Celebrate a year of music sounds
The Katikati Folk Club celebrates another year of good music and good company, with many new members arriving.
Everyone enjoyed the wide range of musical styles, the high calibre sounds from visiting musicians and the friendly atmosphere at the Katikati Bowling Club.
The club’s Christmas show on December 7 features The Pipi Pickers, purveyors of ‘banjo-licious’ bluegrass music, playing a blend of contemporary and traditional hard-driving bluegrass music. The solid instrumental talents and an engaging performance style puts a smile on everyone’s faces.
The Pipis have become favourites at New Zealand and Australian music festivals through their vibrant performances, open jam sessions and slow jam workshops.
The band comprises Barry Torkington, Nat Torkington, Garry Bigwood and Jenine Abarbanel. Barry first heard bluegrass as a young lad when Radio NZ would play their one Flatt and Scruggs record every day just as he was milking the cows. Realising this was the music for him, he bought a five-string banjo and taught himself to play it. He has since been forced to switch to guitar. Barry’s son Nat picked up — or, in Barry’s words, stole — the banjo at age 17, forcing Barry to switch to the guitar.
Nat has studied with Pete Wernick and jammed with Bela Fleck, Tony Trischka and Tim O’Brien, and is widely considered to be the best five-string Earl Scruggs-style banjo player living on Ti Point today.
“There are few greater joys than listening to Nat tear up Foggy Mountain Breakdown seven ways to Sunday.”
Garry comes from a blues tradition, formerly playing with the Leigh Buoys.
He thrashes his Duff mandolin like he means it and brings a true bluesy groove to the Pipi Picker sound.
Although he switched from guitar to mandolin as recently as 2010, Garry has become one of the premier mandolin bluegrass jammers in New Zealand and Australia.
Jenine came to music late, learning to play the stand-up bass in 2006 so the guys would let her hang out with them during jam nights.
A singer since childhood, Jenine’s vocals are most often compared to Natalie Merchant and Gillian Welch.
Come along to the Folk Club’s Christmas show at the Katikati Bowling Club on December
7 for a good time. Tickets at the door, adults
$20, members $15, school-aged free. Doors open at 7pm and the concert starts at 7.30. Bar available with tea, coffee, biscuits and Christmas treats at a special supper.