New Zealand Music Month at Wellington City Libraries

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It’s New Zealand Music Month we’ve planned a few community performances at the Johnsonville, Tawa and Te Awe Libraries to help celebrate local music — find links to each event on Facebook below. Nau mai rā tātou katoa – everybody is welcome!

Community Performances at Te Awe Library


Tāmira Pūoro – Saturday, 11 May 2024, 3 – 4pm
For New Zealand Music Month Te Awe Library will be hosting a special performance by Tāmira Pūoro, featuring the taonga pūoro and vocals of Ruby Solly, alongside Orchestra Wellington’s principal harpist, Michelle Velvin.

 

Community Performances at Tawa Library


Testore Jazz Trio – Saturday, 4 May 2024, 11 – 11:30am
Testore Trio is a jazz trio that also likes to squeeze a few Neapolitan (Italian) tunes into its repertoire to mix things up a little. The line-up is Richard Prowse – violin, Daryl Prowse – guitar and George Prowse – six string bass.

 

 

Prog Folk with Patrick and Bradley – Saturday, 11 May 2024, 11 – 11:30am
Hear a combo of original numbers and covers of eclectic folk/prog tunes from the 1960s and ‘70s as well as some originals. Featuring acoustic and electric guitars, mandolin, flute and voice.

 

 


Gemma Nash and Marianne Wren Duo – Saturday, 18 May 2024, 11 – 11:30am
Enjoy a musical conversation between Gemma and Marianne as they swap seamlessly between instruments and harmonies. Expect to hear some fun and lilting covers of great female artists interspersed with original material.

 


Tiffany Baker Plays Harp – Saturday, 25 May 2024, 11 – 11:30am
Tiffany Baker is an accomplished harpist who performs and teaches throughout the Wellington region. She’s passionate about demystifying the harp by offering hands-on harp sessions and community performances.
Expect to hear a variety of pieces on a variety of harps! Everything from classical and Celtic, to folk and modern.

Community Performances at Johnsonville Library


Tūhura HIVE Recording Studio Open Day – Friday, 17 May 2024, 10am – 4pm
Ever wonder how a fully functional recording studio works? Enjoy a tour of the equipment and instruments that make up the Tūhura HIVE recording studio. No appointment necessary. Just come to the HIVE Makerspace at the Johnsonville Library between 10am and 4pm and a staff member will show you around.

 


Ukulele Jam! – Saturday, 18 May 2024, 2 – 3pm
Join library staff for a musical jam, learn some chords, sing some songs, and unleash the inner muso! Ukuleles are provided, but if you have your own, you are welcome to bring it to this session. Registration essential, numbers are limited.

 

 


Tiffany Baker Plays Harp – Wednesday, 22 May 2024, 3:30 – 4pm
Tiffany Baker is an accomplished harpist who performs and teaches throughout the Wellington region. She’s passionate about demystifying the harp by offering hands-on harp sessions and community performances.
Expect to hear a variety of pieces on a variety of harps! Everything from classical and Celtic, to folk and modern.

 

Accordion Magic with Xinxin – Wednesday, 29 May 2024, 3:30 – 4pm
Join us on the library terraces to hear library specialist, Xinxin, play a variety of songs and ballads from around the world on the piano accordion.

Lasting Impressions: new art & design books

ThomasLeave a comment

This month’s art and design picks aim to inspire and educate, with books that provide masterclasses in everything from drawing to photography or even how to forage your own paint!

The drawings of Vincent van Gogh / Lloyd, Christopher
“A compelling and authoritative overview of the drawings of Vincent van Gogh, one of the most celebrated and intriguing figures in the history of art. Vincent van Gogh believed that drawing was the ‘root of everything’. This was reflected in the remarkable number of more than a thousand graphic works produced by the artist during his short, dramatic life – many of them personal, often lonely explorations of the emerging modern world, anxieties that still speak to us today” (Adapted from Catalogue)

Breathing space : Iranian women photographers
“A remarkable look at Iran through the lenses of 23 women photographers, at a moment in history when Iranian women are fighting for their rights with courage and determination. Exploring a range of photographic styles and genres, they record the past and present upheavals of their homeland as well as tackling subjects such as the nature of memory, the tension between tradition and modernity, and the scars of conflict and loss. Whether documentary or conceptual, their images have global resonance and speak of the hunger for freedom and the power of women to shape the world”(Adapted from Catalogue)

