Toot your own horn, in a brass band
Reporter Rexine Hawes speaks with Kaperiera Hughes, musical director of the Matamata Development Brass Band, for our new series, Spotlight, highlighting community groups and clubs.
Kaperiera Hughes has fond memories of her dad when she plays the cornet.
It’s a family legacy the late William Piriwiritua Hughes passed on to Kaperiera and her sister when they were young.
She has been playing in brass bands for just over 20 years, starting when she was eight.
She is now the musical director of the recently formed Matamata Development Brass Band and is encouraging members of the community to join.
‘‘People think it’s so hard - but you learn at your own pace,’’ she said.
‘‘It doesn’t matter if you have never read music in your life - you start from scratch.’’
She said there was a perspective that joining a brass band was not ‘‘the cool thing to do’’.
But Hughes had first hand experience on just how many doors could open up for brass band performers.
Her Rotorua-based reggae band, TyneeGiant, performed at the One Love festival in Tauranga last month and while there, she was invited to play trumpet with New Zealand reggae band 1814, a highlight of her music career.
She also recently completed study for a Diploma in Music Performance and Production qualification.
‘‘People don’t realise just how far in life you can get.
‘‘One guy I grew up playing with plays for the Black Seeds. Fat Freddy’s Drop - they started in brass band.
‘‘It opens a lot of doors for a lot of people.’’
The Matamata Brass Band has been in the community for over 80 years.
It has 25 members from 8 to 80-years.
It’s the strongest d-grade brass band in the Waikato and Bay of Plenty.
It has won regional and national titles.
It nowhosts the Matamata Festival of Music, a mixture of brass bands, symphonic and concert bands from Auckland, Waikato and Bay of Plenty, held in May.
It’s for these reasons she particularly wants to engage with the youth of Matamata and introduce them to a potentially exciting career in music.
‘‘So they can see whatever they want to achieve in life - they can achieve that just by starting in something small like this.
‘‘Being in an orchestra or brass band doesn’t mean you won’t achieve something great. I am now living my dream.’’
Matamata development Brass Band: Mondays, 5.30pm-6.30pm, Band Pavillion, Huia Street. Senior Brass Band follows from 7pm-9pm.