auckland Folk Festival appearance, so should be super hot for us! Tickets are $20/each. Doors open at 6:45pm, first half starts at 7:00pm. Book now at whangateaufolk@gmail.com.

Mining the fertile common ground between bluegrass, early country music, and traditional mountain music, The Alum Ridge Boys & Ashlee are Virginia’s torchbearers of the old time sound. Their powerful harmony singing and energetic instrumentals have captivated audiences around the country and helped the band to win many awards including blue ribbons in the old time band contest at the 85th Annual Old Fiddlers’ Convention in Galax, Virginia and the bluegrass band contest at the 51st Mount Airy Fiddlers’ Convention in North Carolina. Band members have won a slew of individual awards as well, including first prize in the coveted MerleFest Chris Austin Songwriting Contest. Deep knowledge and appreciation for traditional music enables the band to craft tasteful original songs and instrumentals that blend seamlessly alongside the classics. The Alum Ridge Boys & Ashlee cut no corners when it comes to real, hard hitting, old time country music – an approach that is quickly gaining them loyal followers far beyond the reaches of their Virginia mountain home.

Learn more and hear some of their music at https://alumridgeboys.com/

Standard folk club format EXCEPT I will be limiting the first half to 7 floor singers to leave as much time as possible for our amazing special guests. If you wish to perform, you MUST email me ahead of time at whangateaufolk@gmail.com to reserve your spot.

South for Winter’s Dani Cichon from Colorado Springs and Nick Stone perform Friday, May 28, 2021, during the first day of the MeadowGrass Music Festival at La Foret in Colorado Springs. (The Gazette, Christian Murdock)

With a blend of dreamy acoustic duets, foot-stomping Folk and bluesy murder ballads, trio South for Winter’s sound is as eclectic as their origins. Composed of New Zealander Nick Stone and Colorado Springs-born Dani Cichon (Stone), the two multi-instrumentalists and songwriters combine elements such as percussive guitar, mandolin, foot percussion, and effortless harmonies into a genre-bending sound. South for Winter has been nominated as a Semi-Finalist in the 2023 International Songwriting Competition, Finalist for “Best Group/Duo” in the 2023 International Acoustic Music Awards, Official Showcase Artist at SXSW 2023, Official Showcase Artist at Folk Alliance International in 2022 and 2024, and Most Wanted Emerging Artist at Falcon Ridge Festival in 2019. Their music has been praised by sites such as American Songwriter (“laden with delicate harmonies, intricate guitar-work, and earthy vocals… impeccable sound”), NoDepression (“must-see artist”), For the Love of Bands (“a wonderful mix of indie and folk rock”), Grateful Web (“eclectic in the best sense of the word”), and AmericanaUK (“An ethereal, dreamy, journey…a journey well-worth taking”). Between touring throughout the U.S., Canada, New Zealand, and Europe, South for Winter have just crowdfunded over 141% of their goal to independently release their sophomore album, Of Sea and Sky. The full album is due in May 2024.

South for Winter are ordinarily a trio, but unfortunately, Michigander Alex Stradal is unable to  travel to New Zealand at this time.  However, they are equally delightful as a duo and will put on a great show for us.

Tickets are $20 and available at the door (cash only) or you can prebook by emailing whangateaufolk@gmail.com.

Doors open at 7:00pm with a 7:30pm show start time.

Whangateau Folk Club Night: Monday, November 27th.  7:00pm start, $15. 

Our special guest this month is David Shanhun.  (https://www.davidshanhun.com/home). David Shanhun has opened shows for Heart, Foreigner, and Three Dog Night, toured internationally, and had the #1 song on iTunes NZ with ‘Jessie’.  He has shared the stage with Grammy Award winner Bryan White, and been a nominee for the NZCMA Horizon award.  And on top of all of this, he is a truly wonderful human being who I rate very highly.  I am so pleased he has included us in his current tour of the North Island.  I know you are going to love him and his show.  Please do come along.

This is a standard club night with first half floor singers, so warm up those fingers and tune up your guitar!  You can email me at jenine@torkington.com to sign up for a slot, or just sign up at the door on the day.

Richard Grainger is a ‘widely respected songwriter and guitarist with a clear and ‘captivating’ vocal style’. His songs are performed widely by performers at home in his native England and abroad. A prolific and diverse artist, Richard is a singer, songwriter and musician who has been performing on the British Folk Scene since the 1980’s.

I saw Richard at Wellington Folk Festival and his show was engaging and poignant and funny.  Since then he has been playing to packed houses all over New Zealand.  We are lucky to have him for his penultimate New Zealand performance on Friday, the 17th of November.  Tickets are $15 and available at the door or by emailing me at jenine@torkington.com to reserve your seat for what will be a very special treat.

Doors open at 7:00pm for a 7:30pm show.