Marnie Karmelita • 6 November 2020
Marnie Karmelita, Creative Director of the Wellington Jazz Festival as well as the New Zealand Festival of the Arts, opens up the Jazz programme to give us her top picks of the tunes swinging into the city later this month.
Stephen A'Court
After such a challenging year, we are thrilled to be bringing you over 100 gigs across the city, this 18-22 November. The Wellington Jazz Festival is a major date for our local musicians as well as our music and hospitality venues. Coming together to experience great music and Wellington’s famous hospitality will be a particularly special experience this year as we reinvigorate as a city and get behind the incredible breadth of talent from around the country.
Headlining in the Opera House is the brilliant and innovative Avantdale Bowling Club but the music doesn’t stop there with Aotearoa jazz spilling into the streets and taking over every corner of the city with classic albums, big brass, Amy Winehouse Tribute, kōrero and Wellington Women of Jazz. Take a deep dive into the full line-up of our special Spring event for music lovers, jazz aficionados and intrepid newcomers alike.
Here are just a few of the gigs I am looking forward to – see you there!
Jazz Premiere Series: Commissioned by the Wellington Jazz Festival, join us for a series of concerts by Blair Latham and The Noveltones, Kevin Field, Riki Gooch and Anita Schwabe as they premiere new music exclusively for the Festival.
At our partner venue Meow:
Umar Zakaria: From the 2018 Tui Best Jazz Artist award-winner.
Jazz for Tamariki: A jazz concert exclusively for children (parents welcome as well!). The perfect introduction to jazz, set to entertain and enthrall young jazz fans.
The Shicka Chickas: Bring your voice and join this incredible choir for a Wizard of Oz inspired evening of music and fun.
At our partner venue Rogue & Vagabond:
Rogue Classic Albums Live: Life on Planet Groove: Saxophonist Bryn van Vliet presents Maceo Parker’s 1992 classic with full band in the much loved Rogue & Vagabond series.
Jazz Kōrero: Jazz and Accessibility: Fourth in the series of panel discussions and debates on some of the factors surrounding the accessibility of jazz in New Zealand.
At our partner venue The Third Eye:
The Committee: Mat Fieldes returns from New York to head up The Committee, bringing their different influences and compositions to cover styles from more traditional jazz to the contemporary sounds of today.
Arthur Street Loft Orchestra Presents Callum Allardice’s Cinematic Orchestra: Tui award-winning Callum Allardice melds the sounds of film scores, pop and rock with contemporary jazz and improvised music.
Resoursonance: Jazz drummer Liam Prince of The Rubbish Trip brings you this zero waste upcycled concert, an afternoon of original and recycled songs, spoken word and improvisation, exploring themes of wastefulness and resourcefulness.
Around the city:
The Royal New Zealand Air Force Jazz Orchestra at Te Papa: Featuring Duke Ellington’s suite Black, Brown and Beige, these concerts by the popular ensemble always fill up fast.
Pandora’s Box: Jazz-age 1929 cinema classic starring the iconic Louise Brooks with a live-in-the-room musical score.
Marnie is a performing arts curator and international arts producer with 20 years’ experience working in venues and festivals in Australia, the United States and NZ. Recently appointed in the new role of Creative Director of the New Zealand Festival Trust, Marnie worked as Head of Programming of the New Zealand Festival 2016 where she led a team that delivered the main biennial festival, the annual Wellington Jazz Festival and the biennial Lexus Song Quest. With a passion for working with artists to nurture new works and stretch the boundaries of performance, Marnie believes the arts makes an inordinate contribution to our society. She particularly strives to bring audiences closer to the artistic process, so we can all tap into our creativity.
