Fundraising Matinee from Heaven Bent Gospel Choir
Fundraising Matinee "Heaven Bent" Concert for Parkinson's Society Auckland
The highly rated Heaven Bent Gospel Choir will perform an afternoon of songs
to support the work of Parkinson's Auckland. (The Parkinsonisim Society of
New Zealand) at All Saints Church in Ponsonby on Sunday 9th October starting
at 2:30pm.
The foot-stomping rhythms of this well-established 35-voice Auckland choir
will feature African and African-American gospel music as well as
contemporary arrangements of songs made famous by singers such as Sister
Rosetta Thorpe, Curtis Mayfield, Roberta Flack, Miriam Makeba, the Soweto
Gospel Choir and many others.
Heaven Bent is a non-denominational group, united by the passion the singers
have for gospel music. In recent years the choir has extended its
repertoire to include Waiata and Pacific Islands songs which are greatly
enjoyed by choir and audiences alike.
Recently appointed Musical Director, Phil May, has taken the group from
strength to strength, adding some of his own arrangements to the repertoire,
as well as being a talented conductor, soloist and pianist.
"Gospel music is invariably uplifting, whether you are religious or not",
says choir member Nancy Synnestvedt. "Many of us are busy people and have
too much stress in our lives. But when we're together singing, the stress
drops away and we are carried along with the rhythms and melodies of our
music. It's wonderful privilege to be able to share this joy with our
audiences as well".
Heaven Bent members have always been dedicated to using their skills to
support various charities and each year commit part of their singing
schedule to achieve this. The choir is delighted to sing at this
fundraising performance for Parkinson's especially as there is a personal
connection: the husband of one of the choir members has PSP, a rare form of
Parkinson's. So this is the choir's way of saying thank you to him for his
support to the choir over the years.
Member Profile
Heaven Bent Gospel ChoirHeaven Bent is a well established and highly rated non-denominational, 35-voice community choir that sings in the gospel genre and in particular, music with Afro-American roots. We have in recent year’s added Maori, Pacific Island and contemporary songs to our repertoire. Our members are people who have a passion for what they do as a choir, and they are also committed to using their skills for the benefit of various charities every year.
The choir was originally formed following a workshop with gospel guru Tony Backhouse and has been performing for fourteen years, securing a special reputation all of its own. The choir specializes in gospel and with beautiful harmonies they perform songs ranging from the deeply moving to the hand-clapping, foot stomping tunes of the African/African American Gospel tradition.. It also strives to maintain a balance between musical excellence and fun singing with a real passion for the love of gospel music.
As an a cappella choir Heaven Bent has performed for a wide variety of audiences in New Zealand from television, corporate gigs, to weddings, public performances, charity events and Arts and Music Festivals around the country; a Heaven Bent performance has become something very special.
Heaven Bent has also formed an alliance with award-winning Kapa Haka choir Hatea initially performing with them at the 2007 Waitangi Day service in the Treaty Grounds, and to packed houses in Whangarei and Auckland. Both Choirs were first brought together during 2007 Waitangi Day commemorations by Bishop Kitohi Pikaahu, who invited them to come together and reflect on what the Treaty meant for them. "For the first time for many of us we stayed on the marae, experienced our traditional New Zealand culture and we just had such a wonderful time. It was an amazing weekend and we came away with some wonderful feelings, not just for ourselves but our country as well and the potential for our country” Mr Christenson says. NZ Poet Kevin Ireland composed and read poetry especially for the concerts in Whangarei and Auckland. Also, we have a special relationship with the Auckland-based African group, Taste of Africa.
In August 2010, the choir was part of the “The Edge - Pick & Mix” programme and was given the opportunity to create a public community workshop, which had fostered confidence and communication performance within a greater audience. This programme took the form of an interactive workshop that was rich in vocalisation, movement and performance dynamics which expressed the African/African American gospel tradition and engaged the audience in lots of fun!
Heaven Bent has made many guest media appearances on APRA Scroll Awards, Mika Show, Auckland City Council Jazz & Blues Gig, Rotorua Accapella Event, Hamilton Gardens Summer Event, Sweetwaters, Organ Donation Thanksgiving Service Annual Event (since1998), Praise Be, Waitangi Day Celebrations and had released a CD The Spirit of Gospel.
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