Amplifier

Sounds Aotearoa 2012 is proud to announce a power-packed line-up of festival bookers and presenters this year that will be in attendance at its two day think tank/showcase in New Plymouth.

Returning this year is Malcolm Haynes from Glastonbury Festival who has become a valuable champion of New Zealand music in the UK and this year brings with him Glastonbury Festival's World Music Stage director, Derek Dodd. For the first time, the powerhouse duo of Paula Henderson and Chris Smith of Womad International will be in attendance.

Sounds Aotearoa has stacked up an impressive array of successes including 2011 attendees Electric Wire Hustle and Bella Kalolo performing at Glastonbury and The Big Chill in the UK. Maisey Rika has been able to travel to Hawaii and mainland US and Moana & The Tribe, Batucada Sound Machine, Pacific Curls and 1814 have had opportunities across Asia-Pacific including Penang, Korea and across Australia.

Sounds Aotearoa is designed to expose kiwi music to the global market and build capacity within the industry and to also expose the overseas delegates to some of New Zealand's finest talent via performance showcases. With presenters from major festivals like Womad, Glastonbury, Vision Sound and Music (UK), Sziget Festival (Hungary) and Dreaming Festival (Australia), Sounds Aotearoa gives local musicians valuable insight and the face to face connections they need to break into overseas markets.

The line-up of presenters also includes: Andrew Messingham from the Vision, Sound & Music Event (UK) and Min Kim from Ulsan World Music Festival (Korea). Simon Raynor (AWME Melbourne), Fruszina Szep (Sziget Festival, Hungary) and Jordan Verzaar (Top Shelf Productions, Australia) are joined by local industry experts Belinda Jones (Creative New Zealand), David McLaughlin (McLaughlin Law) and Jeffery Stothers (Southbound Music Distrubtion). Returning is Vicki Gordon (VGM Media, Australia) and Sam Cook from Dreaming Festival (Australia) for the currently confirmed line-up.

Launched in 2010 by director Emere Wano (Tihi) in conjunction with the Taranaki Arts and Festival Trust (TAFT), Sounds Aotearoa deliberately precedes the ever popular Womad New Zealand festival so that international guests can take in both of these national events and experience five days of the best of national and international sounds and networking opportunities.

Sounds Aotearoa will take place on Wednesday 14 and Thursday 15 March 2012 at TSB Showplace, New Plymouth, Taranaki.

Registrations for the conference aspect of the two-day event are open now via the official website http://www.soundsaotearoa.com