Whitestone Guest Artists 2012
CRAIG SMITH (AKA the Wonkey Donkey man)
Craig first picked up the guitar when he was 12. Initially wanting to play the tunes he grew up with. It wasn’t long before he was playing the songs of Neil Young, Bob Dylan and various blues artists. This folk, basic rock and blues background still influences his original music today as well other contemporary music. He loves to sing and play the classics and has committed himself to continue to learn and cover more of them. His passion however, to write and perform his original music, continues to grow. His songs are a real eclectic mixture; lyrical, thought provoking, from the heart and are sometimes humorous. He plays them in a mixture of styles too. Generally they are played in an easy listening, contemporary, folk, blues or even country style. In 2005 he released a self-produced album with 13 originals. Recently, he has started to write and perform music for kids. He saw that a lot of kids were going from nursery rhymes to teenage music as they hit the ages of 6-12 and decided to do something about it. He is excited to see how far he can go with his music and indeed see if he can make a living from doing something that he loves to do.
Photo: Supplied
THE MORONEY FAMILY
In the 28 years of their existence, the Moroney Family have played together formerly a mere handful of times. With over 30 years of involvement in folk music, Mike and Bernadette are regularly seen in organising roles while each appearing variously solo, in duos and in a range of bands. Bernadette and daughter, Siobhan were one half of the acclaimed Rhonda and the Ravers while Bernadette was convener and singer with the all-woman Celtic ensemble, Teud. Siobhan was one half of the country/folk duo The Two Cuppucinos and Mike played for many years with The Pioneer Pog 'n' Scroggin Bush Band, and is currently active with Catgut and Steel and The Chaps. This is the first time the three of them come together as a formal festival act.
Photo: Mike Dillon
CATGUT AND STEEL
Catgut & Steel (named for the strings on their instruments) have a sound bigger and fuller than two musicians would normally command - yet they play all their own instruments and use no backing electronica of any kind. Their repertoire is amazingly eclectic from Celtic tunes to contemporary covers, klezmer to country; but always with the strong vocals, harmonies and swinging rhythm styles for which they are renowned.
The duo can often be found in backup roles with other fine artists, both recorded and live; Chris Penman of the Penman family, the award-winning Ben the Hoose, singer/songwriters Bob McNeill and John Egenes and Dunedin acoustic rockers The George Street Patsys to name just a few. Always exciting and unpredictable, Mike and Anna are renowned for their ability to entertain young and old whether it be festivals, concerts, schools, wedding dances or called barn dances. The duo has travelled extensively playing in regularly in Europe as well as around New Zealand.
With over 50 years of playing experience between them (and it's probably only fair to point out that most of those belong to the old fella) Mike and Anna come from diverse musical and geographical backgrounds. Anna was a student of classical violin in Holland where she lived until she emigrated to Australia and eventually, to New Zealand. Mike is Dunedin-born with a background of classical piano, brass and singing and a lifetime of playing in rock bands (which he still does). He's been involved in the New Zealand folk scene since the early eighties playing solo and accompanying countless others. Mike and Anna teamed up through their involvement in the now defunct Pioneer Pog 'n' Scroggin Bush Band. Mike also plays in the internationally renowned acoustic show band, The Chaps.
Photo:Mike Dillon
CRAIG SMITH (AKA the Wonkey Donkey man)
Craig first picked up the guitar when he was 12. Initially wanting to play the tunes he grew up with. It wasn’t long before he was playing the songs of Neil Young, Bob Dylan and various blues artists. This folk, basic rock and blues background still influences his original music today as well other contemporary music. He loves to sing and play the classics and has committed himself to continue to learn and cover more of them. His passion however, to write and perform his original music, continues to grow. His songs are a real eclectic mixture; lyrical, thought provoking, from the heart and are sometimes humorous. He plays them in a mixture of styles too. Generally they are played in an easy listening, contemporary, folk, blues or even country style. In 2005 he released a self-produced album with 13 originals. Recently, he has started to write and perform music for kids. He saw that a lot of kids were going from nursery rhymes to teenage music as they hit the ages of 6-12 and decided to do something about it. He is excited to see how far he can go with his music and indeed see if he can make a living from doing something that he loves to do.
