Whanganui musicians given the chance to perform at Vintage Weekend

Whanganui band The Transistors perform at last year's Riverside Shindig. Photo / Supplied

Local musicians will have the chance to take the stage during the Riverside Shindig at next year's Whanganui Vintage Weekend, but they might have to brush up on some tunes from Aotearoa first.

A competition is being held next month to choose three acts, all of whom will perform one song.

The catch? The song must have been written by a Kiwi artist, from any decade and in any genre.

Organiser Rohan Goodsir said the competition had been running for the past three years, with the 60s, 70s and 80s already being covered.

"We were going to keep that trend going this year and do the 90s, but that might have got a bit too grungy," Goodsir said.

"We weren't sure if we wanted a roomful of people doing Nirvana so we decided to go with 'Kiwiana' instead."

Contestants can be either a solo vocalist with a guitar, or two people - one singing and one playing guitar.

"No doubt Dave Dobbyn will make an appearance, but hopefully there'll be some traditional Māori music in there as well, and a really nice variety of songs," Goodsir said.

"It's all acoustic, so that's another reason to stay away from the 90s, I think.

"Once the contest is done, everyone sticks around and it turns into a fun, open mic free-for-all for the next few hours."

The top three contestants go onto the Riverside Shindig on Sunday, January 23.

"At the Shindig they'll play in between the musical acts," Goodsir said.

"From there, the judges will give them third, second and first place.

"The prices are decent too. The winner gets $500, second place gets $300 and third gets $100. That's all thanks [to] Annette Main and the Whanganui River Market Trust."

Goodsir said the competition was won last year by local musician Bobbi Hutchinson, who performed a version of Poi E by Patea Maori Club.

She will be a judge this year, along with Geoff Horne and Kellie Thurston.

They will be paying particular attention to a contestant's vocal performance, as opposed to guitar playing ability, Goodsir said.

If you're interested in taking part, contact Rohan Goodsir at rohanoz@aol.com before November 15.

The contest is at Porridge Watson on November 25. The first act will take the stage at 7pm.