Celebrating Women’s Music in Aotearoa

We have been to two outstanding women’s music events this year- a reunion of 1980s women musicians on February 9,  and an Auckland Arts Festival commemoration of Mahinaarangi Tocker and her music on March 16 and 17.

Bags of hags and wags at AGGS…

Five or six hundred enthusiastic women (mainly) gathered in the Dorothy Winstone Auditorium at Auckland Girls’ Grammar School to greet their 1980s favourites with lots of nostalgia and rapturous applause.  From 7.30 to nearly 11pm we enjoyed the  Topp Twins as MCs, the amazing musical talent, the humour and passion of the 29 performers, and the liveliness of the audience as well.  Great that a film was being made on the night to record the musical talent from that era of outspoken feminism and lesbian visibility.

Love me as I am…

…sang Mahinaarangi  in 1995, on her album of that name.  This concert, for two nights  at the Auckland Town Hall, was a tribute to  Mahinaarangi Tocker the woman, as well as to her extraordinary musical abilities as composer and performer.  Many of the artists knew, loved and revered Mahinaarangi; all had a huge admiration for her music and deep sadness at her untimely death ten years ago.  The concert was a polished production involving  many of the top women musicians today, and some men; and the wonderful musicianship of each performer of the song she or he chose made the whole evening utterly memorable, and deeply moving.