Botany for the artist / Simblet, Sarah
“This beautifully illustrated guide to botany in art explores the extraordinary world of plants and inspires you to try drawing them yourself. Masterclasses by famous artists – from Renaissance masters to contemporary illustrators – showcase different approaches to drawing and painting plants over the centuries. Botany for the Artist is a visual feast, not just for anyone wishing to create fresh, vibrant, drawings, but for gardeners, photographers, and everyone who is passionate about plants and how they are portrayed in art.” (Adapted from Catalogue) Continue reading “Lasting Impressions: new art & design books” →

Stories of Survival

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We regard survival here as a verb, an active determination to survive war, misogyny, imprisonment, colonisation, time… These texts tell of people and nations who have fought to survive against all odds, refusing to be forgotten and ignored.

Shadows of Nagasaki : trauma, religion, and memory after the atomic bombing
In the decades following the atomic bombing of Nagasaki on August 9, 1945, the city’s residents processed their trauma and formed narratives of the destruction and reconstruction in ways that reflected their regional history and social makeup. They created a multi-layered urban identity as an atomic-bombed city that differed markedly from Hiroshima’s image. Shadows of Nagasaki traces how Nagasaki’s trauma, history, and memory of the bombing manifested through some of the city’s many post-atomic memoryscapes.  (Adapted from Amazon) Continue reading “Stories of Survival” →

Exploring The Story of Orchestral Music with Orchestra Wellington

CorrinaLeave a comment

On Saturday night, Orchestra Wellington will open its 2024 Season with a Grand Gesture, a programme that lays down the foundation for the Orchestra’s exploration of The Story, ‘a glimpse of the journey of orchestral music from the Baroque era to the music of today.’ This is a story with many plot twists: far from being a chronological tour of well-known works that lead us from the eighteenth to the twenty-first century, music director Marc Taddei’s programming considers how composers in each era looked back at the history of music for inspiration, using the models established by past masters to guide their modern inventions. In the first concert, you’ll hear music by two of the 1685 generation, J. S. Bach and G. F. Handel, alongside Igor Stravinsky’s Pulcinella Suite and the Baroque Variations of Lukas Foss. If you’re eager to learn more about these composers and their music, read on … Wellington City Libraries holds a wealth of material that will enrich the story.

Continue reading “Exploring The Story of Orchestral Music with Orchestra Wellington” →

ComicFest 2024: Livestream

NeilLeave a comment

ComicFest - 4 May 2024While much of the fun of ComicFest 2024 is soaking up the buzz and excitement of being at a fabulous live event, we do realise that some people sadly can’t make it along but would still like to take part. Have no fear, we will be livestreaming the panels so that you can watch the event from the comfort of your home, wherever you are in Aotearoa.

All you need to do visit our livestream link here on May 4th to watch the proceedings.

Full details of the programme, including timings, are available here.

Magazines free to borrow, 10 – 28 May

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In a special offer:  from 10 – 28 May, you will be able to borrow magazines free of charge!

Free magazine rentals! 10-28 May. Browse our full collection on our catalogue. Pictured are three of our many titles -- Harper's Bazaar, North & South and The New Yorker

Wellington City Libraries has over 500 magazine titles for you to borrow.  From Mother Jones to Forbes to Quiltmania to NZV8 – our collections cover a huge range of subjects and styles.  We have four varieties of Vogue and seven titles on model making!

Not forgetting the fascinating back-runs of some classic magazines that we care for at our Off-site Storage site.  If you want to relive New Zealand from years past, Dish magazine has foodie trends since the earliest days of MKR, and Wilderness magazine is literally a walk in the park.  We also have constant favourites, like National Geographic, New Zealand Geographic, Time, Rolling Stone and The Economist.

Seek a new point of view, try a new hobby, or look back in time to how the world used to be.  You’ll be surprised at what we have!  If you are looking for a magazine on our catalogue but you don’t find what you are looking for, just ask one of our staff, and they will help you.

  • This free offer applies to loans and renewals made from 10 – 28 May at any of our branches or online.
  • Any loans or renewals outside of this period will be charged the usual 50c.
  • Magazines are borrowed for 7 days.
  • Reserves are free, but there is a $2 fee if you don’t collect your reserve items.
  • For more information, please contact your local library or email us at enquiries@wcl.govt.nz