Down In Edin Magazine Issue Seven by Down In Edin Magazine

arts, culture, and lifestyle of dunedin and otago, in the south island, new zealand

n w o

edin

issue seven: september 2016

Magazine

david howard, a picture of prague, the broken heartbreakers, maggie holmes, bill morris, arts festival dunedin, jennifer evans toitĹŤ otago settlers museum, night sky city, tosq wines, francisca griffin and happy 50th anniversary to the dunedin symphony orchestra

a r t s,

c u l t u re

a n d

l i f e s t y l e

We l c o m e t o I s s u e S e v e n Do wn In E d in Magazin e

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Contents David Howard ~ To See Beyond Myself

Toitū Otago Settlers Museum

& A Poet’s View of Prague Page 8 and Page 141

Jennifer Evans and A Slice of Life Page 70

A Picture of Prague ~ UNESCO City of Literature

Along The Harbour Shore ~ Photographs

Page 22

Page 84

The Broken Heartbreakers ~ How We Got to Now!

Night Sky City ~ Sky Sanctuary

Page 26

Page 88

Maggie Holmes ~ Reflections of Princes Street

TOSQ ~ The Story of an Organic Vineyard

Page 40

Page 106

Bill Morris ~ The Sound of Her Guitar

Francisca Griffin ~ Springing Weeds!

Page 50

Page 133

Arts Festival Dunedin ~ 2016

Dave Cull, Mayor of Dunedin ~ Arts and Culture

Page 60

Page 184

With a Special Feature: Dunedin Symphony Orchestra ~ Celebrating 50 Years of Music in Otago Page 152 All works, stories, articles, photographs cannot be reproduced without permission of authors, artists, and photographers. Please contact the Editor at Down In Edin Magazine for any queries. Copyright Down In Edin Magazine © 2016 All rights reserved.

A Note

From ! E"tor

It is spring time in the southern hemisphere, and there is much to celebrate and appreciate. Down In Edin Magazine is now two years old and expanding locally and around the world having reached well over 70,000 people and 58 different countries. Two years on, and the more we discover about this beautiful place on earth, Dunedin and Otago, the more we realize how much there is to sing about - well, write about... We thank everyone, with great gusto, who have participated with the magazine in their different ways. We are lifting a glass to you with gratitude and thanks! Included in this issue are stories about a fabulous poet, and a look at Prague inspired by his recent writer’s residency there.

Like Dunedin, Prague is also a UNESCO City of Literature and both cities received their designation on the same day. There are stories covering contemporary and classical music, fine art painting reflecting Dunedin’s beautiful heritage architecture, photography, a beautifully crafted documentary, Arts Festival Dunedin, a wonderful museum, the stars at night, fine wine, really useful spring weeds, and Dunedin’s Mayor - Dave Cull - has added a word or two of appreciation for this beautiful city’s arts and culture.

an area, that at the time, was devoid of culture. But with beautiful music, my days were well set from home, first thing in the morning, waking up to the ABC’s classical music programmes before my long walk to school.

We are marking the 50th Anniversary of Dunedin Symphony Orchestra with an extensive feature that includes its history, the present, and their unfolding future. Dunedin is truly blessed to have its own full orchestra - and it is a world class orchestra at that.

Here in this issue, we celebrate the Dunedin Symphony Orchestra, as well as the visionaries and participants who created the orchestra, play in the orchestra, and support the orchestra.

I have always found great solace as well as inspiration listening to classical music. I was brought up with it so my childhood home was always full of the sound of music from the great masters. That was something that gave me joy and sparked my imagination in many different and wonderful ways, especially growing up in 4

Now, every concert I have been fortunate to attend of the Dunedin Symphony Orchestra has been beautiful. Each concert has been applauded with standing ovations and encores from full houses of enthusiastic and appreciative audiences.

May you all enjoy your spring or autumn seasons, may these times be abundant and healthy for each and every one of you! Thank you for reading Down In Edin Magazine! Caroline Davies

Editor

Down In Edin Magazine

Thank you to our contributors ~ Penelope Todd, Francisca Griffin, Kyra Xavia, Ian Thomson Additional Thanks To ~ Ian Griffin, Stephen Voss, Carl Thompson Contact the Magazine and Contributors at: downinedin@yahoo.co.nz

FaceBook ~ Down In Edin Magazine http://www.downinedinmagazine.com 5

Photography ~ Caroline Davies ÂŠ 2016

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Thank you to Topaz Labs! A much appreciated DIEM product sponsor. “An editors dream come true!”” 6

Photography ~ Caroline Davies ÂŠ 2016

Otago Harbour, Mt. Cargill, Port Chalmers 7

David Howard ~ Outside Leipzig

Dav id Howard To See Beyond Myself Story by Penelope Todd Photography by David Howard Dean Nixon and Ian Thomson

In his fifties, poet David Howard’s decades-long dedication to the crafting of language is bearing fruit in new directions as his work receives fresh international attention. Already here in New Zealand he is considered ‘consistently one of our finest living lyric poets …’* For the past thirteen years he has made Dunedin his home, living high on a ridge well beyond the city, overlooking the Pacific. There was a time when some of us knew him only as the poet who biked everywhere in any weather. He’s a tough and fiercely independent character, and yet, from our leisurely email exchange and reading of recent interviews he’s given, I gain the sense that his ‘ego’ or will and piercing intellect are aligned, at this stage of life, with what he might call his humanity, and that perhaps this comes at the heart’s insistence. 9

He used to work as a pyrotechnics supervisor for the likes of Janet Jackson and Metallica, a job which requires much the same precision of placement and timing as poetry, to achieve the perfectly percussive effect, those aweinspiring detonations of light — but always, I presume, with an element of the unknown: the carefully prepared, planted and timed presentation finds its own life on the night, as does poetry in the mind or psyche of the reader. I asked David if he’s written a poem on the theme. He has! (directly to the right) I’ll elaborate later on David’s rich writing profile (dear reader, flick down to the end), but suffice to say here that he was born in Christchurch, is widely known as cofounding editor of Takahe magazine, has worked generously in the community of poets, has collaborated with artists of other media and has become a prince of poetry at home and abroad. He describes his writing as ‘gnarled, metaphysical poetry, which fosters rather than forbids tenderness.’ He’s held many sought-after awards and residencies, for instance the NZ Society of Authors Mid-Career Writers Award, University of South Pacific Poetry Prize, the Robert Burns (Dunedin) and Ursula Bethell (Christchurch) Residencies.

FIREWORKS (2009)

Words turn around the world, searching the pockets of jackets for secrets. Here –

a piece of paper, the charred casing of a star shell. The launching charge is labour, the spreading charge

pleasure. When the willow diadem stretches its arms your heart explodes. Rangi reaches up for Papa, pulls her

down. The search for origins becomes nostalgia for the future. The word for this is wonder –

but language is an inert gas; either helium or neon it will not combust. Manufactured

an explosive has the optimism of commitment. It confounds Adam Smith

by destroying itself, by valorising Nothing – Nothing has the indifference of Nature.

David, you’re recently back from a twomonth UNESCO residency in Prague — representing your home city of Dunedin, which was recently also designated UNESCO City of Literature. To acquaint us a little with the city, the experience and yourself, will you outline a typical day for the NZ poet in Prague? “Art is not necessarily an attempt to create an ideal world against the evidence, however this artist needs the prompt of coffee (two cups) in order to consider the order of the day, of the city that is Prague, of the possible but unknown poem. And, as coffee was sipped, the sound of the song 'North by North' by The Bats – a song from the South Island of my youth. So, a bridge between then and now, between there and here: a calling to order. After the song ended I would stare across the apartment car park to the trees of the school ground. Then I would stare at the page (yes, the page: I took no computer to Prague). Words began to appear.

cafes and jazz clubs. The air weighed more (and I weighed it more) than the air in New Zealand. It seemed that ghosts were substantial. And that helped me, the next morning, to see more words materialise on the page. Poetry is a bringing over.”

Will you give examples of the dead correcting your vision?

Indeed, with more ‘bringing over’ when your poetry comes home with you. For which we are grateful! What else have you brought home in your pockets?

Crying in the crypt of St Cyril & St Methodius, where the Czech partisans who assassinated Reinhard Heydrich were trapped and died, men I imagined in my first long poem ‘The Carrion Flower’, which was composed between 1983 and 1991.

“What I brought back in my pockets was the lint of centuries, the lint of a culture that tries to honour its history rather than one that refashions the past to suit the present elite's dominant ideology. (An example of the latter is our current Prime Minister John Key's shameless and shameful lie, on 14 November 2014, that New Zealand was 'settled peacefully’.) When I walked around Prague the dead corrected my vision. I think it is probably like this for Maori here. But I am not Maori.”

“Sitting in the Convent of St Agnes of Bohemia, next to the tomb of ‘Good King Wencelas’, whom I sang about as a child in Christchurch.

Thirty three years after it was conceived, this piece recently received its first public performance in Dunedin courtesy of director Richard Huber. Imagining the members of the first Politburo after the Russian Revolution walking across the continent to their deaths and the deaths of millions who had yet to be conceived – every one condemned by the consequences of

Around 4 pm most days I stepped away from the desk, took the tram back several centuries, crossed Charles Bridge to the

partial knowledge, by that Soviet Golem, Stalin.” Continues Page 15 11

Photography ~ David Howard ÂŠ 2016

Prague from Manes Bridge 13

Photography ~ David Howard ÂŠ 2016

Theresienstadt concentration camp, Terezin 14

‘The Carrion Flower’ is a stunning sequence; I’m struck by the fierce economy of your lines — the raw scene conjured by these few, for example: Home! God knows where yet home! I pack Jan’s ankle with snow, cram our parachutes under tree roots and disinter the dead wood for a fire that radiates like short wave through our bones.

What is it you’re doing when you write poems? “When I write I try to understand more than ‘I’. Poetry is my way to push against the immediate’s made-to-order egotism, and a poetry that doesn’t just reference but is directed by historical models helps me to see more and more clearly. “ Hang on a sec. What do you call ‘made-toorder egotism’? Are you referring to the conditioning that makes us act unreflectively?

“Yes, and to that conception of self that is defined, in a consumer society, by desire. My job, always, is to see beyond my self; to put my personal voice in the service of public understanding. But softly, softly. While it is true, as my contemporary Leigh Davis stated, that ‘conventions generate texts’ (Landfall 155,September 1985), I view language as the history of being human, so what inspired me in my teens was the slippage between word and object, along with the way the author (yes, the author) can calibrate that slippage by making silence active (i.e. the reader 'hears' the space between the words).” Okay, I have two questions about that: please elaborate on ‘conventions generate texts’? “The Derrida-soaked Davis maintained that a poem is constructed from a series of conventions and they direct the author even if he or she is unaware of them. I am more interested in the changes an author can ring upon conventions than in the changes conventions impose upon an author.” 15

And also what do you mean by ‘slippage’ in that context? “How a word always points to more than one thing, but in unpredictable ways. The ways may be unpredictable but an attentive author can anticipate the force of the trajectory if not the direction.” Can you recall the earliest inklings of poetry at work in your life — reading it, writing it? “Hearing my maternal grandfather, William McDowall, singing Burns while I looked up from his lap. My father, Reginald William Howard, reading me Grimm’s Fairytales. And then, at twelve, wondering over Rimbaud’s ‘A Season in Hell’ – a poem that helped me realise ‘personal’ problems are perennial through the generations. I can still hear my English teacher, Mattie Wall, working the sonics of John Keats before the class at Four Avenues in 1975. She introduced me to the essential spells of Janet Frame and Frank Sargeson; Elizabeth Bishop and John Berryman I found for myself. They stay with me.

As I noted in an interview with Lynley Edmeades and Catherine Dale for Deep South (2013), ‘the way I hear’ line was determined by the jazz pianist Paul Bley in his solo piano recordings. In 1975 I bought his album Open, To Love (ECM, 1973). I heard someone who was not afraid to activate silence, who didn't feel the need to tumble through notes the way that pianists who play in more popular forms do… I'm amazed by Bley's ability to let you hear the melody he's not playing and that's what I've brought over to my poetry. Under each note there are those that aren't being played, yet Bley makes you aware of them too. I want that complex song from my poems.’ And I want that song, however complex, to be not only human but humane.” I’d love to hear a recording of Bley — will you recommend one? “The most influential Bley, for me, is his solo performance of ‘Nothing Ever Was, Anyway’. However the only online version I can find is with a trio, so I’ll go for his haunting rendition of ‘Closer’.”

And now (July 2016), hot off the press, the terrific news that you’ve been awarded the Pazin residency in Croatia for July 2017. Congratulations! What do you know of this opportunity, and did you have to outline a project in your application? “In March 2016 I read in Zagreb and Split as part of Goranovo proljeće 53, and had six poems translated from English into Croatian by Miroslav Kirin; as a former holder of a Writers House residency, he encouraged me to apply.

1) On the faces of children rain, scratches and egg-flecks;

on their hands the gloves of soldiers

I enjoyed working with Miroslav and his country(wo)men Dorta Jagic, Mateja Jurcevic, Sonja Manojlovic, and Marko Pogacar. I wanted to expand my understanding by composing a sequence of poems set in Croatia. So I applied, in good faith, but without much hope: who would listen to a poet from the bottom of the world? But I was lucky, they turned their heads my way. I cannot anticipate a poem, although I suppose this sequence will build upon my piece 'Social Studies' (from The Incomplete Poems, Cold Hub Press, 2011): 16

who never finished that letter

home. Cross the bridge quickly – there are sharpshooters on the rooftops.

Soon there are no rooftops.

2) Bursting like the hearts of martyrs direct hits on the hospital. A fifteen-minute hero

he lifts the baby clear of debris – but this is no ascending cherub from Tintoretto 4) and Serbian kids biff stones for the camera.

Through the slats of the shutters

White is best described by grey (Rozewicz).

that paper napkin

imprinted with his lips after the stray bullet hit –

There, where the fire escape

no better memento.

descends into black rubbish bags, He was strongest with words his stare rests like a magpie

and wine and the taste of sex, any body’s,

until she pulls him despite his reputation as a saint. back with her cleavage, her devil-may-care mouth

And the money under his mother’s floorboards.

and, finer than a martyr’s prayers,

her hair – it flickers with the flames.

