Toogood band headlines VNZMA Artisan Awards

Toogood band headlines VNZMA Artisan Awards

Musician Jon Toogood’s The Adults are the headline act for the VNZMA Artisan Awards to be hosted next month at Massey University’s School of Music and Creative Media Production on the Wellington campus.

Five Tui awards will be presented at the event on Monday November 5 that honours the creative talents working behind the scenes of the top New Zealand recordings of 2018.

Massey University sponsors and will present awards for Best Engineer, Best Producer
and Best Album Cover. Awards will also be presented in the categories of NZ On Air Best Music Video and the new award for Music Teacher of the Year.

Head of the School of Music and Creative Media Production, Associate Professor Andre Ktori, says it is exciting for the school, part of Massey’s College of Creative Arts, to host the awards in Wellington.

“It aligns with our interests in supporting the sector and the creative industries in the city. Having Jon and the Adults play at the awards is so cool [with Toogood] having completed his MFA with us this year.”

As part of his research for a Master of Fine Arts, supervised by deputy head of school and The Chills’ keyboardist Dr Oli Wilson, , Toogood adapted The Adults second album Haja to explore the cultural significance and music of the northern Sudanese people. The album was produced by senior lecturer and fellow musician Devin Abrams who performs under the name Pacific Heights.

Toogood will be joined for his awards performance by fellow band members who include rapper Raiza Biza, Ben Wood from Trinity Roots, musician Emily C. Browning and 2018 Vodafone New Zealand Music Awards finalists Estére, JessB and Kings. The main awards are held the following week in Auckland.

Recorded Music New Zealand chief executive Damian Vaughan is looking forward to seeing the Artisans hosted in the capital.

“We are thrilled to bring the Artisan Awards to Wellington and shine a light on the incredibly talented people bringing world-class quality to Aotearoa’s music industry. This is the third iteration of the Artisan Awards, and every year the calibre of the finalists continues to impress.

“This standalone event specifically acknowledges those who capture, craft and enrich the artists’ musical works into final recordings, as well as the talented visual artists translating the musicians’ visions into album artworks and music videos.”

The awards will be held in the School of Music and Creative Media Production’s main recording studio, one of seven new recording studios designed by leading UK studio designer Andy Munro, which feature the very latest in recording and post-production facilities. Additionally, the facility houses motion/performance capture, music technology and mixed reality labs, a dubbing theatre and screening room, edit suites, animation and digital video production suites and games labs.

Toogood, who rehearsed with his band at the School for an earlier visit in August, says he’s raring to go for his return that also sees The Adults nominated in the Best Music Video category.

“I can’t wait to perform at the incredible new facilities at Massey as part of the NZ Artisan Music Awards. The space is mind-blowing as is the group of musicians I get to play with in it, so I’m a very happy man!

“Studying at Massey was an absolute blast. Apart from their amazing facilities, Massey also has incredible, talented and supportive staff. My Masters supervisor Oli Wilson guided me through the process every step of the way and I couldn’t have done it without him.”

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