Photo: Supplied
THE MORONEY FAMILY
In the 28 years of their existence, the Moroney Family have played together formerly a mere handful of times. With over 30 years of involvement in folk music, Mike and Bernadette are regularly seen in organising roles while each appearing variously solo, in duos and in a range of bands. Bernadette and daughter, Siobhan were one half of the acclaimed Rhonda and the Ravers while Bernadette was convener and singer with the all-woman Celtic ensemble, Teud. Siobhan was one half of the country/folk duo The Two Cuppucinos and Mike played for many years with The Pioneer Pog 'n' Scroggin Bush Band, and is currently active with Catgut and Steel and The Chaps. This is the first time the three of them come together as a formal festival act.
Photo: Mike Dillon
CATGUT AND STEEL
Catgut & Steel (named for the strings on their instruments) have a sound bigger and fuller than two musicians would normally command - yet they play all their own instruments and use no backing electronica of any kind. Their repertoire is amazingly eclectic from Celtic tunes to contemporary covers, klezmer to country; but always with the strong vocals, harmonies and swinging rhythm styles for which they are renowned.
The duo can often be found in backup roles with other fine artists, both recorded and live; Chris Penman of the Penman family, the award-winning Ben the Hoose, singer/songwriters Bob McNeill and John Egenes and Dunedin acoustic rockers The George Street Patsys to name just a few. Always exciting and unpredictable, Mike and Anna are renowned for their ability to entertain young and old whether it be festivals, concerts, schools, wedding dances or called barn dances. The duo has travelled extensively playing in regularly in Europe as well as around New Zealand.
With over 50 years of playing experience between them (and it's probably only fair to point out that most of those belong to the old fella) Mike and Anna come from diverse musical and geographical backgrounds. Anna was a student of classical violin in Holland where she lived until she emigrated to Australia and eventually, to New Zealand. Mike is Dunedin-born with a background of classical piano, brass and singing and a lifetime of playing in rock bands (which he still does). He's been involved in the New Zealand folk scene since the early eighties playing solo and accompanying countless others. Mike and Anna teamed up through their involvement in the now defunct Pioneer Pog 'n' Scroggin Bush Band. Mike also plays in the internationally renowned acoustic show band, The Chaps.
Photo:Mike Dillon
Whitestone Winter Festival 2012 – A review by Jane Edmed.
Whitestone Winter Festival 2012 – a review by Jane Edmed.
Originally published in the Clarion
“Will you write a review of the festival?” Bernadette asked. “Why me?” I replied. “Because you were awake and paying attention” she said. Well, I’m not sure I was paying that much attention, but here goes….
I have attended most of the Whitestone Festivals since its inception in 1994 and have always loved the intimacy of the small, friendly festival. This year was no exception. Driving down from Christchurch after work on the Friday is part of the fun; it’s getting dark as we leave and a stop in Temuka for fish and chips is obligatory. Finally we pull in at the gate just before 9 pm. It takes a wee while to find a park for the bus and then to level it up with blocks of wood and a convenient concrete slab provided by Keith (where did he find it?) and into the hall for a warm welcome from so many old friends and a blazing log fire providing another warmth; both much appreciated. There’s a good session going already with guitars and voices in full throttle. We join in the fun and laughter amidst lots of conversations to catch up with folk we haven’t seen for months and meet a few new faces.
Whitestone festivals are notoriously cold. Those in the know bring heaters for their cabins with spare extension cords which are shared for those without. There are two venues: the smaller lodge has a log burner and the main hall has an open fire which everyone helps to look after. A hot water cylinder in the kitchen is always full (a relatively new automatic filling cylinder is welcome now), providing for hot drinks and hot water bottles. We are cosy in the bus with a heater going all night (we are plugged into mains power). Saturday morning we are up ready for the first workshop at 10, a dance workshop with Bernadette Moroney. This was well attended and we were taught a couple of complex dances, in fact, only ten of us were allowed to dance the second dance as it was much more complicated than the average Kiwi folkie is used to, but very satisfying to dance, and hopefully, for Bernadette to teach. Then a double session with Phil Corfield leading a learners jam session in the lodge and Craig Smith holding a song writing workshop in the hall. This turned out not to be so much of a workshop as Craig telling us how he approaches his writing, but it was well attended with lots of people asking questions and I found it enjoyable. Craig has deservedly done very well with his music and it was good to hear his story.