Prague Castle

The Convent of St Agnes of Bohemia, Prague 18

Photography ~ David Howard ÂŠ 2016

St Vitus Cathedral, Prague 19

As you look back over the years, how would you describe the terrain of the poet ’s life (meaning your own)? “Since my teenage years poetry has been my way of placing my self in the world, and words have helped me reach beyond the confines of ego. I have worked parttime and seasonal jobs, signing off on the prospect of money and status, in order to act in good faith by writing. The process has often been solitary. If we measure the years since I turned 21, then I have been without a partner for 19 of them. However domestic silence has intensified my appreciation of conviviality in language, and my empathy has strengthened for being tested by loneliness. Poetry has always pointed the way towards understanding, even if I have frequently been uncertain how to read the signs. So I have kept writing, despite decades of isolation. As I noted in an interview with Tim Jones for the Australian journal, Cordite (March 2010): ‘It’s valorizing spin to quote Hofmannsthal, ‘Die andern wollten mich daheim zu ihrem Spiel,/ Mich aber freut es so, fur mich allein zu sein.‘ (‘The others

wanted me to join them in their games,/ But to roam freely and alone is what I like.’) Like everyone else, I need to work and play with people who are interested in what I do. After all, the faithless man discards himself.’ The attention has only come in my 50s, and it is properly attention for my work not my person. “

David Howard has published several collections, including ‘The Incomplete Poems’ (Cold Hub Press, 2011), which was 35 years in the making. Poems from his last four volumes have appeared in ‘Best New Zealand Poems’. He edited ‘A Place To Go On From: the Collected Poems of Iain Lonie’ (Otago University Press, 2015), which was named an outstanding book of the year. David has collaborated with the photographer Fiona Pardington, and the composers Brina Jez Brezavscek, Marta Jirackova, and Johanna Selleck. With Sandra Arnold, he co-founded the Christchurch literary journal Takahe (1989). 20

He also co-founded the Canterbury Poets Collective (1990, both of which have become literary institutions. Besides those mentioned in the article above, David’s honours include the University of South Pacific Poetry Prize (2011) and the Otago Wallace Residency (2014). His collection The Ones Who Keep Quiet was short-listed for the Kathleen Grattan Award (2016). He has read at the International Poetry Festival in Granada Nicaragua (2009), and Goronovo Proljece 53, Croatia (2016). •

*Patricia Prime writing in Poetry NZ 45 of Howard’s Incomplete Poems

Dean Nixon https://www.facebook.com/deannixonphotographer/

Ian Thomson https://www.flickr.com/photos/nzpix/ Prague City of Literature Residency Programme http://www.prahamestoliteratury.cz/en/ activities/writer-in-residence-program/

David Howard by remnants of the Berlin Wall 21

Â©Prague City Tourism

Old Town Square - Prague

A Picture of Prague UNESCO City of Literature Dunedin and Prague became the 8th and 9th (respectively) UNESCO Cities of Literature on the same day in December 2014. The City of Literature website states: “To receive a permanent UNESCO City of Literature designation cities must apply to UNESCO and meet and maintain exacting criteria. They must show that they have outstanding literary heritage, a vibrant contemporary scene, and importantly, that they are a city where their sector works collaboratively to grow and develop through their chosen artform, via capital development, cultural engagement programmes and international collaborations.” Links Prague City of Literature Dunedin City of Literature

Right: View of the Celetná Street and the Old Town

www.prague.eu 23

©Prague City Tourism

Sunset - Prague Castle 24

Â©Prague City Tourism

Prague castle in winter 25

Â©Prague City Tourism

The Broken Heartbreakers How We Got To Now

Photography ~ Caroline Davies ÂŠ 2016

Rachel Bailey 28

The Broken Heartbreakers How We Got To Now Story and Photography Caroline Davies

After flying out of Auckland in late 2010, Rachel Bailey and John Guy Howell, key members of The Broken Heartbreakers, haven’t looked back for the most part, other than to draw on their past lives here n’ there for the poetic lyrics inherent in their songs. Following a rather edgy and utterly challenging adventure throughout Europe, including a lengthy visit to Ireland, the couple who had met in 2002 through The Broken Heartbreakers and married in 2009 spent a couple of years in Melbourne before settling in Dunedin. Rachel, who was born in Ireland and moved to NZ’s North Island with her family at the age of six, lived many of her years in Auckland and John was originally from Dunedin. Rachel, “We both knew we didn’t want to go back to Auckland after our adventure and I’ve always loved the South Island. I feel very at home here, I love the weather, and I love the hills.” Now settled in their recently acquired happy and forever home, Rachel and John are appreciating their warm surroundings. “It’s been really amazing. My mum, who is my only immediate family, moved over from Melbourne,bought a house and arrived in Dunedin just a few days before our daughter was born and John’s family is here too.” 29

John Guy Howell

A view from the deck... 30

Photography ~ Caroline Davies ÂŠ 2016

However difficult their journey in the northern hemisphere was, it certainly inspired lyrics and music for their fourth fabulous album, “How We Got To Now” released in October of last year. Rachel: “Everything we write about is very personal and so ‘How We Got To Now’, is about how we got to here.” The band has also produced three other albums Wintersun - June 2010, The Broken Heartbreakers - December 2007 (also referred to as the red album and all analogue), and Everyone’s Waiting For Their Darlin in 2004. They also collaborated with Kiwi rapper Trillion, creating a track and music video titled Work whilst living in Melbourne. The Broken Heartbreakers’ music is described as folk/pop on their web site to give their style at least some idea for genre identification, but it is much more that. Apart from layers of pop, folk, and country influences, there is a shading of traditional Irish, a romantic and tender touch at times, and for added depth - some social commentary. It is smooth, musical, and elegant, seasoned with an occasional flavor of psychedelic for spice.

There is something nostalgic about their music too. You can listen to their songs any time for anything. A well rounded band with easy listening complexity and no square hole to define or confine them. Each album also includes guest players with a revolving door of top notch players, and that adds to their music’s texture as well. John: “It seemed like a really strange thing to say ten years ago - folk/pop but that’s what we started calling it”, and Rachel added, “I think if we released our first album now it would probably be more popular because folk and country is really in, but we were never in step with what was going on. It also depends on who has been in the band playing with us and how we sort through the arrangements of the songs with different band members.” Being somewhat obsessed with how people get to now, I couldn’t resist asking Rachel and John, “so how did you get to now?” I was interested in their influences as musicians in their formative years, Rachel began with her story: “I was born in Ireland and listened to a lot of Irish music growing up. My mother sang, played the guitar and wrote some really nice songs 31

too - I sound very much like my mother. I also listened to a lot of “old” music like Doris Day, Nina Simone, and Connie Francis. They are my favourite kind of voice. I like easiness. I don’t like affectation - I want realness. I dreamt of being a torch singer, like Cry on our new album, but I don’t usually write that way.” Before I’d heard The Broken Heartbreakers’ music, Rachel’s voice had been described to me as very pure, and it is that, an element of traditional Irish influences and heritage shines through: “I’ve always sang, and sang harmonies to whatever I was listening to. My mum taught me guitar. My sister and I would sing a lot together, and we often did experimental kinds of things. I didn’t really start writing songs beyond the few I’d written as a teenager until The Heartbreakers. I had a bad experience performing one day at our school talent quest and sang flat. I was just caught off guard. I ran off stage into a sound proof room and was inconsolable, and thought I’m never going to do that again. I didn’t perform until the Heartbreakers, fifteen years later. “

John: “I had no idea that Rachel had that experience. I heard that she could sing and I was pestering her to see if she would sing some songs I’d been writing. She said she would want to listen to demos before considering it, which I thought was quite staunch. I ended up recording the songs and putting them in her letter box. I didn’t hear back from Rach for quite some time. It was quite a big deal for Rachel to get singing in public again.”

"Tenderness: Everything Will Pass" Know you're not the only one With a black mark on your heart Time will heal you baby Everything will pass Know that I did think of you Lying in the dark Your eyes became the ocean

Rachel: “It was a huge deal. I remember walking around to John’s flat for the first practice with my guitar and I was crying the whole way. My sister had also died suddenly the year before and I thought, ‘well nothing can be as bad as that and I might as well do this because the worst has happened and how bad can it be’. So I just went and did it. In the end, The Heartbreakers became a place where I wasn’t the grieving person. No one else in the band knew about it, but my sister and I were very close and her death had become a very all-consuming part of my life - the music gave me a little space from the grief.

Everything will pass Let your heart bring out it's dead Everything will pass Everything will pass "Everything Will Pass" is the B side from the limited edition single Wake Up Monday (2008) Published on Nov 19, 2012 YouTube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nAXfN_mMG4A

In a way I was doing it out of bravery. I wasn’t writing songs initially, John did that, but when the second album, ‘The Red Album’, came along I ended up writing a few songs, including one which is a co-write. I wrote specifically around the circumstances of Lorna’s passing (August Mourning). It was like shining a light into the darkest corner and being able to say particular things no one else will know about. For me, it was really necessary, it was powerful and definitely healing too. And it continues to be that. The Heartbreakers have been a real help and a haven.” John: “And it’s what brought Rachel and I together as well. When we think about it, it’s kind of amazing. We just had our ten year anniversary on our togetherness.” John definitely has a leaning toward social issues as well. Sometimes subtle, and sometimes overt. Initially, he thought to call the band "The Sky City Heartbreakers" - a rebellious act to appropriate the symbol of everything he hated about the corporatisation of Auckland. “Rachel pointed out that not everyone would understand or share

my sense of humour and suggested ‘The Broken Heartbreakers’ instead. I’ve been working as a union organizer for the past five or six years and I think it’s quite a struggle choosing where and how to express myself. I feel it is a bit self-indulgent to write about your feelings when the world is going to hell, but I don’t want to be a political song writer either because that has its own limitations. I’m still trying to work out how to be an artist observing day to day what’s going on out there in the world and writing from a place that’s true. There has certainly been a lean over the last few years for The Heartbreakers’ songs to be about our lives, and some are also about what we saw in Ireland and how difficult it became there with the IMF bail out. The Revolution of the Wolves specifically, refers to what we now see in New Zealand. I’m thinking about the cyclical nature of life – there was the post-war consensus in that the western democracies were welfare states. In the last thirty years, New Zealand has been a laboratory for the ‘New Right’ that emerged in the eighties. In relationship to that, we’ve seen union membership drop internationally. As the labour movement has diminished in its power, income inequality has gone up, and the only way to stop me going into despair is to think of it as a cycle. It’s the revolution of the wolves. It’s the wolves that are in control at the moment, and the people in revolution, will in some way, shape or form, come around again.” John’s guitar playing sure is smooth and melodious. He also has a warm voice that is a superb complement to Rachel’s. Playing music with each other is a powerful part of their togetherness and friendship. John’s musical history is quite different to Rachel’s, who pointed out, “John has always been in bands, and this is the only band that I’ve been in.” 33

The Revolution of the Wolves I’m a one man strike in a one bar town Have to make my calls from higher ground Guess I’ll just keep calling until my signal’s found I’m a one man strike in a one bar town

I’ve struggled with the struggle but it’s true What could be the winning side don’t have a clue The inherent contradiction between labour and capital Never sleeps so how can I nap at all? I’m a one man strike in a one bar town

We’re living through the revolution of the wolves All I see is different shades of blue We’re living through the revolution of the wolves What else is a poor boy supposed to do?

John: “I played in a high school band called ‘The Tin Soldiers’ (a high school Rockquest winner in 1991that went on to release one album, Hell of a Time, on Pagan Records). We did quite well and were quite popular locally. Then I moved to Auckland and continued to play with friends from Dunedin in a band called ‘Alpha Plan’. We decided to go to London but it was pretty disastrous. I moved back to Auckland in the late nineties wondering if I was ever going to play music again, but then I started a new instrumental band called Salon Kingsadore, that is still going now. That was when I met Rach who was a friend of the bass player. We needed some vocals on a few tracks and when I heard Rachel’s voice I went ‘wow’. Hearing Rachel sing inspired me to start writing songs that would work with her voice. “ John’s musical influences from early on in his life were a little harder to pinpoint than Rachel’s. John: “It’s very hard to answer. I grew up listening to punk and post punk stuff but then I wondered what those genres were influenced by, and so I tracked back to sixties music. ‘They’ always call it the Gram Parsons’ doorway - you get into the Byrds, then you get into Gram Parsons, then you go, ‘oh shit, he’s playing kind of country stuff’, and then that opens another doorway and you start delving into country - so yeah - everything was an influence really. But also growing up in Dunedin, the Flying Nun stuff was influential too. I was at school and those guys were about ten years older, but from a school boy’s point of view they were doing incredible things like travelling around the world with their music. Photography ~ Caroline Davies © 2016

I was in awe of them and what they were doing, so I think that most probably comes through the songs a little bit as well.” With Rachel and John as its core, The Broken Heartbreakers are an enduring and flexible band. John: “Jeff Harford is our drummer, and Richard Pickard, who is also my cousin, came in to play bass on ‘How We Got to Now’. We think he’s one of the best players in New Zealand. He also plays with Nadia Reid and Julia Deans. Our friend, John White also did some overdubs on the record. ‘How We Got to Now’ was recorded at Jeff’s house, and our previous bass player, Mike Stoodley, who is actually an engineer, came down from Auckland to engineer it. We took five days to record at Jeff’s, and then did all the vocals and overdubs at home. Mike mixed it from Auckland for the most part. We went back and forward quite a bit, then he came down for a final weekend for the last passes. Rachel: “John and I have always been part of the mixing process. The Red Album was 100 per cent analogue - that was really cool too.” (and it is). With their present line-up, John Guy Howell (vocals, guitar), Rachel Bailey (vocals, guitar), and Jeff Harford (drums) make up The Broken Heartbreakers. Other talented musicians that have been part of the band are: Richard Pickard - electric and double bass, Sam Prebble - guitar, mandolin, Myles Allpress – drums, Mike Stoodley – bass, Matt Sandford drums, Ben Furniss - bass, Sonya Waters - keyboards, Ricky McShane - drums, and Gareth Shute - bass.

Rachel and John have had a full on journey throughout their musical lives - ups, downs, challenges, wins, losses, joy and sorrow, darkness and light - all the things that can be transformed into an expansive vessel containing rich materials for creativity, soul and inspiration. They have made good use of their raw materials, blending them all into their music that is quite wonderful and beautiful. Rachel and John, The Broken Heartbreakers, who I sat with in their beautiful forever home have landed in a very happy place, but it was all the things they experienced on their journey and the courage to continue when life was not feeling so great, that got them there!

http://thebrokenheartbreakers.com

Photography ~ Caroline Davies ÂŠ 2016

http://www.alienskin.com 38

Otago Harbour 40

Photography ~ Caroline Davies ÂŠ 2016

Reflections of Princes Street Th e Pa i n t i n g s of Maggie Ho l me s Story by Caroline Davies

“This 2016 exhibition is a series of work inspired by the heritage and

history of Dunedin architecture. By referencing elements of restrained realism and the cityscape displaced, we can explore well-known but little-regarded facades that we see often but seldom notice.

The buildings are staged alone, devoid of people, cars and street

furniture, reinforcing the sense of illusion produced by the flattened panoramic format.

The paintings are in acrylic on unframed, gessoed and battened

plywood panels. I used archival images and contemporary photographs for reference allowing features of different decades to coincide,

conjuring a prospect that can never be seen in reality but contains the

familiar and the forgotten, allowing the viewer to engage with a subject which evokes memories and a feeling of place.

I grew up in Dunedin and loved the imposing colonial grandeur of the

town. Returning after a lengthy period abroad, I was dismayed to find

many iconic buildings replaced by charmless nondescript structures. In 2012 I enrolled at the Otago Polytechnic to study for a Bachelor of Visual Arts.

Since graduating, I have used my artwork to highlight the inestimable value of the remaining street frontages of Dunedin.”

Maggie Holmes

Moray Gallery - Princes Street, Dunedin

Maggie Holmes

Photography ~ Caroline Davies

Capitol ~ Princes Street 41

Maggie Holmes ÂŠ 2016

Maggie Holmes’ painterly interpretation of Dunedin’s wonderful heritage buildings is how I see them in my own mind’s eye too. Every time I walk through the city, I take away the modern day distractions of advertising and bustling traffic and see the buildings in their prime state. I literally travel back in time with my imagination. The beautiful historical buildings, a legacy from the past, are a gift to us in present time and give this city its visual character and charm.

full of old Victorian and Edwardian gothic featured buildings that had been built during the gold rush. With their surplus money, many of the shopkeepers employed Italian architects whose buildings included intricate carvings and pediments. The buildings were full of design detail and I loved them as a child. I would look at all the faces on the buildings, the little features, the scenic pictures hidden within all the scenery.”

Although Maggie has been drawing and painting her whole life, creating beautiful paintings of the remainder of Dunedin’s heritage buildings is the culmination of decades of thought and her focal subject of a four year arts course at Dunedin’s Otago Polytechnic where she recently graduated with a Bachelor of Visual Arts Degree. Maggie: “We had to pick a subject that we would like to follow through for three of the four years and I chose architecture. I’m not a very precise painter and didn’t want to produce work like draftsmen’s drawings, I just wanted to get an impression of the buildings.

As a young woman, Maggie left New Zealand to travel overseas, but upon returning to Dunedin years later, she discovered that many of the buildings she loved had been torn down and new modern concrete structures had been put up in their place. “I thought it was tragic. So many treasures were lost that were irreplaceable. The new buildings were nondescript and the identity of Dunedin was being eroded by the desire to construct buildings that were the same as everywhere else in the world. I didn’t do anything about it at the time, I was working hard, and a few years later I moved to Italy.

I grew up in Dunedin when the town was

There I was again, in Italy, and enthused 42

with all the beautiful architecture there. I realized that although many of their buildings had been built centuries ago, they were similar to architectural styles in Dunedin that had been designed by the Italian architects during the Gothic revival. We had a version of the 16th, 17th, and 18th century Italian Palladein in Dunedin that was being lost. When I returned to Dunedin a few years later, I was inspired to do something about it, so I bought a camera and went around taking photographs of Dunedin’s heritage architecture. I had a visual record of the buildings I thought might well disappear in the near future.” Even without contemporary distractions, cars and people, Maggie’s interpretation of the buildings are recognizable and her paintings pull you in to take a closer look. Dunedin is a very walkable city, and this is the best way to appreciate the details of many of these buildings. “I want people to become aware of what is round them and look at Dunedin’s heritage buildings and say ‘oh yeah, Dunedin is a startling place with great character’. The more people who take the time and appreciate

Maggie Holmes ÂŠ 2016

Savoy ~ Princes Street 43

the architecture here, who look up beyond street level and see a statue or carving and recognize that building from another time, the less likely a building will disappear. Character used to exist in Christchurch in much the same way, but we’ve lost virtually all the Christchurch buildings to the recent earthquakes. It used to exist in Auckland and Wellington to a certain extent too, but they didn’t have the same kind of money at the time to build all the splendid buildings that we had built for us in Dunedin.

