The Nelson Arts Festival programme is now live – and despite the parochial name, the wider region does not get forgotten in the line-up. The Guardian will preview some of these relevant performances in the upcoming weeks.
Auckland-based Anna Coddington (Ngāti Tūwharetoa, Te Arawa, Ngāti Whakaue) will be bringing her five-piece band and her unique brand of Māori funk to the laid-back Neudorf setting.
The soulful singer/ songwriter says her most recent album Te Whakamiha is “super-fun to play live”.
“It’s upbeat, danceable, tongue-in-cheek.”
Picking a favourite track is “like picking a favourite child,” but if she must, Anna chooses Kātuarehe, partly because of the end result and partly because she had “such a fun day writing it”. The bilingual waiata also won top Silver Scroll at last year’s APRA awards.
Lyrics have always captured Anna’s creativity, and she gives credit to her background in linguistics which has given her an innate appreciation of language.
She is now in her final year of law school and says that she loves staying busy – stillness sends her into “freefall”.
She has performed in this area many times before – last time with “Anika or Bic or someone” – and says it is always a wonderful mix of work and pleasure to be here.
Anna’s 75-minute performance will be at Neudorf Vineyards on Sunday, 2 November, at 2pm – doors open at 12pm.
Tickets are available at www.nelsonartsfestival.co.nz
