What's been happening I hear you ask.....

posted by Kath

Well, I'll tell you!

Firstly.........we had a trip to Kaikoura planned for the 5th April. We were going to sing in their amphitheatre in the middle of town as no one has performed there since it was built and it's a very cool space. Unfortunately we had to cancel because quite a few weeks earlier, Liz had caught a bad virus, which went to her chest and she coughed and coughed (and coughed and coughed....) and as a result had a very croaky voice. As you will know, you just can't sing if that happens and there's not a lot you can do about it either! And she did try, believe me! Garlic, lemons, homeopathics, other natural remedies....you name it, she tried it!! And even resorted to antibiotics when none of those things worked, but it seemed it just had to run it's course. If Celine Dion can do it, so can we!!

I was lucky enough to have been part of a small tour the previous weeked. My friend Mel Parsons www.myspace.com/melparsons had organised it and asked me to 'opened' for her band and sing some bvs too. So, on the spur of the moment, I suggested that we travel down to Kaikoura in place of The Nancies. I didn't expect her to say "yes" as she had just got back to Christchurch and Shaun (the drummer) had just got back to Wellington. But they both said "yes" and Shaun got on the boat, I got in my car and picked him up on the way, Mel drove up from Chch and Kaikoura got some music afterall! It was a lovely weekend and very successful - both Mel and The Nancies have been invited back at a later date. Kaikoura have this lovely old theatre - I'm hoping we can sing in there sometime soon =) Thanks to the Kaikoura Arts Council and to Darran who organised it all.

We were asked to sing at the Chandrakirti Music Day in Sunrise Valley and so on the 13th April tootled off and sang for around 50mins. It was a lovely peaceful place to hang out actually. Beautiful views, lovely peaceful atmosphere and gentle people. It was also a beautiful sunny day. Liz's voice held out, but only just and she knew, much to her disappointment, it still wasn't quite right.

We met to discuss what to do about our upcoming Fairfield House gig. After lengthy discussion it was decided that because of us all being so busy with our 'other' lives and also to give Liz's voice a chance to heal fully, we'd take a small break over the winter months. In conclusion we thought best to postpone the Fairfield gig until after winter and have booked for the 1st November - sounds like the perfect date to me!

We were also booked to play at Mot on High on 27th April, but the weather just wasn't playing the game and it was cancelled. Jacqui, the organiser asked if we would play at the Festival of Lights on 4th July instead and we thought this would be a very cool idea. It sounds like it will be a really lovely evening. We are all looking forward to it! Hope to see you there.

That's about all for now. Stay warm, keep singing and we'll see ya soon! =D

Oh and congratulations Katrina! The winner of the Regional non-breakfast host in the 2008 NZ Radio Awards!!

Kath, Liz, Jane and Katrina

The Mussel Inn

We played at the Mussel Inn on 8th March. What a great place. I could rave about it for ages. It's a fantastic venue. Andrew and Jane are fantastic hosts - and what they do for live performers is just great!! It's difficult to find venues and so it's great to know that The Mussel Inn is having live performers so often. Thanks you guys =)

Also to be able to stay in this wonderful house is a treat!

There were a lot of people there and we all had a great time. The crowd seemed to enjoy us and we enjoyed the rapport we formed with them.

All in all a fantastic time, great night away from home and a successful gig!

Opera in the Park

posted by Kath


Where to start, where to start...........................being part of Opera in the Park was amost too good to be true and didn't feel real actually. Here are comments from Jane, Liz and Kat......


Jane said: "We were very privileged to be asked to perform at the gig of the decade in Nelson. Thank you Sealord Summer Festival. You have been great to the Nancies. Bob Bickerton made us feel very much at home up on the big stage by providing us with plenty of foldback- and a lovely natural mix at that. I had been very nervous in the lead up to the concert and a bit grumpy around the house (sorry kids, I love you!). Still, fortunately I had been through my mother's old trunk at Xmas time and came home with a green silk dress she had made to wear while she was pregnant with me. I chose to wear it for the Opera gig. It seemed to work in well with what the other girls had chosen. So, it helped quell the nerves a little, knowing I was well dressed for the occasion. We chose our oldest most solid material to perform, so there were no jitters about doing new work. That helped too. Apparently we sounded good. So I'm proud."