We have a goldmine in the buildings! Even during the 1970s, some members of the Dunedin City Council were talking about how valuable to the identity of Dunedin the buildings were long before there was a tourist industry here.” Tourists don’t normally frequent places that are homogenous. Why would you pay thousands of dollars and spend precious time on a vacation and go to places that look exactly like the one you live in. That is why the beautiful cities, towns and villages around the world that have maintained

Princes Street: From Left ~ Tip Top, Beggs, Capitol

their historic and heritage buildings are favourites of curious travellers. The most regularly visited destinations are also walkable, often providing pedestrian and cycling pathways where residents and visitors can appreciate a unique built environment. When you have an automobile driven culture, people can’t and don’t normally get out of their contained and insulated cars and take a look around. Driving necessarily means you need to be paying attention to the road, other vehicles, and traffic lights, everything else in one’s peripheral vision flashes by.

“I thought the best way to feature the buildings would be as a panorama as you can’t actually see them like that unless you stand opposite the building, take a look and then move along and take a look. There is also a feeling of ‘unreality’ emphasised by the panorama and the buildings become like a stage-set.” 44

“The fact that people are visually limited driving from their house to work and back again is part of the problem. If it is not a country drive they are not concerned with the scenery. Car cultures are also concerned about where to park their cars, so what do they do, they take a beautiful building and knock it down for a car park. I remember five or six buildings in particular that had real historical merit that were just flattened for parking lots. Some of which were not even multi story. When you have a beautiful building that’s been flattened for twenty or thirty cars - what’s the point of it?”

Even though Maggie spent much of her adult life away from art, alternatively working at other jobs and travelling, it was never quite put away. “I’ve always been able to draw. When I was young I loved drawing and wanted to be an artist, but when I was at school there were no opportunities where a woman could get a job as an artist. I thought I would get a job as a window dresser instead, but I was always turned down because it was not woman’s work with all the heavy lifting. I found it really difficult to find anything related to art. I ended up working at the medical school where I

was a laboratory assistant for quite a few years before I went overseas the first time. I turned my back on art in New Zealand. However, when I was overseas people would ask me to do paintings - they would give me photographs and ask me to paint their pets and children, so I would paint if I was asked, but it was just something to do in the evenings and and wasn’t anything I had a great desire to do full on by that time. It was just something I could do if I wanted.

Princes Street: From Left ~ Savoy, Humphreys, DIC

The size of Maggie’s dining room table defines the size of her paintings. “With the house I have there is nowhere big enough to put them up and see them in sequence until I get them into the gallery, so I’m restricted in size. These are the biggest ones I’ve painted, before that the paintings were quite small. Anything larger would be awkward as I paint flat onto the surface of the material I’m using. I become quite obsessive, it’s like doodling. I tend to keep going over and over the same bit again and I enjoy doing that, but it is also knowing when to say a painting is finished.” 45

Hallensteins ~ Princes Street 46

Maggie Holmes ÂŠ 2016

I would work as a housekeeper or waitress in hotels as I travelled around. When I lived in New Zealand I worked at Invermay Research Station as a field officer and field hand - I liked working out in the country. Then I worked at Cadbury’s (chocolate) factory.” After resettling in Dunedin and having worked at Cadbury’s for ten years, Maggie was offered a redundancy opportunity. Finally, fate knocked at Maggie’s door. “I was suffering from arthritis in my hands so I jumped at the chance when offered redundancy. When I went to apply for unemployment, they were wanting me to work in kitchens because of the hotel experience I’d had but I didn’t want to do that because of the RSI I had in my hands. So they said I would have to upskill and sent me to a computer course. It was the people at the course that suggested I go to Polytech and do an art degree. I should have done that years ago. The beauty of Dunedin, and most certainly the architecture was obviously made with a lot of money. The majority of business men back in the city’s early

days who had an enormous amount of wealth, were benefactors who put their money back into the city. They had grand houses and all the rest of it, but we are still reaping the benefits of their largess. If you want to make a lot of money, that’s fine, but today there are people who are willing and intending to take what they can get, take everything out, and return nothing.

the buildings - but the wonderful scenery, the more people will feel it is something worth keeping!”

You see it in America and England for example, where today expanses of houses with the same everything, the same house, the same drive, the same amount of small garden - everything is identical and repeated endlessly toward the horizon. I can see how people living in that environment would get unconcerned about their world because everywhere you look is the same.

+64 3 477 8060

I’ve really appreciated people saying how much they enjoy seeing the buildings represented in the style of my paintings. I think it is worthwhile. I also think many people are not aware of how entitled they are to have what we have here. The more people that are aware of the treasure on their doorstep - not only 47

Contact Maggie Holmes through:

Moray Gallery 55 Princes Street Dunedin, 9016 New Zealand

info@moraygallery.co.nz Footnote: This collection of Maggie Holmes’ work was sold out within the first few days of her exhibition in July, 2016 at the Moray Gallery on Princes Street, Dunedin. Maggie: “On the day the paintings were being hung someone came in and bought the three set series of the West Side of Princes Street. Then someone else came in a few days later and bought the Savoy ones on the East side. I had my doubts they would all be sold as one lot for each series I thought someone might like a particular building so there was always the chance that you would be left with an incomplete set but fortunately I have been blessed by people coming in and wanting them together.”

Beggs ~ Princes Street 48

Maggie Holmes ÂŠ 2016

DIC ~ Princes Street 49

The Sound of Her Guitar “Addiction and abuse are often two things that go hand in hand in cycles in families Music was like a salve, an ointment, a medicine” Donna Dean

A Film by Bill Morris

The Sound of Her Guitar began as a visual record of an award

Dunedin

winning country music artist’s tour through the American South with her band in 2013. However, it became so much more

Film

than that, and evolved into a compelling and important social documentary.

Maker

Bill Morris, has made an exceptional feature

Donna Dean’s life story revealed through The Sound of Her

length documentary about the music and life of Auckland based country singer/songwriter, Donna Dean.

Guitar, is not only about her music and tour through the

With ‘sold out’

Southwest of the United States, but there is also a powerful

screenings in Wellington at its world premiere and later in

theme around forgiveness and compassion. It is an authentic and real story of how a young woman who grew up in a family

Auckland as part of the Docedge Film Festival earlier this year, The Sound of Her Guitar, was included in the Festival’s Top

environment with alcoholism and domestic violence, ultimately

Ten Picks and won the Docedge award for Best Editing.

breaks the chains and cycles of shame, addiction and abuse

Donna Dean has won the New Zealand Country Music Album

passed down from one generation to the next.

Seeded and

of the Year twice (Money in 2004, and What Am I Gonna Do in 2011, plus a nomination for Best Country Album - Tyre

incubated as a child, then repeated as an adult, Donna’s story is a classic revelation of the dysfunctional family. The Sound of

Tracks and Broken Hearts in 2013. Her song, Destination

Her Guitar tells the story of a wounded human being who

Life was the title track of Rhonda Vincent’s Grammy nominated Bluegrass album). Loved and appreciated in Americana,

found salvation and healing through her gift of music.

country and folk circles around the world for her story based lyrics, music, voice, and because she writes her music and sings

The collaboration between subject and film maker gives us a profound experience that goes right to the heart. This is many a

from the heart. In a time when the core of country music needs

person’s story, and one not only found in New Zealand, but all

another name - “Americana” to differentiate it from much of what “country” has become today, Donna’s music holds its own

over the world. It wasn’t difficult to feel empathy, compassion,

without the Hollywood style of glamour and glitz, flash and pop, often found in contemporary popular country music from

film. Both Bill Morris and Donna Dean share this story with such openness and clarity, you can’t help but feel deeply moved

Nashville.

- most likely to tears.

and forgiveness right along with Donna whilst watching this

Donna Dean Photograph courtesy of The Sound of Her Guitar 52

Bill Morris is also a singer, songwriter and has two albums to his name, Hinterland (the title track was nominated as a finalist for the NZ Best Country Song of The Year, ) and Mud. Radio New Zealand describes him as a modern day balladeer. He also plays guitar and is a founding member of one of Dunedin’s top bands - Tahu and The Takahes. He grew up on a farm in the Rakaia Valley, Canterbury, not too far north of Dunedin, and now lives in Port Chalmers, a charming enclave known for its creative community built above the winding shores of Otago Harbour. Drawn by the Science Communication Course at Otago University, Bill moved south to Dunedin in 2005. Back then, the course was called the Natural History Film Making Diploma and was the beginning of Bill’s involvement with film and television. In between then and now, he gained topnotch experience working with NZNH (New Zealand Natural History). Bill: “I’ve always had an interest in nature and story telling and I’ve also worked as a journalist (including the occasional story in New Zealand’s National Geographic). Song writing is important to me too and so I already had

an interest in making a film about music. When John Egenes (musician, music producer and lecturer at Otago University) asked me if I would like to film Donna and her band’s tour in America, I didn’t have to think for too long.” Actually, Bill jumped at the chance with no pay for the anticipated experience. He took the project on as a holiday because he knew it would be an amazing trip with John involved, a relatively long time friend and music collaborator. “John and I have been in Dunedin for about the same amount of time. I put a notice on a community board back in my early days to see if anyone wanted to start a country band and I got a reply back from John. When we sat down for a coffee and started talking about what we like, I realized John was in a whole different league having kicked around with musicians like Townes Van Zandt and Guy Clark (who recently passed on), amongst others. That was the start of our friendship. I knew it would be a great trip from the stories he had told over the years, and he knows the area really well. I wasn’t disappointed. It was a trip of a lifetime really.” 53

And that’s how it all started with The Sound of Her Guitar. “I had this footage of the tour and didn’t know what I was going to do with it. I didn’t really feel like I had a full on film as there wasn’t enough material to sustain a feature length documentary. It was mostly footage of people playing gigs, sitting in cars and going to restaurants. What I did know was that Donna had this backstory and I was sure it would make a profound story, and so I was given a grant from Creative New Zealand to continue. I travelled up to Auckland and interviewed Donna who was very open and candid. Once I started putting it altogether, I knew I had a film. You might not know how an audience will respond, but when we started showing it to people, I certainly knew it had been worth making.” Apart from his half hour student film, plus his experience with NZNH, The Sound of Her Guitar is Bill’s first full length feature documentary. I asked how Donna felt about the film when she saw it. “She is thrilled with it. She had her worries as you would, and concerned that people might

think she was ‘moaning’.” There is a difference between a ‘moan’ and voicing a powerful story that is otherwise endured silently by so many. It is an all too common experience of suffering that needs to be addressed and healed. Violence begets violence, and it doesn’t stop until one person has the courage and conviction to say, “I see it, and it ends with me!” Donna is fortunate - she had an inner will to heal, and the grace to see with her heart, ultimately breaking the generational pattern. Her psychic chains of sorrow were brought into the light of day and torn apart. The cycle stopped with her. I became a fan of Donna Dean’s when I saw this film. Not only did I learn about and come to appreciate the soul of Americana through her music, but I admired her courage to shed light on a human issue deeply embedded in our communities and global society. Many people don’t realize how pervasive it is because they’ve been spared the experience in childhood, or more commonly, those who’ve experienced that level of pain, can’t or just don’t want to talk about it.

When a child has absorbed the patterns of abuse and addiction, as adults, they are often unaware or unconscious of the contributing factors when they find their lives falling apart - the source of which all too often has nothing much to do with the present. That was really apparent for me as I was watching this film. And I cried (I wasn’t the only one). I thought it courageous to confront this dark and painful shadow and show there is a way, and more than one way, to move forward and heal. Humans can be a pretty violent lot really, habitually unaware of how it is played out in everyday life. Humanity’s dark and destructive side, with its various forms of “lesser” violence, violation, disrespect for self and others, is expressed on a daily basis and much of it is considered normal and totally acceptable. John Egenes must have had an inkling that there was the potential for a powerful film, but actually Bill wasn’t quite sure what John was wanting out of the film as they set out on their journey to America’s Southwest. “I think John knew it was going to be a great tour - maybe he just wanted it recorded - or maybe he felt there was a bigger story to be told. He 54

is a huge Donna Dean fan and knows she is world class. He sees her as being up there with the best of American songwriters. John is also very interested in film as well as music, and he is really good at bringing people together and making things happen.” In the grand design of building the project, the film was not scripted. “We ended up doing three different interviews at three different times which is normal for a project like this. We would do an interview and I built the film from that. That’s the way I work and I think my forte in film making - an interview driven style of film. It’s how I get the bones of a film. Donna had a clear vision from the beginning of what she would reveal and share. That’s what kept us going at times. I would ring her up at all hours asking ‘why am I doing this?’. Ultimately we knew there was a strong story to be told which was far beyond about Donna promoting her career. So we just kept going.”

Photograph courtesy of The Sound of Her Guitar

Donna Dean and John Egenes on tour

“Your’e taking something from a different part of the world to a completely new audience - having that connection with people makes feel like I’m part of something - part of something really worthwhile” Donna Dean - The Sound of Her Guitar

Not only is this a revealing story, but the film demonstrates how important creativity, and in this case, music is. Art, whichever discipline, can make you dig deep and reach high, the shadow and light of an artist’s canvas, a song, a film, a poem, a dance, a story. Hopefully, this film will reach many other people who might see themselves in the mirror and realize it is possible to find healing and resolution - I’ve heard the process also referred to as reclaiming the soul. “We have already seen that, and for Donna it is a big thing. The prevalence of domestic abuse has certainly been an eye opener for me. You screen a film and you get a lot of people coming up to you saying it’s a great documentary, and they appreciated it, but it’s the people who come up a couple of days later who then tell you that was their story too that is impactful, because they know exactly what Donna is talking about. We had an experience down in Gore where hardly anyone came to the screening. We were both feeling a bit dejected. But there was one person in the audience who was strongly affected by

the film. Donna spent quite some time talking with her and said, ‘now I know why we came to Gore’.

and so you seek the highest level of technical standards. So yeah, it was a good training ground in that sense.

I feel privileged to have been given the opportunity to make this film and get to know Donna. You can get a little disillusioned and jaded working in television, but to work on a project that has positive benefits for other people was really life changing. It gave me a sense of purpose to what I was doing and want to do with my own life. I’ve spent quite a few years just working away earning money and wondering what the hell I was doing, although in hindsight I can see I was learning skills that I needed in order to make this film.”

After feeling disjointed and tugged in different directions with music, film and a few other things in life, this project has pulled other matters together for me too. I feel a lot more peaceful on a personal level having communicated this story to people, and The Sound of Her Guitar has united my own frayed and tangled life!”

It is indeed a high quality film. Besides a compelling narrative and fantastic music, it is excellent on a technical level with excellent attention to detail. “That’s what comes from working in a television environment. You have to pay very close attention to detail. The discipline of having to make a really tight t.v. show demands that and you’ve got to be ruthless in cutting it down to time. The people you work for demand that of you 56

http://www.thesoundofherguitar.com

The Sound of Her Guitar The Band Donna Dean Jane Clark - fiddle John Egenes - pedal steel, acoustic guitar, mandolin John Dodd - bass and Pip Walls and Stephen Downes as additional camera operators

Twister he looked up from her body put his hand to his head saw the blood on his fingers I knew that she was dead she was lying on a pillow of butter yellow lace her golden hair all crimson crushed across her face why’d you do it John take her life like that she was all I had you knew that why’d you do it John take her life like that she was all I had I want my mother back she was kind and simple he was cold and sad he’d rage like a twister when me and my mother laughed when he started drinking he’d call my mother names then when he got fired he said she was to blame

from the album Tyre Tracks & Broken Hearts track released October 12, 2012 Credits Marcel Rodeka: drums John Dodd: bass Donna Dean: lead vocal, acoustic guitar John Egenes: pedal steel, mandolin, acoustic guitar Gunther Flutney: banjo Jane Clark: fiddle Lynn Vare & John Egenes: harmony vocals

Lyrics by Donna Dean 57

Link

Photography ~ Caroline Davies ÂŠ 2016

Kereru

Story ~ Down In Edin Magazine Photography Courtesy Arts Festival Dunedin

Once every two years for ten or so days, Dunedin celebrates arts and culture with the fabulous Arts Festival Dunedin. Renowned for its quality, each festival includes highly accomplished artists from Dunedin, other regions of New Zealand and from around the world. A ‘boutique festival in a boutique city’, Arts Festival Dunedin is a cross cultural cornucopia of imagination, delight, originality, and inspiration. You will find Musings, Theatre, Dance, Music, Comedy, Visual Arts and Special Events to feed your soul with thought, your spirit with inspiration, broaden your mind, make you laugh and fill your heart with joy.

