Whanganui musicians join up for special La Fiesta wrap event

Musicians Hamish Jellyman and Liz de Vegt are back performing together at a special concert this Friday evening. Photo / Sarah Narine

Local musicians Hamish Jellyman and Elizabeth de Vegt are back to play music together at a special wrap event for La Fiesta 2023 - New Zealand’s Best Women’s Fest.

The musical pair have been working on original songs for an upcoming album and will be premiering a few of these special songs. de Vegt says many of the songs tell stories from her life.

“Our recent collaboration has really taken me into a new creative space - I’ve been able to dig deep and write some music that tells stories about many facets of my life. There is a song about my late Grandma, another about my Dad, as well as songs about nature and the seasons.”

The pair will also add in special arrangements of one or two songs from their 2022 album Flow - settings of Airini Beautrais’ poetry from her book Flow: Whanganui River Poems. To tie in with the La Fiesta women’s theme, the pair will perform a few well-known songs from female artists.

Multi-instrumentalist Hamish Jellyman says he is happy to be playing more music with Liz.

“I jumped into the Flow Collective just over a year ago to join in for the recording of the Flow album and the ongoing tour of the music. We have since done a few trio and duo gigs together, Vintage Weekend etc, and I always enjoy the music.”

The concert is held in collaboration with the Peace Through Unity Trust, and trust spokesperson Eric Wong says he hopes people will come along and enjoy the concert.

“It’s wonderful to have Elizabeth and Hamish again at Te Rangi to perform for the community, and it’s a special event, being the finale of the La Fiesta festival 2023. The Peace Through Unity [Trust] wants to bring people together through activities and events; it is the wish of the late Anthony and Gita Brooke that the community use Te Rangi to build the right human relations. We hope people will be able to enjoy the Twilight Songs in the serene setting of Te Rangi overlooking the Whanganui River in the backdrop.”

The Details:

What: Twilight Songs

When: Friday, March 10, 7.30pm - doors open at 7pm

Where: Te Rangi, 4 Allison St, Whanganui

More info: Tickets are $20 and can be purchased at the door or from Under the Radar