Latest news with #TamworthCountryMusicFestival
Otago Daily Times
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- Otago Daily Times
Gold Guitars final crowd drawcard
The 50th annual MLT Gold Guitar Awards Senior Finals began impressively last night with a sold-out stadium and a jam-packed lineup of country music's finest. The event is the big finale for the Bayleys Tussock Country music festival, and what a show it promised to be for the 1100 people in attendance. Musicians brought their very best to the Gore Town & Country Club, all vying for their place among New Zealand country music royalty. There were plenty of home-town heroes such as the Mitchell family, with twins Nicola and Maegan competing against their father Ron in the singer/songwriter section. Notably Ron's daughter and the twins' sister Jenny Mitchell won the overall award back in 2017, setting a high watermark for the country music family. Fan favourite Jeremy Hantler, of the Harmonic Resonators, wowed the audience during the Traditional section, with an impressive show of vocal range and control. Australia sent over a bit of strong competition too, in the form of Jon Collins. The grand prize for the Senior category is $3000, a Martin D-28 Satin Acoustic Guitar, a fully produced single and publicity package as well as other prizes to help the winner's career. The winner will also be flown out to the 2026 Tamworth Country Music Festival to show off the fine work of the Gold Guitars. Finalists and winners were yet to be announced at the time of writing, and convener Phillip Geary said this year it was a strongly contested competition. "It's going to be a very close call this year. "Some years we can see it from the first audition, but this is a lot tighter. The quality is high, very high," he said. Mr Geary had a lot to celebrate, with sold-out shows across the block like the 50th anniversary Golden Guitars show on Thursday, which featured 22 past Gold Guitar winners. Heavy hitters from past and present set a high bar for the competitors, showing exactly what it meant to take up the mantle of winning the award. Mr Geary knew what the Gold Guitars meant for a young musician — a chance to rise the ranks into country music royalty. "This is a steppingstone for anyone who is serious about their career, and their music," he said.
Scoop
15-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Scoop
Halton Hart 'Grandad Mait'
Halton Hart are Caitlyn 17, Marissa 16, and Erica Byars 10, Jaelyn 10 and Meila Scully 12, Taegan 10 and Hazel Evans 7, and Georgia Martin 11. Between them the girls can play acoustic guitar, bass, ukulele, banjo and Mando Guitar. Halton Hart is a very rare and unique musical family of 8 girls, where music plays a massive role in their lives. All the girls have been taught music by Gore based recording artist Kayla Mahon with all starting at the young age of 2, up on the stage, singing on the country music competition circuit. To honor their family's heritage and create a name that bound them together, the girls chose Halton Hart. 'Halton' comes from Halton Street, Gore, the home of Grandad Mait and Nana Horrell. Grandad Mait's love for traditional country music and yodeling set the stage for a family tradition that has continued through Kayla Mahon and now finds new voice in Halton Hart. Following their engaging performance as Halton Hart at the 2024 Waikaia cavalcade, the girls are now launching their own gigs, fuelled by a genuine love for singing! Georgia, Meila and Jaelyn recently travelled to Tamworth Country Music Festival 2025, winning hearts, and were asked to perform in the Busking Finals for guests at the Tamworth Bowlo. Meila made the top 5 at the Golden Gig Finals at Tamworth Country Music festival also. Georgia and Meila also go under the duo name ' The Sparks ' and are the current runner up overall Junior Gold Guitar winners. The girls opened for the Mitchell Twins last year at Gore's Little Theatre. Georgia is the current Junior Overall Winner for the Dunedin Country Music Awards 2023. A love of the outdoors binds these girls together. Hunting, exploring remote hill country, four-wheel driving, and motor biking are more than just hobbies; they're shared passions. With their Stony Creek gear on, they live for these adventures. The girls listen to a lot of the new country music, and have a strong love of the music of Lainey Wilson and Kaylee Bell. Halton Hart often open gigs for Kayla Mahon, their Aunty, who is exceptionally proud of them all. A funny tale about Grandad, he was cheeky and always liked to have people on. ' Grandad Mait' tells a snippet of his life and he loved to share his stories with his family. This song has the good old country feel that we hope brings you a smile. Grandad loved his traditional music: Tex Morton, Slim Dusty, and Johnny Cash. In the studio, it was an amazing experience. The girls recorded their singles at Music South by Aaron Ives and had a great time using the big studio at Southland Institute of Technology in Invercargill. Capturing their voices at this time will always be such a treasure as they grow older. Their personalities are all different, from the quiet, dark horses that bring out the music magic, and then to the 'no holding 'em back' attitude that drives the spark in the family.
Otago Daily Times
29-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Otago Daily Times
Three seek title of Country Music Queen
With the hardest part of getting humble Southlanders to enter, the leadup to this year's Country Music Queen competition is already in full swing. While the Gore contest is decidedly not a beauty pageant, convener and 2019 winner Melissa Wishart said, the winner crowned on May 25 must present well to be an ambassador for the town internationally. She said the hardest part of the competition each year was getting Southlanders to throw their proverbial cowboy hats into the ring. "We're a bit humble and modest, aren't we?" she said. But the event is past that initial struggle and the contestants for this year are local property manager Jasmyn Pollock, Heriot's Maea Brandon and local retail worker Samara Halford. In the leadup to the final night, the competition hopes to build their confidence, connecting them with public speaking educator Toastmasters to improve their oration, she said. They also expose the entrants to a lot of community events while they wear their bright yellow sashes, so locals can learn who they are before the big day. The three women will also be educated on the knowledge and history of the area in preparation for the event, where there will be a question and answer category. The contestants will be judged on their public speaking, presentation and knowledge of Gore. They will also each deliver a speech on the night. Gore Health chief executive Karl Metzler, country musician Jenny Haraway and dance studio co-owner Amanda Swain will be returning as this year's judges. "They're seasoned judges and they love it," Ms Wishart said. The judges will meet for a dinner with the three potential queens the week before, as a way for them to get to know the candidates and ascertain who is best to represent the town. As a prize, the winner will represent the town for the year at important local events as well as internationally at Gore's sister-city, Tamworth, in Australia. The New South Wales town hosts the biggest annual country music party in Oceania, the Tamworth Country Music Festival, which the Queen winner will attend, representing Gore. The competition is organised by the Gore Country Music Club and held as part of the Tussock Country music festival in May. The big night will be held at the Gore RSA, with about 13 tables adorned with cheese platters and drinks at the bar. There will be live entertainment with the ever-popular Annie Nelson hosting, while the judges deliberate. "It's quite fun seeing on the night who's going to win," Ms Wishart said. Tickets are available on iTicket.