Frank Gordon’s painting City of magic and song was commissioned by the Festival for the cover of the Festival programme. The painting is now up for auction with proceeds going to Arts Festival Dunedin. Bids can be placed at Gallery De Novo 101 Lower Stuart Street, Dunedin, where the painting is on view. The auction will close at 3pm Sunday 9 October

Stretching into the school holidays, there are also events that are great for the family - for people of all ages too. This year’s festival presents 38 different events over ten days and nights in venues located throughout the city that suit each event for its size and content. Venues include the Town Hall, Regent Theatre, Fortune Theatre, Glenroy Auditorium, Mayfair Theatre, Otago Museum’s Hutton Theatre, Kavanagh Auditorium, Olveston House, The Octagon, Athenaeum, St. Paul’s Cathedral, and Dhargyey Buddhist Centre amongst other locations. Many of Dunedin’s fine art galleries are holding special exhibitions - the Dunedin Public Art Gallery, Gallery De Novo, The Artists Room, Milford Galleries, Moray Gallery and Bellamy’s Gallery in Macandrew Bay. Arts Festival Dunedin begins 30th September and continues through to 9th October, 2016. For programme details you can find booklets placed around the city or visit the festival’s website at:

Arts Festival Dunedin Programme

Michele A’Court Stuff I Forgot to Tell My Daughter When her daughter got a job and went flatting, Michele spent the following months remembering all the things she forgot to tell Holly – such as how to store ginger, get rid of bloodstains, calculate GST, the meaning of feminism … that sort of thing. Stuff I Forgot to Tell My Daughter is the result of these musings and is full of hilarious lessons for us all. Michele was voted Female Comedian of the Decadeby the NZ Comedy Guild. Link

Michael Leunig in Conversation St Paul’s at One opens with a rare chance to hear from one of Australia’s national living treasures. Much-loved international cartoon artist and ‘deep thinker’, Michael Leunig will ruminate on his life and works. His audience at St Paul’s will enjoy a charmed talk as he provides a window into his creative mind. Link

Michael Leunig What I have Found to Be True For one intimate night at the Glenroy, Michael Leunig will reflect and open up a discussion with his audience about some of his much-loved cartoons; how they speak to him and his readers about the profound mysteries of life and the simplest of joys, thoughts and emotions. Link

Live Live Cinema: Little Shop of Horrors While Roger Corman’s 1960 film, Little Shop of Horrors, plays on stage, four actors/musicians work at break-neck speed to re-voice multiple characters in perfect lip synch whilst playing a brand new score and creating live sound effects. With our stars leaping from piano to guitar, bass to door bell, to that thing that makes the sound of footsteps - this is LIVE LIVE CINEMA’s most dangerous 4-D movie yet. It’s a wild ride - where you gonna look? Link

Sheridan Harbridge: Songs For the Fallen Songs for the Fallen, set in 19th century Paris, is a glittering piece of cabaret-style music theatre charting courtesan Marie Duplessis’s life from poverty to infamy. This is the wild and hilarious tale of a woman who knew one thing: good girls don’t make history. Link

Caterpillars Caterpillars is a magical show filling the stage with a swaying sea of bright giant flowers, flitting butterflies, jumping eggs and two enormous plump caterpillars. Created by Finnish director/designer Thomas Monckton and Kallo Collective, and beautifully produced by Show Pony, Caterpillars is a charming and clever show - a standout for kids and adults alike. Link

Oxo Cubans: The Sound of a Billion Dreams This iconic local band has been entertaining Dunedin and South Island audiences for over 20 years in the huge variety of guises and genres that is the Oxo Cubans. In their first appearance at the Festival they will front a six-piece ensemble with a bluegrass gospel feel to round off the celebrations. Link

Dunedin Symphony Orchestra Gallipoli to The Somme Dunedin Symphony Orchestra brings its 50th anniversary year to a climax with the world première of the latest major work by prolific New Zealand composer, Dunedin’s Anthony Ritchie. Gallipoli to the Somme takes its title from Alexander Aitken’s book written about his war experiences in the Otago Battalion. Aitken’s perspective binds the structure of the composition together. A fine violinist, Aitken took his instrument to war with him and the sound of his solo violin pervades the piece. Link

The Devils Half-Acre The Devil’s Half-Acre is set in the slums of gold rush era Dunedin, when the powerhouse of New Zealand lay south of the Waitaki River rather than north of the Bombay Hills. This Faustian tale plays out against a backdrop of political maneuvering in the new colony, including Julius Vogel’s role in Dunedin politics while editor of the Otago Daily Times. The Devil’s Half-Acre is created by Trick of the L i g h t , t h e t e a m w h o d e l i g h t e d a u d i e n c e s throughout NZ (and the world) with The Bookbinder. After a sell-out première season at the New Zealand Festival in March, The Devil’s Half-Acre comes home to where it all took place. This new work, with live music, is early Dunedin’s story. Link

Toitū Otago Settlers Museum 70

Toitū Otago Settlers Museum Jennifer Evans and

A Slice of Life Story and photographs by Caroline Davies and ‘A Slice of Life’ photography by Clive Copeman

Dunedin’s Toitū Otago Settlers Museum is a treasured storehouse that contains historical and contemporary aspects of life in Otago. The museum is listed by Trip Advisor as one of Dunedin’s most frequented places by tourists and locals and was Trip Advisor’s “Traveller’s Choice” 2015 winner. The latest review I found about the Toitū listed on Trip Advisor’s web site in August 2016 reflects that.

“Wow what an amazing place! Right from when I set foot in the door I was mesmerised - it is one of the best museums I've visited in NZ. Everything is beautifully presented and I really enjoyed looking, reading & experiencing the interactive exhibitions. Lots of families visiting, plenty to keep everyone interested. Wish I had allowed more time to visit here.”

Jennifer Evans, Toitū’s Director for just over two years, has been an influential guiding force as part of the museum’s team since 2010. A museum is like walking into a 3 dimensional book really, and Jennifer is passionate about the Toitū Otago Settlers Museum and the stories it tells. It is not only the objects and artifacts that reveal the history of Otago, but the people who work in and visit the museum have their own stories to share too. 71

Jennifer Evans ~ Director, Toitū Otago Settlers Museum

Born and raised in the Dunedin south-side suburb of Caversham, Jennifer also represents a part of Dunedin’s past, present and future. “I think as a part Māori girl (although raised Pakeha) from Caversham, whose parents split up when I was seven at a time when we were the only kids at school that didn’t have two parents together, that we were very poor, and that I’ve been wearing a hearing aid since I was three - I’ve done O.K. I might not have had the best start in the world, but it’s the experiences you have growing up that make you who you are today. What I really remember the most about my childhood in Caversham was the carefreeness - we had no responsibilities. I remember the bright sunny days with nothing in particular to do, but by the end of the day I had gone cycling down to St. Clair with my group of seven girlfriends, or I would make hand crafted batiks with my mother. I remember my mother putting herself through university and teaching herself mechanics so she could take care of our car. I remember being brought up to be independent and that girls can do anything, and that if you put your mind to ‘it’, you can do it! We lived in a big old wooden house in the flat area where you could feel the earth quaking, and there would be ice on the inside of the windows because we couldn’t afford to heat it. We try not to have that happen now, but with all that, I had a really happy childhood with lots of good memories. Those good memories have sustained me for life.”

Photography ~ Caroline Davies ÂŠ 2016

Looking over South Dunedin, Otago Peninsula, Otago Harbour and St. Clair and St Kilda beaches in the distance to the right, Caversham is to the left. 73

A devout optimist, Jennifer is a huge advocate for Dunedin and feels the city still has similar lifestyle qualities to the days of her childhood. “Dunedin is still a really good lifestyle choice. It has all the amenities you would want of a big city, but here you can walk everywhere, and we don’t have traffic issues as in most other cities around the world - rush hour is ten minutes and maybe sitting through one light.” As a young woman, Jennifer moved to the North Island, worked in museums for five years, and then moved to Glasgow in Scotland for ten years where she raised her two children. Jennifer is really happy to be back. “I think Dunedin is fantastic. We are the centre of our own universe. I love how the City Council describes Dunedin as the world’s greatest small city. I wanted to come ‘home’ from the time my youngest daughter was born and I want my parents to be grandparents. Glasgow is not a place to bring up children compared to what the lifestyle is here.”

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Circles and Cycles in Life “I’m a great believer in circles and cycles in life. You come round full circle and often land right back where you started from, but you are in a better place and can appreciate things more. You rediscover things about yourself.” For Jennifer, that full circle, along with a fresh perspective, includes reconnecting with museums where she started out just before entering university, rediscovering her passion for roller skating and cycling. “I got back on those skates after a very long time and hadn’t forgotten anything. I love it. I’m pretty much back to where I was when I was nineteen, and that gives me a really good sense of accomplishment. I’m an eternal optimist and I see the glass as not just half-full, but filled with sparkly wine. I love Instagram and I’m always taking photographs of ordinary things that I see as bright and colourful through the lens. I’ll be walking flat tack up the hill for a meeting and suddenly I’ll whip out my phone and take a photo of something that catches my eye that I hadn’t noticed before. Sometimes you’ve got to slow down, take a look around 74

you, and appreciate something you have seen regularly for the last five years. I think that is the beauty of the museum as well. I learn something new about Dunedin every day! My first museum job was with Otago Museum. I was 18 and it was a summer job before I started university to study anthropology and archaeology with the intention of becoming an archaeologist. I spent much of that time doing archaeological site-surveying on the Otago Peninsula, as well as classifying fish hooks and other objects in the bowels of the museum, often doing very dull routine museum work, but that whole experience was a ‘wow’. I changed my mind that summer and decided to become a museum curator. The atmosphere and people employed there with the passion they felt for their work was incredibly inspiring. They really cared about what they did. Although it was a bit more academic in mood then, I really liked the fact that these people were passionate about their subjects.”

Jennifer has circled back to a perfect and very happy niche in her life. It also makes a difference to have someone with a positive attitude and appreciation of a work place in a leadership role. Loving what you do in life not only uplifts oneself, but others around you. “I absolutely love the museum. I had been the Visitor Experience Manager here through most of the recent development and when the opportunity came up for the Director’s role I knew that this is what I wanted to do. What I love about Toitū is being part of people’s everyday lives. The museum is making a difference and people are connecting with something here. I read the Trip Advisor reviews and I go ‘wow’.”

Wheels of Destiny Following A Dream “After graduating with a Masters degree

in Archaeology, I moved to the North Island and worked in the Gisborne Museum & Arts Centre for nine months and although I felt isolated there I learned a great deal. You had to do everything in the museum. You were also closely connected with the community

- particularly the Māori community. From there, I went to Te Awamutu Museum and became the director at the young age of 26.” During her tenure as Director of Te Awamutu Museum, Jennifer became one of the first graduates of the new Diploma in Museum Studies course run extra-murally from Massey University. It was a challenging and incredibly valuable time. “It was really hard work and very worthwhile. I learned a lot during that course! It’s like they say, you learn outside your comfort zone, and sometimes you’ve got to expand those boundaries. I ask myself, ‘Can I do that? Yes, I can do that’ and I’ll give it a go. If it doesn’t work I’ll examine why it didn’t work and either fix it, do it again differently, or not do it at all if it’s not going to work. I always look for ways to improve what I’m doing.” A philosophy that Jennifer also applies to running the Museum. “We are always looking for ways to improve on what we are doing here too, and we have that leeway. Some things we’ve tried we’ve never done again, or other things like Toddler Time are really successful. 75

We improve what’s working or do them more often and grow our audience that way. We go for what works.” There is a strong creative team employed at the museum and they are certainly not short on good ideas. Neither was the design company responsible for the recent renovations at the Toitū. “We were lucky to work with ‘Workshop e’. They helped us realize our ideas and gave us a new frame to work through. They gave us a professional edge and high standards. We had once chance to get it right - we aimed high and now we have really good bones in the museum.” As well as being like a 3-D book, a museum is also a multi dimensional palette dealing with past, present and future. A leadership role requires vision for the future based on past experiences and keen observation of trends. “I really like the Māori concept that you are backing into the future. You are backing into the future because you can’t see what’s coming, but you have your arms out encompassing all your past. That’s what is really in front of you as you can see your past, and so you are walking backwards into the future.

I like to think I’m facing forwards, but sometimes you find yourself going backwards with no idea where you are going, but you do know where you’ve been. You’ve got good strong roots, and you know what you’ve been through to get to this point. I like the fact that you’ve gathered your past and your ancestors, and you take them with you. They are never not there.” Jennifer’s Māori ancestral line comes from the far north of Aotearoa, almost the opposite end of the country. “My mum comes from Pakotai, way up north of Whangarei in the countryside and is part Ngāpuhi. Her family were like the Pakeha kids at school because they were only 1/8 Māori. It’s not been something I talk a lot about because I’ve grown up Pākeha with four grandparents from all over the place - from Pakotai, Glasgow, Birmingham and London. I think of my culture and home, tūrangawaewae, as Dunedin - but I am also aware of my Māori ancestors, and with many relatives who still live up north, it is part of who I am. I have set a challenge to myself to learn to do the Poi and roller skate at the same time - a cross cultural pollination. “

Talking about her own diverse cultural background brought Jennifer to a moment of appreciating the tolerant community in Dunedin for cultural diversity, and was really glad the city had such a positive response to taking in refugees and giving them a new home. “I think life is about giving back too”. Jennifer also sits on the Gasworks Museum Board, and until until recently was also on the Trust for the school for gifted children that has now been taken over by Dunedin North Intermediate: Pakiki Kids, and on the committee for the Otago Association for Gifted Children. “It’s also about being passionate for things that matter. There might be parts of a job you don’t enjoy doing, but you still need to get it all done. I like the philosophy of ‘eat the frog in the morning’ - get it all done and out of the way and give yourself the reward of doing something you really enjoy later on. There are a lot of good philosophies out there on how to live your life and get the most out of it. Happiness is very underrated. I think it’s also about quality of life, and always about quality over quantity!” 76

Inside The Museum The Working Design of the Museum and

A Slice of Life The Dunedin Study

Slice of Life Exhibition Entrance

Photography ~ Clive Copeman

Visitors are able to discover some of the key scientific findings from the world renowned study, as well as explore the social context of this age group through the decades. 77

The Toitū Settlers Museum staff and board appreciate that the number of people who visit the museum are massively important for its success and have done extensive research on how museums work. “Our core audience are local families who are repeat visitors, and based on that, we’ve made several core decisions. Some of those choices for example, are not having a specific children’s area where parent’s leave their children and go off to do their own thing. Instead, we have displays which engage the whole family as well as discreetly placed peep holes around the exhibits for children to feel entertained whilst their parents are taking in other aspects of a display. We have found it really holds their interest. Although we include special holiday activity sheets, our ethos is to keep the family together. We also include trails that are considered quite hard, but our answer to that is that the parents are meant to help. Fair enough if kids are old enough to figure them out - usually 10, 11, and 12 year olds, but up to that age it encourages families to stay together and play together. It gets families to work on solving problems together.

We also choose text hierarchy carefully. Something like 80% of text on a wall in a museum is not read by most people. However, based on research done by the Te Papa Museum in Wellington, when a person is walking past something without stopping they can take in around 30-50 words. That means the magic number for an object label with 30 to 50 words works well with one or two photos, preferably with the text in the middle. So we have fewer words to take in at the beginning of an exhibit and more at the end. We have a hero object, sub topics and separate word panels that will tell a little more about the story. If a visitor is really interested in an object they will stop and read more about that object, and if they are not a reader, they still have some meaningful information to take in.