At lunchtime in the lodge, Marvin Hubbard launched his new poetry book, The Journey, from which he read a number of poems, backed by Mike Moroney on guitar. The CD of the book has Kevin McLoughlin playing backing music. Marvin has long been a part of the Dunedin folk scene and his gentle approach to life is revealed in his poems, though I must say, having started to read them, some of the poems reveal a deep strength and passion for the things he believes in. I recommend the book. We were treated to nibbles whilst listening to poetry – a nice combination.
Craig Smith then held a concert – ‘Not just for kids’ but as there was only one child in the audience at that point, he played a number of his adult songs as well. A good mix of material and I think we all enjoyed the children’s songs anyway. This year it was very unusual to have very few children and teenagers – normally there are as many children as adults. Not sure why they didn’t turn up – I missed that side of things, though perhaps some enjoyed it.
A great blackboard concert to follow, then the Moroney family gave a concert. Mike, Bernadette and Siobahn have all performed in various lineups with widely differing styles, but this is the first time I have seen all three perform together. They were excellent and each was able to sing some of their own material, ably accompanied by the others. I hope they continue to play together in the future as it was a most enjoyable concert.
Then followed an invitation concert which I know I enjoyed but perhaps I wasn’t paying much attention then, for now I couldn’t tell you who was performing in it. It would have been a mixture of people who weren’t actually guests and must have been pretty good as there was a good range of excellent musicians to choose from.
The Blind Date draw took place before dinner which gave us less than 24 hours to find our ‘blind dates’, organise a meeting, decide on a song, rehearse it and perform it on Sunday afternoon. I was in a group with three other women, quite diverse in style, but thanks to Rachael, a wonderful singer from Christchurch, we had chosen a song, had our parts written out for us, and we were able to perform credibly. I don’t think I’ve ever been so relaxed for a blind date concert. Thanks Rachael.
Evening meals at Whitestone are unlike any other festival. It is not compulsory, but one can purchase meal tickets; a hot dinner (with a vegetarian option) and dessert are supplied. We line up at 6 pm with our plates, which are duly filled and we sit at trestle tables around the hall and eat together. It’s all very friendly and convivial and a darn sight easier and loads more fun than trying to cater for ourselves in isolation. I believe meals should always be shared when possible.
The Saturday evening barn dance was the main event for me, though I believe there was music in the lodge and possibly in caravans and campers. The band was a combination of musicians, all highly skilled, mostly a little tiddly. I had intended to join in on trombone, but was having too much fun on the dance floor. Besides, I was sober and might not have fitted in….. Bernadette called most of the dances with Vic taking over in the second half. The few children who had by then turned up, joined in enthusiastically. Some of these kids are really good dancers – most encouraging. We’ll need them to steer us in the right direction in a few years time. We were pretty tired by the end of the dance so sloped off to bed but I believe there was a good session.
We were up for 10 again on the Sunday morning for the Whitestone Wordsmiths poetry session. It’s good to see poetry taking off at festivals these days with so many people writing and contributing. It was a very informal session and better attended than ever with some great renditions of old and new poems.
We missed the marimba workshop with Catgut and Steel as we had some rehearsing to do but I believe it went well. There was a second blackboard concert after lunch which was another good mix of performers and items. Unfortunately it clashed with a harmony workshop with the Moroney family, but that must have been well attended as all participants filled the stage at the final concert to do a piece.
Catgut and Steel (Mike Moroney and Anna Bowen) put on a stunning concert in the afternoon – these guys are so good! I’ve been a fan for years and they are consistently excellent. The Blind Date concert couldn’t reach such giddy heights but for such a short time in their groups, the standard was pretty impressive. A huge variety of material amongst the eight groups, some serious, some not so. My favourite was the last – no, I’m not biased, but group no 8 did ‘Doing the Time Warp’ and were great. Where did those girls find their flashy outfits in such a short time?!!