Liz said: "It wasn't actually until afterwards, when I saw the photos of our performance, that it hit home what a special event we'd all been involved in!"



Katrina said: "I loved EVERY second of the whole night. Wasn't nervous at all. And the feedback for the Nancies' performance has been overwhelmimg!"

Here are my thoughts on performing on the same stage as Kiri Te Kanawa, Simon O'Neill, Jonathan Lemalu and Helen Medlyn. Not to mention Sunsuite and Cairde!

Firstly, I felt very removed from the audience. Being on such a big stage with a sea of faces a long way off, it's hard to connect somehow. So in one respect its GREAT because there's no nervousness! It's very rare for me not to get nervous and I was a little, but when we were out there doing it, it just felt natural. There were a few lovely faces right up the front to look and smile at, so that was really nice. Thanks Bob for the sound - even soundcheck was exciting for me!! Thanks to Annabel, Pete, Ants and all involved in the Sealord Summer Festival. It was a fantastic night all round.

I was glad I didn't know until afterward that we were on the big screen. I just thought that was for the BIG stars. I think I may have been more nervous (especially when I nearly lost my top!) knowing this.

I made a faux pas just after we'd be on the stage. We were trudging back to the 'green room' with all our gear and Pete Rainey pulled up beside us. In his jovial manner he was making fun of us, and the guy in the passenger's seat said "He's been raving about The Nancies all the way here!" So I said "Oh, thank you, whoever you are!" It just happened to be Marc Taddei - the conductor for the night!! I felt terrible, and remembered that I must act more like a grown up sometimes!! I don't think he took offence. Marc Taddei seems like an extremely lovely guy and as a conductor - he's vibrant, energetic, happy! and adds a welcome liveliness to the orchestra.

I have to admit, I'm not a huge opera fan. I was brought up on it and us girls (my sisters and I) used to make fun of it, getting round the house pretending to be opera stars - but really just making fun of Dad's choice in music!! I must say though, I think Dad's taste in music, which included Mozart, Beethoven, Bach and Schubert, has ultimately had a big influence on the way I write songs. Thanks Dad =)

So, sitting for a couple of hours listening to opera, wouldn't normally be my choice. But I loved it!! I LOVED Helen Medlyn. Thought she was a fantastic performer - her facial expressions and emotion were perfect! Kiri was refined, beautiful and I thought, quite nervous a lot of the time. Definitely a star. I thought Simon needed a shave - stubble doesn't really suit the genre - perhaps he was growing it for a lead role? hahaha. His voice was strong and meaningful. Jonathan was just lovely. His voice, his face, his playfulness. Just lovely. Singing opera is really hard work! Lots of discipline and practice is needed. LOTS of it! I'm glad I'm just a Nancy!

My parents loved the whole thing. Dad doesn't get out much these days and to see one of his all time favourite singers/performers was a rare treat. His emotions ran high.

My favourite part of being on stage was when the four of us sang a full unaccompanied harmony/chord with a slight break afterwards, because I could hear our voices ringing out and echoing back! It was definitely a 'goosebump' moment!

To sum up......thank you Jane for getting us girls together and for arranging most of our songs. You rock! I'm really glad to part of "The Nancies "=)

The Twilight Market etc

posted by Kath

It's been a while since I've posted and it's been a while since The Nancies performed! What with Christmas, people away and other reasons beyond our control, there's hardly even been enough time to practice! Still, we managed to squeeze a couple in before the Twilight Market! And what a cool gig it was!! It was great to be singing and entertaining again! We all really do love it, despite the complications!