Slice of Life In 1975, health researchers from the University of Otago began studying a group of 1,037 children born in Dunedin in 1972 and 1973. This was the Dunedin Multidisciplinary Health and Development Study (known as the Dunedin Study) and participants have regularly returned over the past four decades for assessments that investigate health and development factors. This study has become renowned as one of the most significant projects of its kind in the world. Museum Curator Seán Brosnahan says, “The study’s research across a variety of sectors, including

It is quite a long walk through Toitū and a visitor will take in hundreds of words by ambling through without even stopping. Every time a visitor comes into the museum they will discover something new and different that’s been there all the time. 78

health, education, social development and justice, has resulted in significant findings that have changed thinking and laws in New Zealand and across the globe.”

1990s Student Room

Photography ~ Clive Copeman

1980â&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Childâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Bedroom

The Exhibit

As part of the exhibition, there is a 1970s lounge featuring elements of early childhood and primary school, the 1980s bedroom is focused on the teenage years, the 1990s set mimics a student flat of that era and the lounge from the following decade will reflect the time of buying a house and having a family. Photography ~ Clive Copeman

Also, we try to include the human aspect story alongside the object’s story. Who the people were connected with the object and what motivated them.

who are telling and sharing stories but not telling a visitor what to think.”

Another aspect of Toitū which is not so obvious is that we don’t do much internal signposting. We don’t tell you what you are going to see and think. We put the information out there and let you make up your own mind. We encourage the visitor to feel like an explorer. It’s a really good feeling observing people who discover something for the first time and see the excitement on their faces.

“Nicholas Poole describes what we do in museums as being in the ‘peace’ business - that we are in the business of tolerance and racial equality. We are about our different ethnic diversities and that is part of our agenda too. Every culture is important. There are many diverse strands of culture that make the people of Dunedin as we are. We have Ngai Tahu, Scottish and Chinese, and we also have Lebanese, Polish, German, Jewish - so many different ethnic diversities - including the recent arrival of the Syrian refugees. We have so many different threads of humanity here, and by putting history on the walls and showing everybody’s part in that history, we have created a place that is about tolerance and understanding. It also becomes a place to appreciate our diversity and different people’s contribution to society.”

In our 20th Century Gallery, most objects which are displayed are within living memory. We had wondered how to bring the experience of ‘wow’ to the public, and although we have some captioning, the audience can tell the story themselves, and they do. It is heartwarming when you see a grandparent telling the story of an object with family members, or sharing stories about that object with people they have never met before. We are not the curatorial voice of old, we are facilitators

Museums As a Place of Peace

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A Sense of Wonder “We consider carefully what people can get out of an exhibition. We do a serious amount of research, and then we work to make that research accessible. We also love the “F” word here. FUN! If it’s not fun why are we doing it? If a day is feeling a bit tedious I suggest to staff to turn off their computer for a while and take a walk on the floor, especially during school holidays where you can really see a sense of enjoyment from young people who are appreciating something that person has designed or helped build. Our current exhibit, ‘A Slice of Life’, is a great example. It is a very serious, renowned and internationally recognized study that came from Dunedin with some amazing discoveries. How do we get people to appreciate that? So we created ‘room sets’ from the 70, 80, 90’s on one side of the gallery, and on the other side we share some of the scientific findings that have been learned from the study. ‘A Slice of Life’ tells us about ourselves in Dunedin, and that relates to life all around the world. Continues Page 82

1970s Lounge

Photography ~ Clive Copeman

2000s Living Room

Photography ~ Clive Copeman

“We have been number one on

Our vision for the future is to keep up the high standards. The museum is about being real, welcoming, authentic, genuine and well researched. We need to stay up to date with technology and will use that to our advantage, but we are providing something real and solid, not a virtual reality.

Trip Advisor for Dunedin for the past two years which is fantastic. We get great reviews and have really great visitor numbers. After redevelopment we had a target of 180,000 visitors per year, but that number has grown to around 303,000 in the last financial year. “

We are a team here which is greater than the sum of our parts and we create together. Each person contributes their bit and the end product is better than we could have created by ourselves. We produce some stunning award winning work and have been a consistently high performer. Seeing a public of happy faces though, is priceless!”

“The Toitū Otago Settlers Museum is part of the Dunedin City Council and part of the Arts and Culture Group and is funded by ratepayers. Auckland Museum did a major study and worked out that for every dollar they put into an exhibition they receive $4.66 back in cultural value, so our 7 million dollar budget can be measured in cultural value to the city as around 32 million dollars in terms of bringing

31 Queens Garden Dunedin 9016

visitors in, paying contractors, civic pride, providing for school groups and families that come and spend

03 477 5052 http://www.toituosm.com

Open 10 - 5 daily except Christmas Day 82

in the area - it all adds up.”

Toitū Otago Settlers Museum 83

From ! se"es: Along ! Harb$r Shore

Photography ~ Caroline Davies ÂŠ 2016

The incredibly beautiful Otago Harbour is used for commercial shipping, sailing, rowing, kitesurfing, windsurfing, bird watching, and, a seen by this photo, sport watching, amongst other things. Fun, challenge, intensity - powered by wind on Otago Harbour, Dunedin. 84

Photography ~ Caroline Davies ÂŠ 2016

As well as miniature sailing boats and windsurfers criss crossing the harbour, there were several kitesurfers out on the harbour this blustery spring day, taking on and being lifted up by the wind. 85

Photography ~ Caroline Davies ÂŠ 2016

A spectacular day for kitesurfing 86

Photography ~ Caroline Davies ÂŠ 2016

Amazing! 87

Night Sky City Star Sanctuary by Ky r a X a v i a Dunedin offers some rather special experiences due to its location and lay of the land. Not only do we have enviable world-class dark skies not far from the city centre, where the magical Magellanic clouds are visible on clear nights all year round – we’re also located close enough to the auroral oval to see the southern lights (or aurora australis) dance in the sky. Surrounded by such beauty, it makes sense locals have an affinity with the heavens. We have our very own Beverly-Begg Observatory with which to appreciate it, and also a new educational planetarium at the Otago Museum. Now, thanks to a progressive, forward thinking council, and a visionary idea involving the Portion of Large Magellanic Clouds HubbleSite.org Link

future streetlight retrofit – there’s even more to get excited about. 88

Stellar Exodus Hubble Site.org Link 89

“More than 80% of the world (population) live under light-polluted skies. The Milky Way is hidden from more than one-third of humanity.” The New World Atlas of Artificial Night Sky Brightness. Fabio Falchi et al. 2016.

Left: The Lights of Europe NASA - 27th March 2012 Link 90

If we light our city smartly, Dunedin can become the first internationally recognised Night Sky City in the southern hemisphere, renowned for treasuring its nightscape and being a sanctuary for the stars. This special designation will provide numerous economic, social and cultural benefits bringing many more visitors to the region, boosting the economy, providing jobs, and supporting local businesses and tour operations. It will also enhance our reputation as the wildlife capital of New Zealand, and distinguish us further as a must-visit destination. A visible night sky rich with twinkling stars and a luminous Milky Way is an asset of immeasurable worth, one which will only increase in value as the Earth continues to brighten from light pollution. (Access to the night sky is so important (and at risk), it has been recognised as an inalienable human right by UNESCO.) When we deny the importance of half

our environment (the sky), and our diurnal biology (which needs darkness for rest, recovery and rejuvenation), we also deny our essential nature and our place in the Universe. Life without natural darkness and starlight is a terrible loss and the consequences touch us all.

Research reveals the role of colour in lighting is far more important and complex than previously thought. Of particular concern, is the disruptive blue light emitted from white LEDs, which interferes with the circadian clock responsible for our sleep/wake cycles.

This means the prevention of light pollution is no longer a priority solely for special parks and endangered wildlife. Nor is the night sky just for astronomers, night sky enthusiasts and astrophotographers. The stars belong to everyone and reducing skyglow is something every town, city and ecosystem can benefit from.

With 75% of the world’s population exposed to light during the night, the high incidence of shift work, the prevalence of blue-rich LEDs, and the fact young teenagers and older people are particularly susceptible to blue wavelengths of the light spectrum, artificial light is becoming recognised as a serious health problem.

For years, we’ve taken artificial light for granted, unaware of its impact, and we cannot afford to keep wasting energy the way we have in the past, spilling light into the atmosphere without regard. Although we have somewhat improved our understanding and use of light, we still have much to learn and even more to do – and it’s not as simple and clear cut as switching to energy efficient white LEDs.

It’s a myth that brighter is better and the more light the merrier because it increases visibility, security and safety. The truth is, bright lights do NOT deter crime, increase safety or reduce traffic accidents. And as photographs taken from the International Space Station prove, contrary to claims by the lighting industry, we now also know white LEDs (even when shielded) dramatically increase light pollution.

Manufacturers are responding to public pressure over concerns about blue light from white LEDs by developing alternatives such as narrowband amber / filtered / and phosphor-converted LEDs, but these types of luminaires are more expensive, many people aren’t even aware they exist, and regulations and standards are yet to catch up. Despite this, and mounting evidence of their negative impact upon health and the environment, white LED streetlights are still being hailed as an ideal replacement for older streetlights.

Further complicating the picture, agencies such as the NZTA who set specifications and guidelines for road lighting and design, are not considering the full range of impacts on human health and ecosystems. Until this changes, it’s up the public to stay informed and lobby for safer lighting. We are fortunate indeed, the DCC has acknowledged these issues. It has established an advisory panel to review all projects with a significant outdoor lighting component, with experts from different public sectors including the

police, health and safety, energy, education, tourism, astronomy, and our city’s architectural heritage. Lighting our streets involves far more than saving energy and cutting maintenance / operational costs. Best lighting practices conserve energy, use the right amount of light with the most appropriate colour temperature and spectrum, only where and when it’s needed for function, safety and security, while also addressing the importance of nocturnal place-making. The changeover should improve our city, not degrade it

Nebula NGC 3603 ~ All various stages of star life. HubbleSite.org 92

Link

Dunedin and parts of Otago Harbour. Image by Ian Griffin from aboard the NASA aircraft SOFIA. ( SOFIA Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy. )

or the night sky, and we must consider the biological, physiological and environmental impact, as new streetlights involve a considerable investment and will be with us for decades. All costs and losses, short and long-term to the community including health, must be taken into account. This is a commitment made by councillors in their support of the Ministry for Environment’s Urban Design Protocol which states, “the main quality of good urban design is custodianship: ensuring design is environmentally sustainable, safe and healthy.” And white LED lights do not meet this criteria. Dr Alexander Tups, a senior lecturer in the Physiology Department of Otago University and consultant on the Dark Sky Advisory Panel, explains, “Bright light which emits blue wavelengths, prevents the production of melatonin, responsible for initiating sleep. Another negative consequence of light exposure at night, is that melatonin also suppresses

tumour growth, which plays an important role in our immune systems.” And it’s not only adults who are concerned. This year, eight school students presented projects on the importance of space, natural darkness, and the night sky at the 2016 Science and Aurora Fair in Dunedin. Some children were so worried about Dunedin’s current light pollution, which has caused the loss of up to 90% of the visible stars in the suburbs (verified by sky glow measurements), and the future worsening of light pollution and the negative impact of blue light from white LED streetlights, they started a petition asking the council to avoid them.

“We should initiate dark skies for our own health reasons. All physiological processes in the human body are regulated on a daily basis by an internal clock which is adjusted by natural sunlight. Very bright light at night might interfere with our circadian rhythm and ‘synchronise our body clock’ differently.”

Opposite Page: 95 (Spectrographic images revealed the new white LED streetlights (3000K and 4000K) currently being trialled in Lynn Street, Wakari and Vogel Street in the Warehouse Precinct, emitted the highest amount of blue light of all light sources recorded.) 94

Neuroendocrinologist Dr. Alexander Tups, Senior Lecturer in the Physiology Department of Otago University

Ian Griffin: “An amazing night at Hoopers Inlet in Otago.” This panoramic image shows light from a squid boat, an aurora, Dunedin City’s sky glow and finally the Constellation Orion setting. 96

A Sense of Awe Of the countless benefits provided by the night sky, perhaps our society most needs its wonder-inducing effects. Awe puts problems into perspective, motivates growth, ignites the imagination, and is a potent remedy for an imbalanced stressful lifestyle. We feel small in a beneficial way (more humble and aware of something much larger than ourselves), while at the same time, our horizons are expanded and our consciousness elevated. When we connect to our environment and our fellow human beings with appreciation, life is more satisfying, meaningful and enriching. We even tend to favour experiences over material pursuits and possessions. Most significantly, in a busy, work-oriented culture, awe shifts our perception of time by slowing it down so we’re able to tune into the present moment. Awe is commonly experienced in nature when we feel wonder and appreciation for the beauty in the world around us, but can also be triggered in response to

art, celebrations, dance, meditation, music, rituals, religious gatherings and worship. And we recognise it by the physical sensations of skin flushing, hair-raising goosebumps and spine tingling, as well as the pleasure we feel all of which signal something special is happening. Some call this state “being in the flow,” where the senses are heightened, awareness is fully engaged and time ceases to exist. Others refer to it as extasis; a state of ecstasy.

concerned about the greater good. Such benevolent prosocial behaviour encourages acceptance, fosters friendship and strengthens communities. “Awesome” moments also force us to adjust our current understanding, which explains why we describe such events as earth-shattering, life-changing and mindaltering. One particular cognitive shift is termed the “overview effect” - a profound experience reported by numerous astronauts and cosmonauts during their time in space, often while viewing the Earth from orbit. Continues Pg 100

Awe is not as random as we imagine and we can cultivate it the same way we do with other positive feelings such as gratefulness and joy. This is important to know, because awe is the optimal “collective” emotion and it serves a vital function. A sense of reverence makes us less selfish and impatient, and more caring, generous and helpful. We are also happier to make sacrifices because we’re invested in the welfare of others and 97

NASA - Robot Arm Over Earth

There seems to be more to the universe than random, chaotic, purposeless movement of a collection of molecular particles. On the return trip home, gazing through 240,000 miles of space toward the stars and the planet from which I had come, I suddenly experienced the universe as intelligent, loving, harmonious.â&#x20AC;? Edgar D. Mitchell, Apollo astronaut and sixth man to walk on the moon. 98

“I didn’t feel like a giant. I felt very, very small.” Neil Armstrong on looking back at the Earth from the Moon in July 1969.

With the general population focused on instant gratification and self-interest, we need activities that encourage appreciation, belonging and connection. Astronomy should be taught to every child, and nights spent peering through a telescope, chasing the aurora, catching fallen stars, identifying constellations and making discoveries in dark encouraged, because those with awe in their life are more likely to develop a lifelong interest in the Cosmos and be part of more caring, kinder communities. We each have a responsibility to use light wisely and well, and there are so many gains from illuminating our homes, workplaces and environment with care, we would be negligent to ignore them. Dunedin has the potential to be a truly awe-inspiring place with unforgettable, goosebumps, thrilling, spine-tingling experiences on offer, and a region that reawakens respect for darkness – and it’s as simple and important as lighting our streets at night with nature friendly lighting.

To learn more about safe, smart and sustainable streetlights visit www.nightskycity.nz

Dunedin Dark Skies Group www.facebook.com/dunedindarkskies/

Email your thoughts to dcc@dcc.govt.nz or Sign a petition for smart street lights

Thank you to: Dr. Alex Tups. Steve Butler Amadeo Enriquez-Ballestero Stu Todd Mirko Harnisch Mike Broughton Oana Jones Ian Griffin Stefan Mutch Stephen Voss HubbleSite NASA

www.change.org/p/light-dunedin-smartly References 1 - E.A. Lucassen, et al. 2016. Environmental 24-hr Cycles Are Essential for Health. Current Biology. 26:14:1843-1853. 2 - V. Pilorz, et al. 2016. Melanopsin Regulates Both Sleep-Promoting and Arousal-Promoting Responses to Light. PLOS Biology. 14:6. 3 – S. J. Crowley et al. 2015. Increased Sensitivity of the Circadian System to Light in Early/Mid-Puberty. Journ of Clin Endocrin & Metab. 100:11:4067-4073. 4 - P. Bourgin, J. Hubbard. 2016. Alerting or Somnogenic Light: Pick Your Color. PLOS Biology. 14:8. 5 -M. Rudd, et al. 2012. Awe expands people’s perception of time, alters decision making, and enhances well-being. Psychological Science. 23:1130– 1136.