Dinner on the Sunday night is themed each year and dressing up is not compulsory but expected. This year the theme was ‘Myths and Legends’ and gave rise to a great range of costumes. I thought going as the Medusa would be different but there were three of us with different interpretations of the costume. Jelly snakes proved slightly tricky for me – they kept falling out but were eagerly consumed by the kids, despite having been in my hair and on the floor. Disappointingly, no-one turned to stone…. A wizard, Zorro, leprauchans and other fairies, Bacchus, Bart Simpson, a she-devil, King Kong, Bast (look it up), Dracula, Thor, the Shiner, a Green Man and Woman, a muse, Speedy Gonzales, Neptune, Greta Garbo, Robin Hood and Maid Marion were amongst the characters portrayed and also some concepts: The Bermuda Triangle, a free lunch, the trickle-down theory…. Well, it kept us laughing and entertained. Sunday night dinner is followed by the final concert, cabaret style, still sitting at our dinner tables and still dressed up. Most of the audience (and performers) are tanked up by this stage so the concert tends to be a raucous but good humoured affair with lots of heckling and laughter. I still think it maintains a pretty high standard and is enjoyed by all. Later, another session which I believe continued well into the small hours. I can’t do that anymore so in bed by 1.30 – still way past my bedtime!
Cleaning up and farewells the next morning; there’s a few months till the next festival so it has to last us. Another great weekend with lovely friends. Thank you to Miguel, chief organiser and his loyal supporters – I won’t name them for fear of missing some out but you know who you are and are appreciated. The theme for next year is ‘Steam Punk’ so get thinking.
Originally published in the Clarion
“Will you write a review of the festival?” Bernadette asked. “Why me?” I replied. “Because you were awake and paying attention” she said. Well, I’m not sure I was paying that much attention, but here goes….
I have attended most of the Whitestone Festivals since its inception in 1994 and have always loved the intimacy of the small, friendly festival. This year was no exception. Driving down from Christchurch after work on the Friday is part of the fun; it’s getting dark as we leave and a stop in Temuka for fish and chips is obligatory. Finally we pull in at the gate just before 9 pm. It takes a wee while to find a park for the bus and then to level it up with blocks of wood and a convenient concrete slab provided by Keith (where did he find it?) and into the hall for a warm welcome from so many old friends and a blazing log fire providing another warmth; both much appreciated. There’s a good session going already with guitars and voices in full throttle. We join in the fun and laughter amidst lots of conversations to catch up with folk we haven’t seen for months and meet a few new faces.
Whitestone festivals are notoriously cold. Those in the know bring heaters for their cabins with spare extension cords which are shared for those without. There are two venues: the smaller lodge has a log burner and the main hall has an open fire which everyone helps to look after. A hot water cylinder in the kitchen is always full (a relatively new automatic filling cylinder is welcome now), providing for hot drinks and hot water bottles. We are cosy in the bus with a heater going all night (we are plugged into mains power). Saturday morning we are up ready for the first workshop at 10, a dance workshop with Bernadette Moroney. This was well attended and we were taught a couple of complex dances, in fact, only ten of us were allowed to dance the second dance as it was much more complicated than the average Kiwi folkie is used to, but very satisfying to dance, and hopefully, for Bernadette to teach. Then a double session with Phil Corfield leading a learners jam session in the lodge and Craig Smith holding a song writing workshop in the hall. This turned out not to be so much of a workshop as Craig telling us how he approaches his writing, but it was well attended with lots of people asking questions and I found it enjoyable. Craig has deservedly done very well with his music and it was good to hear his story.
At lunchtime in the lodge, Marvin Hubbard launched his new poetry book, The Journey, from which he read a number of poems, backed by Mike Moroney on guitar. The CD of the book has Kevin McLoughlin playing backing music. Marvin has long been a part of the Dunedin folk scene and his gentle approach to life is revealed in his poems, though I must say, having started to read them, some of the poems reveal a deep strength and passion for the things he believes in. I recommend the book. We were treated to nibbles whilst listening to poetry – a nice combination.
Craig Smith then held a concert – ‘Not just for kids’ but as there was only one child in the audience at that point, he played a number of his adult songs as well. A good mix of material and I think we all enjoyed the children’s songs anyway. This year it was very unusual to have very few children and teenagers – normally there are as many children as adults. Not sure why they didn’t turn up – I missed that side of things, though perhaps some enjoyed it.
A great blackboard concert to follow, then the Moroney family gave a concert. Mike, Bernadette and Siobahn have all performed in various lineups with widely differing styles, but this is the first time I have seen all three perform together. They were excellent and each was able to sing some of their own material, ably accompanied by the others. I hope they continue to play together in the future as it was a most enjoyable concert.