We had a captive audience most of the time - it changed and varied, but some stayed for the whole hour and a half. Katrina had the forsight to put a 'hat' out and we made enough to feed and water ourselves afterwards! A huge bonus and we are grateful to everyone who contributed =) The wee boy above stayed and listened for a long time and put lots of money in the hat too!! Cute huh? And below are another couple of attentive listeners =)

We have arranged (well, Jane has) a version of "Perhaps, Perhaps, Perhaps" which I just LOVE doing. It's such fun with the percussion and interesting to sing. Jane, you are clever! Liz......great suggestion! I just looked up where it originated from and it was written in 1947, by a Cuban named Osvaldo Farres (with an accent above the "e") and in Spanish "Quizas, Quizas, Quizas" (with an accent above the "a"). A band called "Cake" covered it, and this is the version Liz got the idea from.

Liz and I formed "Zilk" again to fill in for The Nancies. I have to say, we really enjoyed getting back together and doing what we do!! Which is mostly covers, guitar, clarinet, some more obscure originals of mine and even some 2part a cappella. We had a lunchtime gig at the top of Trafalgar St on Saturday 19th Jan. Thanks to Arts Marketing for organising and funding this. We felt a bit like we were playing to parked cars though! A few people at House of Ales listened and two people had come specifically to hear The Nancies, but stayed and enjoyed it anyway. Two lovely ladies stayed and listened to us for the whole hour and a half, which was really nice. We also did an hour's Streetbeat - thanks to NCC and the Summer Festival - it was a really nice atmosphere and the audience was appreciative, which is always a pleasure =D

Up and coming gigs for The Nancies........next one is pre-show entertainment at Opera in the Park, Saturday 16th Feb! Our biggest gig yet! It's half an hour, on the main stage and we are all pretty excited about it! I know I'm going to revel in having a 'real' sound engineer!!! Woohoo! We are on at 5.45pm, after Sunsuite (who start at 5pm) and The Brassband and before Cairde and The Brass Band again. Don't miss it!!!! Just between you and me, my Dad is very sick...anyway Kiri Te Kanawa is one of his all time favourite singers, so when I said "Dad, we are opening for Kiri", (which is how I like to tell the story....!) he was very proud =) Awwww, aren't Dads great, even when you're all grown up!! ;)

The weekend after that - 23rd Feb, we are travelling to Kaikoura to do a concert. We were going to play in the amphitheatre, but I think we are now playing at the A & P Show that is on the same weekend. It was organised by the Arts Council down there. That'll be a lovely weekend. We are also singing at a wedding while we are there and having a Hangi too!! M-mmm.

Then it's off to the Mussel Inn on the 8th March! Another great place to play and a fantastic place to stay!!! We might even record a live album that night.....still working on that.....hope we can pull it off! Sounds great though, don't you think? "The Nancies - Live at The Mussel Inn"!!! Yep, it's got appeal.......

That's all for now folks! Any questions? Want to be added to our email list? You can email me any time kathbee@xtra.co.nz I'll get some of the other "Nancies" to write a post one of these days!!

Jane's a WINNER!!!!!!!!

(posted by Kath)

CONGRATULATIONS to Jane Fisher, a member of The Nancies!!! She won first place in the Open Section of the APRA Ukulele contest with her song "Dreamin'"!!!!

She was inspired to write the song after one of our practises where we had been discussing our dreams earlier in the week. Here are the lyrics! Listen to the song on the Art of Nelson
http://www.stuff.co.nz/nelsonmail/blogs/artofnelson/2007/11/28/dreamin-no-fluke-on-the-uke/

"I'm in a deep sleep and I'm Dreamin', oh yeah,
I'm lookin' ahead and Stevie Nicks is dancin'
Her arms float in the air her black dress blowing in the breeze
Now tell me what on earth does that mean??!!

I'm in a deep sleep and I'm Dreamin', oh yeah,
I'm walking around inside a beauty parlour, oooooooohhhhhhhh
The walls are filled with hanging mirrors of every shape and size
Now tell me what on earth does that mean??!!