Astrophotography by Stephen Voss http://www.astrokiwi.com NASA.gov Flickr.comNASAcommons Hubblesite.org 100

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First picture of the earth and moon in a single frame - NASA

Papanui Inlet

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Perseid Meteor Shower (NASA) In this 30 second exposure, a meteor streaks across the sky during the annual Perseid meteor shower Friday, Aug. 12, 2016 in Spruce Knob, West Virginia. Link 102

This is one of a series of night time images photographed by one of the Expedition 29 crew members from the International Space Station. It features Aurora Australis, seen from a point over the southeast Tasman Sea near southern New Zealand. Link 103

www.mollydevine.com

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Molly Devine ~ Planet Glitter ~ Phase One

Molly Devine Available on

iTunes Bandcamp Spotify

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T O S Q The Story of an Organic V ineyard in Central Otag o An Interview with Sue Thompson by Caroline Davies Photography by Carl Thompson

"There is gathering momentum and a swing toward organics within the New Zealand viticulture industry. Scientific research and studies are providing clear evidence of the benefits. A three year controlled study was recently carried out by Organic Winegrowers of New Zealand, with support from the Sustainable Farming Fund and New Zealand Winegrowers in three different grape-growing regions, Hawkes Bay, Marlborough and Central Otago, with final results published in 2015 clearly demonstrating the positives in the vineyard, in the wines and from an economic perspective as well. Overall, Central Otago enjoys some advantages but also some particular challenges when it comes to organic farming. We are particularly fortunate to have a really positive culture of information sharing and some great role models amongst our peers here. A few, like Burn Cottage Vineyard, have been established under an organic/biodynamic regime from the outset and a growing number of others, such as Felton Road, Quartz Reef, Rippon, Domaine Thomson and Carrick have made the conversion. All of them freely pass on the benefits of their experience. We ourselves feel fortunate to work with Vinewise Viticulture, who specialise in managing organic and biodynamic vineyards, to help us maintain our TOSQ vineyards, so there is great support out there." Sue Thompson Photography ~ Carl Thompson © 2016

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Carl Thompson ÂŠ 2016

In the beginning

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A Matter of Urgency In her book “The Sixth Extinction: An Unnatural History” Elizabeth Kolbert describes in detail why “over the last half a billion years, there have been five mass extinctions on earth, when the diversity of life suddenly and dramatically contracted. Scientists around the world are currently monitoring the next mass extinction, predicted to be the most devastating extinction event since the asteroid impact that wiped out dinosaurs. But this time around the cataclysm is us”.

What an incredible transformation of landscape from a bare block "supporting rabbits and a few sheep, where the summer dried the grasses to dust", and what a testament to Carl and Sue Thompson for taking the time to work with the soil and ultimately become certified Biogro Organic, as well as "in conversion" for their Pinot Gris Roadside Vineyard.

Returning to organic farming principles is one of the most important things 'we' (humans) can do at this time (globally) to reverse the environmental degradation we have caused. Utilizing what works and discarding what doesn’t work, based on thousands of years of agricultural practices, biodynamic, organic and permaculture disciplines show us that not only can we feed ourselves, but also keep the intricately woven thread of connection between all life intact, as each life form supports another directly or indirectly. We need to work wisely and sensitively with nature, nurture the land, respect the soil and all the life that it gives us. In a way taking a few steps back to take many more forward. The "labels" we have to use these days, such as organic and conventional are quite upside down considering, that for eons, conventional methods were naturally organic.

http://www.biodynamic.org.nz/about-biodynamics

TOSQ vineyard has successfully shifted from a conventional beginning with their vineyard to a thriving organic winemaker.

http://www.biodynamic.org.nz/about-biodynamics/what-is-biodynamics 109

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An interview with Sue ompson of

TOSQ by Caroline Davies

Fifteen years ago, Sue and Carl Thompson, who have two sons Oscar and Quinn, purchased a 15 hectare bare block of land along the Wanaka/Cromwell Highway in Central Otago. From a dry and barren landscape, the Thompson’s have tended their bit of paradise into a thriving vineyard where no herbicides, synthetic chemical fertilisers, insecticides or fungicides are used. They see themselves nurturing the land as a whole system, supporting a well balanced and self-sustaining organism. With very different lives before settling in Wanaka, and then the Cromwell Basin, Sue had been a secretary in the Lord Chamberlains Office and a Cordon Bleu cook in England, and Carl had spent eight seasons searching for meteorites in the wilderness of Antarctica .

What brought you to New Zealand from England, and ultimately Central Otago and where is Carl originally from? Sue: “Carl’s family moved around when he was growing up. They were living in Te Kuiti when he went to Primary School, Western Samoa for Intermediate, and Hamilton for High School. He went to University in Canterbury where he fell in love with the South Island mountains.

Pinot Noir grapes just before harvest 111

I came out to New Zealand while I was travelling round the world. I had met a number of New Zealanders while working in the French Alps and my sister had married one of them! I came out to visit them. I met Carl on that first trip, though much to-ing and fro-ing followed in a long-distance relationship, caused in part because at that time his summers were spent in Antarctica, where I couldn’t follow! Love of the mountains and Carl’s new-found career as a pilot drew us to Wanaka, where we’ve now been based for more than 25 years!” Were you searching for land in Central Otago specifically to create an organic vineyard, or was this an unanticipated path? “Both the vineyard and organics were an unanticipated path! I had enjoyed an idyllic childhood growing up on a farm in rural Dorset, England. Carl and I both decided, with two small children, that we wanted to leave Wanaka and bring the boys up in a rural environment. We didn’t want a ‘life-style’ block as such, but wanted to work the land in a productive way. Although we knew

Sue and Carl Thompson with Snoop Dogg 112

nothing about grape-growing at that stage, we had become exposed to the excitement of a burgeoning young wine industry in the wider area and decided this was what we would like to pursue. The Cromwell basin was the area we searched, both because of the grapegrowing potential and the affordability of land in comparison with the Wanaka region. We established the vineyards in a conventional way. I had taken a two year course in Viticulture and Wine-making in the late 1990’s and we took advice from a number of experienced local industry experts. Looking back, I cannot remember ‘organics’ even being mentioned as an option. It wasn’t on my personal radar at the time. I don’t think I’d stopped to really consider how food was grown on a commercial level. I had completely taken my up-bringing for granted, brought up on fresh fruit and vegetables produced from a large home garden that was fed with barrow-loads of compost from the stable or farm ‘muck heap’.”

Why did you and Carl decide that organic was the way to go? “Once we actually started growing the vines and managing the vineyard, I found myself reluctant to use herbicides, synthetic water-soluble chemical fertilisers, insecticides and fungicides and started to cast around for alternatives. My break-through moment came about 10 years ago when I attended a field day at Rippon Vineyard with Biodynamic gurus Peter Proctor and James Millton. Suddenly I was shown our familiar world presented in a whole new way. There was so much that I realised I’d never even considered. It was enlightening and so exciting. I liken it to picking up a kaleidoscope and seeing the intricate, sparkling, colourful patterns for the first time. It drew attention to the interconnectedness of all that makes up our world on so many different levels. It was the first time I was presented with the idea of one’s farm as a living organism and the possibility of being able to support this world by growing one’s own inputs on farm. 113

My journey since has been along the path I discovered that day. There were and still are, big gaps in my understanding but the advice we received was to ‘make a start’. I have been learning by doing, as well as by further study. I am convinced that the success of the system is about respect and appreciation of all living things and ultimately about balance. I see my work as being ‘part of the system’, working with nature rather than against it, a role that is very much one of support and gentle steering, rather than seeking to dominate or control. I try to be one of the ‘beneficial organisms’!!” Central Otago is a wonderful environment to grow top quality grapes. It is the area of New Zealand with the most continental climate and the greatest extremes in temperature - hottest in the summer and coldest in the winter. The diurnal range in temperature can be more than 25 deg c. The cool nights slow the accumulation of sugars in the fruit and help retain the acids, which give the wines their vibrancy, while allowing the flavours time to develop.

Our dry climate and low humidity is also a huge plus in the respect that it makes for low disease pressure.” What are the challenging aspects of growing grapes, and what are the environmental conditions that either support a "great" year or vintage, or create a less fruitful yield? “On the other side of the coin, our dry environment and fragile soils are a tremendous challenge. The soils are naturally extremely low in organic matter and the capacity to hold water. It is a challenge to try and build up the organic matter, hold on to precious rainfall and thereby increase the availability and transfer of nutrients to the plants. Extremes are tough, whether they be extreme heat or cold, severe winds or hail. Weather-wise, probably the biggest threat to us all as growers in Central Otago is the potential for damaging frosts, particularly in springtime, when the emerging young shoots on the vines are soft and vulnerable. At the other end of the season too, although vines have hardened off and can tolerate heavier frosts than in springtime, a moderate frost can strip the canopy of functioning leaves and mean the end of the vines’ ability to ripen fruit any further. Gale force winds through the growing season, those wild ‘norwesters’, can be very damaging, particularly in springtime, knocking out shoots completely. Continues Page 117 114

Above: Springtime is the danger period for newly emerging buds on the vine Opposite Page 114: Sue winter pruning during a snow shower! Severe weather during the vines’ dormant period, whether hard frosts or snow, is not actually an issue. Vines can cope with temperatures down to about -15deg c. in winter - it’s pretty much just the pruners that could suffer in the cold, hence the big down jackets! 115

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Strong winds, or extreme temperature, heat or cold, can stress the vines and cause them to shut down, delaying growth and ripening. Hail also is a risk, with the potential to shred and strip the leaves from the vines and ruin the fruit. Wet weather at flowering can mean a lesser fruit set. All the above can contribute to a reduction in yield. So what makes a great vintage? One without too much of anything! Not too cold in spring, allowing vines off to a good start; fine sunny weather through flowering, to aid a great fruit set; lots of warmth and sun without extreme heat through summer, and then a nice long dry autumn, so the grapes are able to ripen perfectly without disease pressure. The best vintages from a quality perspective are reasonably dry, so the vines grow slowly and the bunches and berries are small with intense flavours. Pinot Noir is a thin-skinned variety, so small berries mean reduced juice to skin ratio, helping achieve good depth of colour in the wine.”

Besides weather conditions in any given season, I'm guessing that the soil's composition, grape variety, fermentation process and age, also contribute to a wine's eventual flavour, are there any other elements that contribute to a successful wine's taste? “Yes, so many different factors come into play! How the vines are managed, nurtured and cared for can have a big impact. Ensuring that the crop is not too heavy, which could lead to dilute flavours in the finished wine, and that the vine canopy is not too thick, so that lots of light and air can penetrate, is really important. Ideally this is achieved by the vine growing ‘in balance’. An attentive viticulturist has many management tools at his disposal to help achieve this. Another factor, that is being discussed more and more these days, is the role of the microbiology, both in the soil and on the plant. A vibrant, healthy and diverse soil biomass can be key to both the uniqueness and richness of flavours in the wine. The natural wild yeasts and organisms that inhabit the grape surfaces can also contribute great interest and complexity.” Continues Page 123 117

Pure Gold! The Glorious Compost Pile 118

For The Love of Worms: It all starts with healthy living soil. 119

Carl Thompson ÂŠ 2016

Setting up the nets to protect the grapes from birds looking for a sweet lunch

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The end of the season 121

The TOSQ wines entered into this year’s Bragato Wine Show won awards. TOSQ Flora ‘Entwined’2015 , their 'orangehued’ ‘natural’ wine was awarded Silver and TOSQ Pinot Gris 2014 Bronze. These awards are specifically for Estate Grown and Single Vineyard wines. 122

A Year In The L ife of a V ine yard What is the cycle of preparation and work in your vineyard? “I think of the vineyard year as starting in winter with pruning. This takes place while the vines are dormant, generally from about mid-May to the end of August, and is the start of setting the vine up for the season ahead. Winter and early spring is also the time of general maintenance, replacing any damaged vines, applying compost, and mounding or weeding under-vine basically a time of preparation of both vine and vineyard.

these be using water windmills or helicopters.

sprinklers,

It’s also the time of fast growth and work to be done to set the vine canopy up, thinning out excess shoots, bud-rubbing the trunks, raising and clipping foliage wires. Throughout the growing season, moisture levels need to be managed with appropriate irrigation and the vines supported with both soil and foliar nutrition.

The current season’s white and rose´wines will be completed around this time and prepared for bottling.

Summer sees the maintenance and control of the canopy, trimming and leaf removal if necessary in dense areas. Once the grape bunches are fully formed and reaching veraison, crop load can be assessed and bunches thinned if needed to meet the required quality parameters.

In spring we lift the cow horns (Biodynamic preparation 500) and put out our first application to give a boost the soil’s microbiology.

Over summer we collect material for autumn compost-making, harvesting our paddock for baleage and chipping accumulated tree prunings.

Spring brings the challenge of night-time temperature monitoring for potential frosts and frost-fighting activities if necessary in the early hours - whether

In late summer the nets go on, protecting the ripening fruit from the birds. Early autumn is a very busy time in the 123

winery. Last season’s pinot noirs, that have spent the preceding months maturing in oak barrels, are finished and made ready for bottling and everything is prepared ready for the upcoming vintage. It is a quieter time in the vineyard. Hopefully the careful attention through spring and summer has set the vines up in the best way possible to ripen their fruit and the winegrower waits and monitors the gradual accumulation of sugars and flavours and reduction of acids until the ‘all go’ decision is taken and harvest gets underway. This is done by hand on our vineyards by a crew of locals, overseas backpackers and seasonal workers from Vanuatu. They are especially happy days, with a sense of fulfillment at the end of the season’s work and relief to have the grapes safely gathered in and delivered to the winery! After harvest, the nets come off. We complete our compost-making, make our barrel manure (cow-pat pit) and bury the filled cow horns. The vines and soil are given a feed to recharge and support them through the winter, and the cycle repeats once again!” Continues Page 126

Carl Thompson ÂŠ 2016

A bountiful harvest of Pinot Gris! Micah Toboi has been part of the harvest team for many years. 124

Carl Thompson ÂŠ 2016

A wholesome organic crop ~ certified by BioGo New Zealand 125

From V in e yard to th e Ta b le TOSQ produces four wines, made by Dan & Sarah-Kate Dineen and their team at the Maude Winery in Wanaka. “The Pinot Noir and Rose´ are grown on schist-based fine sandy loams on a small terrace that steps back towards the Pisa Range to the west of SH6, Cromwell/Wanaka road. Pinot Gris and Flora are made from grapes grown on the stony gravels of our Roadside vineyard. Flora is a little known variety not widely planted in New Zealand. It is a varietal cross between Gewürztraminer and Semillon, developed at UC Davis in California in the 1930’s, initially as a component for sparkling wine. It wasn’t in our planting plan. A case of mis-identification by the nursery we initially sourced vines from meant that what we thought was a Pinot Gris clone turned out, with DNA testing three years down the track, to be Flora. The nursery gave us replacement plants, but with Flora now established and fruiting well, we decided not to pull them out and planted the replacements alongside. Because we have only a small quantity, Flora has provided us with an opportunity for some wine-making exploration and adventure! Over the last few years we have been making an amber-hued wine, fermenting the grapes on their skins, more in the manner of a red wine. This is a very natural style of winemaking, taking a cue from ancient times when grapes were fermented on their skins in clay amphora called ‘Quevri’, sealed and then buried in the ground to age at a cool, even temperature.