Then followed an invitation concert which I know I enjoyed but perhaps I wasn’t paying much attention then, for now I couldn’t tell you who was performing in it. It would have been a mixture of people who weren’t actually guests and must have been pretty good as there was a good range of excellent musicians to choose from.
The Blind Date draw took place before dinner which gave us less than 24 hours to find our ‘blind dates’, organise a meeting, decide on a song, rehearse it and perform it on Sunday afternoon. I was in a group with three other women, quite diverse in style, but thanks to Rachael, a wonderful singer from Christchurch, we had chosen a song, had our parts written out for us, and we were able to perform credibly. I don’t think I’ve ever been so relaxed for a blind date concert. Thanks Rachael.
Evening meals at Whitestone are unlike any other festival. It is not compulsory, but one can purchase meal tickets; a hot dinner (with a vegetarian option) and dessert are supplied. We line up at 6 pm with our plates, which are duly filled and we sit at trestle tables around the hall and eat together. It’s all very friendly and convivial and a darn sight easier and loads more fun than trying to cater for ourselves in isolation. I believe meals should always be shared when possible.
The Saturday evening barn dance was the main event for me, though I believe there was music in the lodge and possibly in caravans and campers. The band was a combination of musicians, all highly skilled, mostly a little tiddly. I had intended to join in on trombone, but was having too much fun on the dance floor. Besides, I was sober and might not have fitted in….. Bernadette called most of the dances with Vic taking over in the second half. The few children who had by then turned up, joined in enthusiastically. Some of these kids are really good dancers – most encouraging. We’ll need them to steer us in the right direction in a few years time. We were pretty tired by the end of the dance so sloped off to bed but I believe there was a good session.
We were up for 10 again on the Sunday morning for the Whitestone Wordsmiths poetry session. It’s good to see poetry taking off at festivals these days with so many people writing and contributing. It was a very informal session and better attended than ever with some great renditions of old and new poems.
We missed the marimba workshop with Catgut and Steel as we had some rehearsing to do but I believe it went well. There was a second blackboard concert after lunch which was another good mix of performers and items. Unfortunately it clashed with a harmony workshop with the Moroney family, but that must have been well attended as all participants filled the stage at the final concert to do a piece.
Catgut and Steel (Mike Moroney and Anna Bowen) put on a stunning concert in the afternoon – these guys are so good! I’ve been a fan for years and they are consistently excellent. The Blind Date concert couldn’t reach such giddy heights but for such a short time in their groups, the standard was pretty impressive. A huge variety of material amongst the eight groups, some serious, some not so. My favourite was the last – no, I’m not biased, but group no 8 did ‘Doing the Time Warp’ and were great. Where did those girls find their flashy outfits in such a short time?!!
Dinner on the Sunday night is themed each year and dressing up is not compulsory but expected. This year the theme was ‘Myths and Legends’ and gave rise to a great range of costumes. I thought going as the Medusa would be different but there were three of us with different interpretations of the costume. Jelly snakes proved slightly tricky for me – they kept falling out but were eagerly consumed by the kids, despite having been in my hair and on the floor. Disappointingly, no-one turned to stone…. A wizard, Zorro, leprauchans and other fairies, Bacchus, Bart Simpson, a she-devil, King Kong, Bast (look it up), Dracula, Thor, the Shiner, a Green Man and Woman, a muse, Speedy Gonzales, Neptune, Greta Garbo, Robin Hood and Maid Marion were amongst the characters portrayed and also some concepts: The Bermuda Triangle, a free lunch, the trickle-down theory…. Well, it kept us laughing and entertained. Sunday night dinner is followed by the final concert, cabaret style, still sitting at our dinner tables and still dressed up. Most of the audience (and performers) are tanked up by this stage so the concert tends to be a raucous but good humoured affair with lots of heckling and laughter. I still think it maintains a pretty high standard and is enjoyed by all. Later, another session which I believe continued well into the small hours. I can’t do that anymore so in bed by 1.30 – still way past my bedtime!
Cleaning up and farewells the next morning; there’s a few months till the next festival so it has to last us. Another great weekend with lovely friends. Thank you to Miguel, chief organiser and his loyal supporters – I won’t name them for fear of missing some out but you know who you are and are appreciated. The theme for next year is ‘Steam Punk’ so get thinking.