OOOOOOhhhhh, I'm going to the library
OOOOOOhhhhh, I'm gunna take a book out
OOOOOOhhhhh, I'm writing them down don't help me
I'll see what Freud does with a goodnight kiss

I'm in a deep sleep and I'm Dreamin', oh yeah,
I'm reading a mag and waiting for my Dr oooooooooohhhhhhhhh
His white coat and his stethoscope are all that he has on
Now tell me what on earth does that mean??!!

I'm in a deep sleep and I'm Dreamin', oh yeah,
A couple o' guys and I have got to choose one oooooooohhhhhhhh
He coated me in honey from my head down to my toes
Now tell me what on earth does that mean??!!"

Isn't it great!! I'll let you all guess who dreamt what................................wink wink say no more.

She is going to be in the Leader next week and interviewed on MoreFM sometime soon.

Well done Jane - she's very modest actually, but a very very clever song writer, singer and musician.

More about our gig at Riverside soon.............

Dave, Helen and the Theatre Royal

(Posted by Kath)

Let me explain…………the other day I received a random txt saying “do you guys want a 20min gig tomorrow good $$ and high profile?” I replied “Yep! I’m in!” Later, a phone call explaining………….

Turns out Nelson’s old theatre (The Theatre Royal), which the Historic Buildings Trust have been trying to raise funds to restore, has finally been granted $2.9m from the Government to do so!! And the Prime Minister herself (who is also Minister for Arts and Culture) is coming to announce the fact IN the Theatre!!

The gig is IN the theatre and we are to sing to the guests until she arrives!! By the way, it's SUCH a lovely old theatre and I'm sooooooo glad this has happened. I was wishing I were a millionaire because I would’ve donated the money myself!!

On a personal note – because I don’t think the other girls were so excited about it – but none other than Dave Dobbyn is singing after the PM gives her speech!!! Now, let me explain…….Dave Dobbyn has captivated me with his song writing, singing, guitar-playing for YEARS and I have been to see him live several times. There’s just something about him…………………..I couldn’t believe that I would be on the same STAGE as him!!

I was absolutely determined to meet him, and so after he had sung, I went looking for him and found him outside. I walked right up to him and introduced myself and shook his hand and thanked him for the “hours of happiness he has provided me with over the years.” He chatted away to Dan, Glen and I, told funny stories, and was just a down-to-earth guy.

My sister suggested the day before that I give him one of my children’s CDs, so I handed it to him and told him that I just wanted to thank him for all the pleasure his music has given me over the years. He thanked me and later said he’d listen really carefully to it!

After a most people had left and we were all ‘socialising’, someone, I think it was Pete, mentioned we should sing one of his songs (Slice of Heaven) and so he went off and got his guitar and sang to us (by then there were only about 20 people there) and we sang/danced and I was on Cloud 9!! I just couldn’t have thought of a better thing to happen. I have been laughing and smiling ever since and I will think of this day whenever I’m feeling down.

Oh, I should mention the Prime Minister (Helen Clark) I guess………………she smiled at us. She made a great speech about the history of the Theatre, but I didn’t meet her. She said “Hello” to Liz. But for me, it wasn’t a highlight. Dave Dobbyn was.

Oh and the fact that we were the LAST people to perform in the old Theatre Royal and may I say, it was an absolute PLEASURE!!

Thanks, Glen, Dan and Pete. And most of all………………..thanks Dave =)

Here is a link to the highlights of the day - thanks Grae!! http://www.youtube.com/user/ChannelN

The New Blog!

Hey everyone out there in blogger land!! This is a blog about us! The Nancies! It will include stories about our gigs, links to videos, photos etc etc. We will attempt to keep it up to date and will put an "upcoming gigs" list for you to put in your diaries!!

Liz just arrived - we are off to a practice with Judah. He has a band called One Vibe and we are singing backing vocals, reggae-styles for his band next Friday.

I can't blog when there are any distractions - thanks Liz!! So I'll go and update you all again soon!!


Watch this space.......................