Vanessa Robson (wine maker at Maude winery) Plunging the Flora grapes for TOSQ’s “Entwined” wine 126

Our wonderful winemakers, Sarah-Kate Dineen and Vanessa Robson, have embraced the concept and cared for the wine as attentively as for a newborn baby! We don’t use clay amphorae or bury them, as the temperature in the winery can be controlled, but we do foot-stomp the grapes and leave them to ferment on their skins in oak barrels, with no additions of any sort, just the indigenous yeasts going about their work. The wine picks up a wonderful orange colour from the skin of the grape, and the tannins help provide a natural preservative. The wine is left to age in the barrel for much of the year before it is bottled unfined and unfiltered, with just a touch of sulphur added then to ensure its stability. We call the wine ‘Entwined’.” And the name TOSQ - is that your family’s initials? “Yes, that’s it. Thomo (Carl’s nickname,) Oscar, Sue and Quinn. When we started producing our own wine, we tried to find a unique name that was easy to remember and protect. In the end we made one up! - and it seemed appropriate that it was centered on family. The concept of connection extends out through so many aspects of our life and work.” Carl and Sue Thompson TOSQ WINES LIMITED

PO Box 802 Wanaka 9343, New Zealand +(64) 021 204 4009 info@tosq.co.nz http://www.tosq.co.nz For more information on Biodynamics in New Zealand http://www.biodynamic.org.nz

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Appreciation and thanks to Photomatix HDR Soft for their fabulous software and sponsorship 130

Photomatix HDR Soft http://www.hdrsoft.com

Photography ~ Caroline Davies ÂŠ 2016

Cherry Blossoms in Spring: Dunedin Botanic Garden

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With very small flowers to our naked eye, this is the flower of a chickweed magnified that shows a five pointed star giving it one of its names. Photographed with a traditional 100mm Macro Lens.This is a mature chickweed, photographed in late summer. 132

Photography ~ Caroline Davies ÂŠ 2016

Springing Weeds! Chickweed and Cleavers Important:

Many plants can

look similar. Make sure each and every plant is correctly identified by an expert.

Chickweed Chickweed, or Stellaria media - meaning ‘little stars’ is used internally for the digestive and lymphatic systems.

Gifts in the Garden by

Francisca Griffin Francisca Griffin has been practicing Naturopathy from her home based clinic in Port Chalmers for 14 years, and has a fortnightly radio show “Being Healthy Naturally” on OAR105.4 FM in Dunedin.

It is rich in Vitamin C as well as B6, B12 and Vitamin D. It is a good source of beta carotene, which your body converts to Vitamin A, magnesium, iron, calcium, potassium, zinc, phosphorus, zinc, manganese, sodium, copper and silicon. Chickweed contains substances called saponins, these increase the permeability of your mucous membranes, thus aiding the absorption of nutrients -so putting Chickweed into your salad will help your body utilise all your weeds! 133

Chickweed is a refrigerant - which means it will cool - a very good thing when you have a sunburn or have burnt yourself! If you put fresh chickweed directly on a burn you will feel it heat up as your burn cools. You can make an infusion of chickweed and, once it is cooled, put cloths you have soaked it with on that burn. It can be used externally as a poultice for itches, wounds, ulcers, abscesses, pimples, boils and other skin eruptions or injury. Chickweed infusion can be used for stomach troubles, and also uterine fibroids. Chickweed soothes the whole digestive tract and nourishes the glandular and lymphatic systems for thyroid problems, swollen glands and cysts. It can also be used as an eyewash or poultice for conjunctivitis. Use hot chickweed baths or soaks for arthritis, rheumatism, stiff neck, sore back or itching.

When

gathering your Chickweed and Cleavers, look for bright green juicy young plants, these will taste best for salads. Medicinally speaking the plants will have the greatest concentration of active constituents available if picked just as they begin to form flowers.. Photo: Cleavers, chickweed, dock, and buttercups in early spring.

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Cleavers

Tune into Francisca Griffin’s fortnightly radio show on OAR 105.4 FM

Gallium aparine or Cleavers, sticky weed, goosegrass, biddy bid are other names we use for this what can be a very annoying plant in early to mid spring in that it sticks to everything!!! However it is a valuable herb and can be easily used to spring clean our lymphatic systems.

http://oar.org.nz/event/being-healthynaturally/?instance_id=24418 francisca@beinghealthy.co.nz http://www.beinghealthy.co.nz/

Put on some gloves and collect up enough fresh, clean Cleavers to fill a 1 litre glass jar, pour over enough cold water to cover, and leave overnight on the bench. In the morning, strain the liquid into a jug, and drink a 200ml glass each morning for 3 days only, before you eat or drink anything. Store the excess in the fridge. Cleavers was used in past centuries as a remedy for cancer, and today it is used by herbalists for psoriasis and other skin disorders and also kidney stones.

https:// beinghealthynaturally.wordpress.com/

A young spring cleaver (sticky weed), in amongst chickweed and dock. 135

Looking at the top of a cleaver plant with a 100mm traditional macro lens.

An early spring mixture of useful plants in a wild garden. Cleavers, chickweed, dock, buttercups and a few other things. Image on right: The young cleaver is approximately 20 mm just less than 8 inches. Left to their own growth, cleavers can cover a whole garden by the end of summer.

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Another wild garden spring mixture of cleavers and chickweed in long grass and other plants. Image on right: Chickweed - early spring with light rain drops. Approximately 15 mm tall, or around six inches. The colour variation in the photos is due to natural light quality with the plants photographed on a different day.

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Photography ~ Caroline Davies ÂŠ 2016

Looking across Otago Harbour to Port Chalmers, West Harbour, Mt Cargill

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Port Chalmers 139

Photography ~ Caroline Davies ÂŠ 2016

Fireworks - Prague Castle

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More t h an ‘I’ A poe t’s v ie w of Prague by

Dav id H o wa rd A collection of photographs taken during his residency in Prague on the following pages

“When I write I try to understand more than ‘I’. Poetry is my way to push against the immediate’s madeto-order egotism, and a poetry that doesn’t just reference but is directed by historical models helps me to see more and more clearly. “ David Howard presenting poetry at Gymnázium Strakonice, Czech Republic http://www.gymstr.cz/

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Photography ~ David Howard ÂŠ 2016

Street artist on Charles Bridge, Prague 142

Photography ~ David Howard ÂŠ 2016

Overlooking the garden on the ramparts of Prague Castle 143

Photography ~ David Howard ÂŠ 2016

St Vitus Cathedral, Prague Castle 144

The Museum of Communism, Prague http://muzeumkomunismu.cz/

Ai Weiwei at Czech National Gallery, Veletržní Palác 145

Photography ~ David Howard ÂŠ 2016

Vltava River from MosteckĂĄ in the Lesser Town 146

The Lesser Town from Mostecká 147

The Convent of St Agnes of Bohemia, Old Town, Prague

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Dan Berglund’s Tonbruket at Agharta Jazz Club, Prague http://www.agharta.cz/

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Stephen Stedman stephen@otagorecording.co.nz

Danny Buchanan danny@otagorecording.co.nz

High Quality Audio Recording Services

Otago Recording Company

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Otago Harbour 151

Photography ~ Caroline Davies ÂŠ 2016

Dunedin Symphony Orchestra

Celebrating 50 Years of

Music in Otago 152

Dunedin Symphony Orchestraâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s 50th Anniversary Concert Ode to Joy 9th April, 2016 Dunedin Town Hall

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A Golden Anniversary Dunedin Symphony Orchestra 50 Years of wonderful Music in Otago

Story - Caroline Davies Photography courtesy DSO Additional images Caroline Davies

Celebrating the Dunedin Symphony Orchestra is not only about

The Dunedin Symphony Orchestra’s reputation for warmth and

the music it has played in the last fifty years, it is also about people

excellence

- the orchestra’s talented and dedicated musicians and composers,

conductors. These masters of music include violinists Shlomo

Dunedin’s conductors and guest conductors from all around the

Mintz, Nigel Kennedy, Bella Hristova and Jack Liebeck. Cellists

world, gifted soloists, management and support staff, the

Julian Lloyd Webber and Raphael Wallfisch. Clarinetist Michael

organizations that contribute financially to the orchestra, and very

Collins. Pianists Michael Houstoun, Nikolai Demidenko and Piers

importantly, the orchestra’s appreciative audiences who have

Lane. Singers Dame Malvina Major, Sir Donald McIntyre, Dame

continually filled Dunedin’s concert halls. The ensemble of

Cleo Laine, Anna Leese, Emma Fraser, Jonathan Lemalu, Paul

responsive listeners is part of the symphony, and like percussionists,

Whelan and Deborah Wai Kapohe.

they sound thunderous notes of appreciation with joyful applause

Principal Guest Conductors Jack Speirs, Nicholas Braithwaite,

between pieces, and their standing ovations - as an extension of the

Werner

grand finale,

are heightened with foot-stamping, whistles and

conductors Jessica Cottis, Roy Goodman, Vladimir Verbitsky,

cheers. It is a powerful experience. This is a musical love affair of

Edvard Tchivzhel, and Brett Kelly and New Zealanders Tecwyn

generosity and harmony between audience, orchestra, conductor and

Evans, Holly Mathieson, Kenneth Young, Marc Taddei, Hamish

music.

McKeich, David Burchell and Peter Adams. 154

attracts

Andreas

internationally

Albert,

and

renowned

soloists

and

Music Directors and

Simon

Over.

International

This Golden Anniversary also marks some significant changes. Previously known as the Southern Sinfonia (since 2002) the company has been renamed Dunedin Symphony Orchestra reflecting its base and home in Dunedin. Accomplished first violinist, Tessa Petersen, is the new Concertmaster after Sydney Manowitz retired from just over 20 years of distinguished service in the role - the longest tenure for any NZ professional orchestra’s concertmaster. And, after a long search, the orchestra has finally found a

new home in one of Dunedin’s iconic heritage buildings, Hanover Hall (originally the Hanover Baptist Church), having been based in the Carnegie Centre in Moray Place for the past 26 years - just over half of the orchestra’s life. It’s not always been an easy road for the orchestra. As in all the arts, the quest for sufficient funding is an ongoing challenge. However, this dedicated and talented group of people have stayed the course through ups and downs, enduring and shining

brightly for five decades. The commitment to excellence and the love of good music have brought growth, acclaim and success. The orchestra has overcome any uncertainties with a clear ‘heart-based ambition’ to simply enjoy and play music. Playing in the orchestra is not a full-time job, so each member also has another life outside of this consort of splendid musicians. With strong and positive leadership, the players are a devoted group, an artistic company of talent and diversity.

Jessica Cottis conducting the DSO concert in the Wanaka Festival of Colour 155

Holly Mathieson (Conductor), Amalia Hall (Violin) with the DSO in rehearsal. Concert: Beethoven’s Eroica Performed at the King and Queens Performing Arts Centre, Dunedin, 9 & 10th July, 2016 In Terms of Planning: Philippa: “There will be one or two soloists or conductors that I may know more than a year in advance and typically I’ve got a couple of artists already fixed for next year but its several months ahead that I start planning properly. The other larger orchestras in NZ are already planned for next year, ahead of us. What I try and do is hook in with the artists that they’ve contracted and make the most of their presence in this part of the world. We also hook into what’s going on in Australia.” 156

The Topp Twins with conductor Kenneth Young in 2012, when the Town Hall was closed for renovation. This concert, along with the DSOâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s other full orchestra concerts, were held in the Regent Theatre.

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Violinist Bella Hristova rehearsing, with conductor Tecwyn Evans - May 2014

Type to enter text

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New Works by Contemporary Classical Composers Anthony Ritchie Earlier this year Anthony commented: "As a composer, I have been very lucky to enjoy a long and fruitful relationship with the Dunedin Symphony Orchestra. Recently, I found an old video of the then Dunedin Sinfonia premiering my piece The Hanging Bulb in 1989, my first collaboration with the band. Since then the orchestra has premiered no less than 12 of my works, and commissioned most of those. Because of the orchestra’s faith in my work I have been able to develop as a composer, and hopefully have re-paid that faith. Some of those performances have been wonderful, most recently the Violin Concerto with Bella Hristova. I feel privileged to work with a fine bunch of musicians, and have enjoyed their friendship too. I am also aware of the long tradition the orchestra has of performing living composer’s music, and hope the orchestra will continue to collaborate with composers. The orchestra has played works by Sir William Southgate, Michael Norris, Jack Speirs, Kenneth Young, Gareth Farr, Douglas Lilburn, Larry Pruden, David Farquahar, Tecwyn Evans, and many Mozart fellows etc. There was also a Composers' residency for a brief time in the 1990s, funded by CNZ, which both myself and Tecwyn Evans had for 2 years each.” Premiére of concerto earns standing ovation! Bella Hristova, Dunedin Town Hall, Saturday, 31 May 2014 “Tecwyn Evans returned to the city to conduct the Southern Sinfonia in a landmark concert at Dunedin Town Hall in the world premiére of Dunedin composer Anthony Ritchie's Violin Concerto. The concerto was the concert's centrepiece and highlight, with Hristova giving her usual masterful, emotionally powerful performance, this time of a work written specifically for her and which provided many opportunities for virtuosic display.” Excerpt of a review by Brenda Harwood for The Star, 5 June 2014

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Dunedin Town Hall, July 2016 160

Photography ~ Caroline Davies ÂŠ 2016

A Little History In late 1965 Peter Platt (Professor of Music at Otago University and later Sir Peter Platt) and Walter Sinton, with support from City Councillor Maurice Joel and others, sought and secured funding from the Dunedin City Council to start the ‘Dunedin Civic Orchestra’. Additional grants were received from Otago University, QEII Arts Council of New Zealand (now Creative New Zealand) and New Zealand Broadcasting Corporation. The Dunedin Civic Orchestra’s first concert was performed on the 19th February 1966 with Ken Smith conducting. Over 2000 invitations had been sent out in order to fill the house. This inaugural concert was attended by Sir Bernard Fergusson, New Zealand’s Governor General, with a magnificent supper shared after the performance. It was a wonderful celebration of music and community in Dunedin’s Town Hall, still one of the finest concert halls in the Southern Hemisphere. Continues Page 165

Right: Peter Platt, Professor of Music, was born in 1924 at Sheffield England, son of Baron and Lady Platt. He studied at the Royal College of Music, London, in 1941 and after war service studied at Oxford University from 1946. Between 1952 and 1957 Peter Platt was senior lecturer in Music at the University of Sydney. In 1957 he was appointed to the Chair of Music University of Otago, Dunedin, New Zealand and remained in that position until his appointment in 1975 to the Chair of Music at the University of Sydney. Peter Platt died in 2000.

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Nicholas McBride (General Manager) 1988

Bruce Wallace was the voluntary manager for 17 years from 1966 through to 1983. 164

From its inception, the orchestra has continually attracted skillful directors and managers, as dedicated to music and their audience as the musicians. Peter Platt, known for his “flair, vitality and enthusiasm” was the main musical director for the first ten years, from 1966 to 1976. Jack Speirs, a lecturer in music at Otago University followed Platt. Speirs was known as a musical director with “highly professional standards, who demanded an impeccable level of excellence from the orchestra. He was meticulous and cared about the fine details of music”. Bruce Wallace was the voluntary manager for 17 years from 1966 through to 1983. “Wallace was highly organized and prided himself on having all the details of the orchestra’s affairs down on paper and carefully filed.” When Bruce Wallace retired, Don McKenzie filled in as manager until 1984 when Bob Bickerton was appointed as the first paid and full-time manager. Bickerton’s appointment was set in motion when the Queen Elizabeth II Arts Council

in 1983 seriously considered withdrawing funds from the orchestra, probably due to the NZ government’s cutbacks on Arts Council spending. They wrote to the orchestra: “The Council’s main worry is that over the last two years funding to t h e s e t wo o rch e s t ra s ( We l l i n g t o n Regional and Dunedin Civic) has increased hugely in comparison with other Arts Council programmes, but so far, there has not been a convincing increase in the amount of work they are doing. Nor has there been any fundamental change in the way the orchestras operate. And there has been no real progress in coming to terms with their problems and with the realities of running an arts organization in the 1980s.” The orchestra’s committee responded with clarity, conviction and determination, declaring that a funding cut would have a detrimental effect not only on the community in Dunedin, but ultimately on the whole country. In reply, the Arts Council asked for a marketing report and eventually gave the following recommendations: That more music be played, more members and sponsorship be brought in, more funds raised, and a fully-paid manager appointed. 165

After taking a good hard look at itself, the orchestra followed the Arts Council’s recommendations and took the new name of Dunedin Sinfonia. Their grant was doubled, from $40,000 to $80,000. However, by 1987, the orchestra was heavily in debt. Towards the end of that year, Nicholas McBryde (currently the Director of Arts Festival Dunedin) was appointed manager and in 1988 brought Dunedin Sinfonia out of debt by gradually reducing the size of the orchestra and bringing in fewer overseas guests. They also took out one of the Sunday concerts and found ways to be more efficient. McBryde’s underlying philosophy and strength was always to entertain and value audiences. Succeeding Nicholas McBryde in 1993, Philippa Harris, who had been an artistic manager with the Auckland Philharmonia, was appointed General Manager and has held that role since.

