Learn from Legends

G-TARanaki - Media Fact Sheet

General Overview

Learn from Legends

G-TARanaki is New Zealand’s only international guitar festival which brings some of the world’s best guitarists to Taranaki to entertain, educate and inspire music lovers. It provides the opportunity to learn from legends who really know their stuff! This year the event will be held from 11-15 August in New Plymouth, Taranaki.

It’s about making A-list artists accessible to New Zealanders through concerts and intimate midnight sessions, creating awareness of the opportunities within the music industry through discussion forums and developing the artistic talents of young aspiring artists through the Sky Academy workshops and master classes.

The five day event features:
• Two major concerts – held at TSB Stadium, tickets available online at Ticketmaster from Monday 31 May
• Three exclusive Midnight Sessions – held at Puke Ariki, tickets available online at Ticketmaster from Monday 31 May
• Three Sky Academy workshops, master classes and performances – held at TSB Showplace, free entry for secondary school students in Taranaki
• Three forums – held at Puke Ariki, free entry
• A range of free clinics at TSB Showplace
• One exhibition of rare and valuable guitars – displayed at Puke Ariki, free entry

Visit our website for more information www.gtaranaki.co.nz

Date: 11 – 15 August 2010
Venues: TSB Stadium, Puke Ariki and TSB Showplace
Website: www.gtaranaki.co.nz

Quick key points:
1) Performances from legendary artists and one-off shows
2) Developing grass-root talent and encouraging young people to pursue their passion
3) Industry professionals are accessible, sharing knowledge about the industry and creating awareness of opportunities.

Who is it for:
G-TARanaki is for:
• everyone who wants to experience high energy performances from legendary artists
• professionals eg. lawyers, accountants, project managers, producers; interested in learning more about the music industry through panel forums
• young aspiring guitarists in Taranaki who want the chance to learn from and be inspired by true guitar legends in the Sky Academy workshops and master classes
• anyone who would like to expand their skills and learn guitar basics at the free clinics

Product Description of G-TARanaki elements

TSB Stadium Concerts – Ticketed evening performances from local, national and internationally renowned artists on Friday and Saturday nights at the TSB Stadium. These sessions will feature approximately five bands each night.

Midnight Sessions - There will be three intimate Midnight Sessions held at Puke Ariki on Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights at midnight with select artists in a more exclusive setting. Tickets for the midnight sessions are extremely limited with only 300 available each night with the audience situated just metres away from the artists. It’s a very special experience where special things can happen.

Learn from Legends
Sky Academy – Uli John Roth’s Sky Academy will be part of G-TARanaki with workshops, master classes and concerts for young aspiring artists in Taranaki.

The Sky Academy is a title given to guitar innovator Uli Jon Roth’s tuition seminars and concerts. It was first established in May 2006 in Los Angeles and the first international Sky Academy was held as part of G-TARanaki in 2008. The workshops and master classes inspire students to broaden their music horizons and develop their potential with demonstrations and focused tuition. Students from local schools will be invited to attend the workshops at the TSB Showplace which will be held on Wednesday 11, Thursday 12 and Friday 13 August.

Forums – Three free panel discussion forums will take place at Puke Ariki on Thursday 12, Friday 13 and Saturday 14 August. Industry experts will be sharing information about their experiences within the industry, creating awareness about the job and work opportunities available, and will discuss current trends and current challenges. These talks are suitable for anyone who is interested in working with musicians in the music industry and will offer opportunities for discussion and networking. Topics to be confirmed soon.

Clinics
G-TARanaki presents a series of performance-based tuition experiences to audiences in the form of G-TAR Clinics. Each clinic will present a guitarist or music industry insider, educating the audience, on guitar basics and will be followed by a question and answer session.

All Clinics are offered free-of-charge but numbers to each event are limited, so it is advised to be in early.

Youth Steering Group
A new addition to G-TARanaki 2010 is the establishment of a Youth Steering Group (YSG). The YSG will drive areas of the event through consultation with their peers to ensure G-TAR resonates with the young people of Taranaki.
The YSG are responsible for four key projects within G-TARanaki 2010. These projects include an event (from start to finish), a forum topic , consultation with the G-TAR project team on the New Zealand music component, and documenting their journey from the first meeting and throughout their project management of the four projects.

* The full line up for G-TARanaki International Music Week 2010 will be announced shortly *

ends