IVY & Dunedin Youth Orchestra
Errick’s
Friday, March 28
Music is a universal language with endless genres and styles.
On Friday evening two groups of Dunedin musicians combined talents and contrasting styles, as part of the Dunedin Arts Festival, to entertain a full house at Errick’s.
IVY is an established Dunedin rock band of five men, and the Dunedin Youth Orchestra of musicians under the age of 25 has a long-held reputation for performing classical works. IVY musicians are Bayfield High School ex-students Jesse Hanan, James Axton, Connor Cooper, Louis Stevenson and Ocean Temple-Wilson.
Composers Maddy Parkins-Craig and Prof Anthony Ritchie had arranged IVY originals for performance by the band together with a 24-member symphony orchestra and the result was a unique blend, conducted by Peter Adams.
The audience loved every sound, beat and reverb as the performers gave of their everything to please.
Strong vocals from lyricist and composer Hanan, who is equally competent in both classical and contemporary vocal delivery, and electric violin (Stevenson) give this group its distinctive character, and the style of their original songs has a recognisable familiarity - abrupt yet subtle key changes often just a semitone away, elongated phrase endings and meaningful, thoughtful texts.
The sound technician on Friday did not do the best job in coping with the venue’s interior concrete hardness and much "story-telling" was swamped, although I believe many standing outside the venue’s open doors had an advantage. Similarly with orchestral instruments competing to out-sound bass guitar and prominent drumming.
Of the 10 IVY originals my favourites were The Trees, St John dedicated to Hanan’s grandfather, and Real Love.
Supporting acts before the main programme were locals - Keira Wallace (vocals and guitar) and Mea Culpa with singer songwriters Leigham Fitzpatrick and Emma Wells, Ari van Eerten (bass) and Nashoba Addai (percussion).
This was a great evening’s entertainment and I’m left with thoughts about IVY, that maybe as growing success takes them internationally, Dunedin might have a Fab Five in the future.