History sourced from: The Dunedin Sinfonia, 25 Years of Orchestral Tradition in Dunedin, by Anthony Ritchie - published by Music in New Zealand, Autum 1992/Number 16

Dunedin Sinfonia: Conductor Jack Speirs 1988 166

Jack Speirs conducting Dunedin Sinfonia 167

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The Present - 2016

Celebrating 50

Years of Great

Music

With a sure and steady hand at the helm, the quality and warmth of the symphony is reflected in her leadership, but Philippa Harris sees her role as that of facilitator, or coordinator, with the success of the DSO largely due to two key elements: the orchestra and the audience who make it possible. The synergy between performers and audience can be powerful. However, if the organization itself is unhappy, that “feeling” picked up by the players will communicate itself to an audience. Harmony and stability come from the supporting foundations of the symphony as well. Philippa, the longest serving General Manager (almost half of the orchestra’s life) thought about that: “You are absolutely right. Everyone involved, and that is everyone, is really committed and wants it to work. There is a real common purpose, which you can’t invent. There are really skilled people involved. The administration - fantastic, the musicians wonderful, and then there are all the supporters who really appreciate what’s going on. There is a ton of crossfertilization occurring. I’m not sure that we could do what we do elsewhere 168

because this is a university city, which brings a whole mixture of people into Dunedin with the interest, taste and appreciation for culture. “ As we sat comfortably around the current, but soon to be departed, offices and rehearsal space of the DSO in Carnegie Place, Pieter du Plessis, the company’s Marketing Manager, added: “The link to the university is very important to what we do. There is an opportunity for musicians studying at the university to come and play with us and gain valuable experience. For example, Tessa Petersen, our concertmaster, also studied and now lectures there, as does contemporary classical composer Anthony Ritchie, and lecturer Peter Adams who conducts on occasion.” In fact, since the orchestra’s inception, the university has always been intricately connected with it, one way or another. There is a bit of a question presently about the future of the music department at Otago University, but given the orchestra’s strong links with the department, it is really important that education in music, in all its forms, is maintained and taught at the

Philippa Harris was an artistic administrator with the Auckland Philharmonia before coming to Dunedin to work with the orchestra... “When the advertisement came up for the job I thought it was a natural next step. It’s such a wonderful community here, why would you go anywhere else really.” Inside Hanover Hall during renovations. Photography ~ Caroline Davies © 2016

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university. Almost 50 percent of the orchestra’s players have been students there. The orchestra provides extensive outreach into the community and associated jobs, directly and indirectly (from administrators, technical support, music teachers, venues and music stores down to the cafes and restaurants that benefit when residents and visitors go out for a night on the town). Music brings wellbeing to a community as well as to individuals and those who play music. Historically, the careers of a significant number of internationally recognized musicians, singers, and composers have risen out of Otago University. Philippa: “Many instrumental musicians from the university are going to go on and become orchestral players. The first thing an orchestra looks at in an aspiring player’s CV is orchestral experiences. We can give those young musicians from the university this experience. They are good enough to come and play with us and they add to the health of the orchestra as a whole.” The DSO also offers a scholarship for a performance student to study at Otago University and it also subsidises instrumental teaching.

Going back a bit, Philippa recounted the third name change of the orchestra in 2002, from Dunedin Sinfonia to Southern Sinfonia. “We started to do some touring again, which was encouraged with funding from the Arts Council of New Zealand, but no sooner had we changed our name to reflect our broader reach to places such as Invercargill, Oamaru and Wanaka, than the Arts Council withdrew the touring funding. Also, the term ‘Sinfonia’ describes a slightly smaller orchestra of about thirty players, and now with 70 players, ’Dunedin Symphony Orchestra’ reflects the size of the company and our similar footing with Auckland Philharmonia, Orchestra Wellington, and Christchurch Symphony.” Although paid a small stipend for their rehearsals and performance, the players come together for the pure joy of making and sharing the gift of music. It is a significant part of what makes this little city great. In turn, the DSO management makes sure that orchestra members have a conductor they want to work with and a repertoire they want to play. In response the orchestra gives it their all and more. 170

Philippa: “The concertmaster and principal players are the main artistic advisors, along with the principal guest conductor. Visiting players always comment that they have happy experiences here.” Pieter: “We also have an interactive relationship with our audience and the response we receive from them is appreciation. They also want good soloists and conductors as they are also investors in the orchestra and ask for quality and a great experience in return.” Presently, funding comes from Creative New Zealand, the Dunedin City Council and more recently the Otago Community Trust, ticket sales, memberships and subscriptions. Philippa: “It’s a real investment!” Continues onto Page 174

Ode To Joy - Gala 50th Anniversary Concert Opposite Page: “For a city of this size, Dunedin’s symphony orchestra is a real triumph. Since its formation 50 years ago, the orchestra has gone from strength to strength, and on Saturday evening a packed town hall (including the “Gods”) was treated to a momentous Gala 50th Anniversary Concert.” Elizabeth Bouman, Otago Daily Times, 11th April 2016

Dunedin Symphony Orchestraâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s 50th Anniversarty Concert Ode to Joy 9th April, 2016 Dunedin Town Hall Conductor Tecwyn Evans, Mezzo-Soprano Claire Barton, Bass Jonathan Lemalu, plus City Choir Dunedin.

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Philippa: “We leave concerts that entail a really large orchestra to the national orchestra - the New Zealand Orchestra - who come down to Dunedin 3 or 4 times a year and are funded to include 90 to 100 musicians full time who will perform ambitious works that require more players. We see our roles as complimentary to each other. We see our size as our natural definition in the sun, and that keeps us more than busy enough.”

Simon Over Principal Guest Conductor

Conductor Hamish McKeich, Rehearsal for Romantic Masters International Series Three Saturday 20 September, 8:00 pm Dunedin Town Hall Hamish McKeich, Conductor; Martin Riseley, Violin

I’m thrilled to be visiting twice this year and both occasions are programmes I’m anticipating with relish. 172

Right: Jessica Cottis - Conductor. “I am delighted to be returning to the DSO in August this year. It’ll only be a short visit to the southern hemisphere this time as I’ll head straight back to the UK to conduct the BBC Concert Orchestra at the BBC Proms. But what delights await! A piece by Anthony Ritchie (which takes inspiration from the flight of the majestic albatross) opens the programme, followed by Brahms’s glorious violin concerto. The extraordinary Noah Bendix-Balgley, concertmaster of the Berlin Philharmonic, will make his New Zealand debut in this piece.” Rehearsal for (Nikolai) ‘Demidenko plays Beethoven’ Performance: Saturday 27 June, 7:30 pm, 2016 Dunedin Town Hall

Left: Holly Mathieson - Conductor “It’s a huge privilege to be returning to conduct in Dunedin this year - an auspicious one for the orchestra. A new name, a new halfcentury stretching into the future, and a year of concerts which celebrate the enormous contribution Dunedin and its orchestra have made to New Zealand’s musical life.”DSO Rehearsal for Beethoven’s ‘Eroica’ Performance: 9th and 10th July, 2016 King and Queens Performing Arts Centre 173

Continuing on from Page 170

“The nice thing about the orchestra is that it is such a social ‘animal’. I mean all the rehearsals where large numbers of people are coming together - that’s social and a social network. Then you have the audiences coming to the concerts and

that’s a social event as well. Looking at the audience during interval - they are having a great time. There is an emphasis on social wellbeing nowadays and we tick that box. Not only are we doing the music, art and culture sides, but also the

social wellbeing side. The reinvestment is not just money going back into the economy in terms of jobs and families, but it is also contributing to a quality of life for a deserving community, and that is really important. “

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Education Photo Above: Some of Dunedin’s future musicians interacting with guest soloist Bridget Douglas (flute) This was at our concert 'Flute Magic' on Saturday 9 May at the King's and Queen's Performing Arts Centre. The Dunedin Symphony Orchestra also runs a number of education programmes designed to provide students whose musical ability ranges from beginner to advanced with opportunities to improve their skills through interaction with DSO players. 174

Pieter du Plessis Pieter: “We reach out to young people not only at the university but at other levels as well. These young kids want to come and see their teacher perform, and so we give special vouchers for children to make concerts affordable and accessible. If we have a soloist, a violinist or a cellist for example, we invite the children to have a chat with the soloist and to get them involved. They are tomorrow’s audience and players.”

Joan Gardiner: Concertmaster Â 1966 - 1985 176

Dunedin Symphony Orchestra’s Concertmasters Joan Gardiner: 1966 - 1985 Allan McDermott: 1982 - 1986 Allan Torrance: 1987 - 1990 Elspeth Gray: 1991 Dean Hollebon and Miranda Adams: 1992 Tessa Petersen: 1993 Sydney Manowitz: 1994 - 2015 Tessa Petersen: 2015 to present

The contributions of Joan Gardiner (19 years) and Sydney Manowitz (21 years - are believed to be some sort of NZ record - certainly for an NZ professional orchestra).

Tessa Petersen: Present Concertmaster 177

A general description of the role of Concertmaster. It will vary a little from orchestra to orchestra. â&#x20AC;&#x153;The Concertmaster (from the German Konzertmeister) is the second-most significant person in an orchestra, symphonic band, or other musical ensemble after the conductor or director. Another common term in the U.S. is "First Chair." In the U.K., the term commonly used is "leader." In an orchestra, the concertmaster is the leader of the first violin section. There is another violin section, the second violins, led by the principal second violin. Any violin solo in an orchestral work is played by the concertmaster (except in the case of a concerto, in which case a guest soloist usually plays). It is usually required that the concertmaster be the most skilled musician in the section, experienced at learning music quickly, counting rests accurately and leading the rest of the string section by his or her playing and bow gestures. The concertmaster sits to the conductor's left, closest to the audience, in what is called the "first chair," "first stand" or "first desk" (in the UK). He or she makes decisions regarding bowing and other technical details of violin playing for the violins, and sometimes all of the string players. The concertmaster leads the orchestra in tuning before concerts and rehearsals, and other technical aspects of orchestra management. Leading the orchestral tuning is not just a mere formality; if the concertmaster believes that a section is not adequately tuned, he or she will signal to the oboe player to play another "A." Several larger orchestras have one or more assistant concertmasters, who lead the orchestra in the concertmaster's absence. The concertmaster, along with the conductor and section principals, will normally participate in the auditions of important musicians (e.g., principal players) in the orchestra.â&#x20AC;? Sydney Manowitz: Â Concertmaster 1994 - 2015

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Concertmaster 178

Violinist Patricia Leen was presented with a 50 years' service award at the Anniversary Concert, Ode to Joy Left to Right: Prof. Brendan Gray (President, DSO Board), Patricia Dean (Double bass), Jim Mackay (Clarinet), Bill Henderson (Trombone), Patricia Leen (Violin), DSO General Manager - Philippa Harris This photo was taken at the orchestra's 50th anniversary gala concert on Saturday 9 April 2016 when the long service of players who have played in the orchestra for 20 years or more was acknowledged.Â The musicians in the photo have all played with the orchestra for 40 years or more: Â Patricia Dean - 41 years, Jim Mackay 45, Bill 40, and Patricia Leen 50.

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The Future Unfolds With seventy members now, the orchestra has outgrown its home of the past 26 years in Carnegie Centre on Moray Place, and after a long search is about to move into the freshly renovated Hanover Hall, originally the Hanover St Baptist Church and a Category 1 Heritage New Zealand building. Here there is room for rehearsals, office space, and ample storage for instruments. It is a wonderful place for an orchestra and a great use of a significant historical building that was in desperate need of repair and love. Philippa: â&#x20AC;&#x153;The church was bought at the end of last year by Cally McWha and Lloyd Williams, who began renovations at the beginning of this year. They have been tackling the inside mostly. The plaster work in the ceiling had deteriorated a lot, mainly because of leaks, and so the roof has been fixed and some areas have been completely replaced. Huge scaffolds have been up as experts have been repairing the very intricate plaster work. It is looking absolutely beautiful. The large stainedglass windows have been uncovered and are now seen in all their glory. The back rooms were really run down and missing doors for example are being replaced in the correct style. Left: Stain glass window inside Hanover Hall.

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Photography ~ Caroline Davies ÂŠ 2016

Acoustic elements have also been carefully considered. Bespoke panels have been made for appropriate acoustics, as well as acoustic-absorbent carpeting that will enable the orchestra to hear their instruments properly. Since the orchestra takes up almost two thirds of the space, it is not large enough for the full orchestra and audience, however there is scope for multiple purposes. You can have a chamber group and about 200 seats for an audience, and we also did a bit of a survey amongst touring groups like the NZ String Quartet, NZ Trio, Chamber Music NZ, and about twelve local organizations who would be very interested in a venue of this size, and if the rental is affordable, they would all leap at the chance. Many have said there has been an acute need for a venue like this in Dunedin. In fact, the response from the community has been astonishing. The people who used to go to church there are thrilled to know the orchestra will be in there, as are people who are working in the area. The reaction of the

players has been good as well. I think they are feeling that they are going to be even more a part of the fabric of the community – and more visible. It is in a central place, it is an iconic building that everyone knows and people will identify the building with us. I think it is good for morale. It is a very happy set of coincidental circumstances: our 50th Anniversary, the appropriate change of name to Dunedin Symphony Orchestra, a wonderful concertmaster, Tessa Petersen, and a new venue in a beautiful heritage building. I know ‘being part of the community’ is used a lot, but we really feel this.”

03 477 5623 Dunedin Symphony Orchestra https://dso.org.nz/about-us/ Concerts and Tickets https://dso.org.nz/concerts-tickets/

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Hanover Hall during restoration, September 2016

Tally Ho! Dunedin Sound Songs and Singers, Dunedin Town Hall, Saturday 28 February 2015 L to R: Molly Devine, Kylie Price, Metitilani Alo, Martin Phillipps and Peter Adams conducting with members of the Dunedin Symphony Orchestra. â&#x20AC;&#x153;A sellout audience unanimously leapt to its feet to acknowledge the putting of the limelight on the underground 1980s Dunedin Sound. Under the direction of Peter Adams, the Southern Sinfonia, amplified and recorded for broadcast by Strawberry Sound, devoted its energies to songs by local composers Shayne Carter, Peter Jefferies, Martin Phillipps, David and Hamish Kilgour, Robert Scott, Andrew Brough, Jay Clarkson, Dave Saunders and Graeme Downes. This significant event should resonate for many moons.â&#x20AC;? Marian Poole, Otago Daily Times, 2 March 2015 182

Tally Ho! Left to Right: Molly Devine, Kylie Price, Metitilani Alo, Martin Phillipps, Anna Leese, and Peter Adams conducting with members of the Dunedin Symphony Orchestra. 183

Ar t s an d Cu lt u r e i n D u n ed i n Our History - Our Future Following the 1860’s Central Otago gold rush, Dunedin became the business capital of New Zealand. The city quickly became an International commercial and cultural hotspot. Over subsequent decades successful businesspeople and ordinary citizens donated memorabilia and cultural taonga to the Dunedin community. Those benefactions are still here if you are open to seeking them out. Toitū Otago Settlers Musuem, Otago Museum, Dunedin Public Art Gallery, Olveston and the Hocken Library are full of them. We can still appreciate them now and I highly recommend you do so. The early settlers were well equipped to appreciate them. Our Scottish heritage valued education - for girls AND for boys – above just about everything else. Fast forward to today. We are a UNESCO City Of Literature. We are home to the Mozart, Burns and Francis Hodgkins Fellowships. With just a couple of year’s lead-in our street art is resonating around the world. Dunedin Symphony Orchestra is world class - filling our concert halls with fabulous music, and Dunedin is the home of many a great singer, songwriter and musician. We have done our forebears proud, and that only scratches the surface. The opportunities, through UNESCO Creative Cities and our Sister City connections, are endless. Dunedin - the cultural, artistic and literary capital of New Zealand, your city.

Dave Cull Mayor of Dunedin 25 September, 2016

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Photo courtesy Dave Cull

Mayor of Dunedin ~ Dave Cull, September 2016 185

Photography ~ Caroline Davies ÂŠ 2016

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Hereweka

“The more clearly we can focus on the wonders of the universe about us, the less taste we shall have for its destruction.” Rachel Carson 187