haere mai! This is SongFest’24!
SongFest ’24 is a brilliant three-day showcase of the best young singing talent from Ōtepoti Dunedin and all over the South.
Formerly the Green Island Jr Vocal Competition, the Festival has a long and proud history of over 75 years.
Now revamped and rebranded, it will be held at a new convenient inner-city location, Otago Boys’ High School Auditorium. The Festival’s broad range of song categories & styles is sure to appeal to every young singer:
• CONTEMPORARY
• WAIATA
• POP
• CLASSICAL
• MUSICAL THEATRE
• And more!
We have two wonderful adjudicators this year, Christchurch singing teacher and soprano Zara Ballara and Dunedin’s own Kelly Ann Tahitahi (pictured with last’s year’s winner of the inaugural senior Waiata class, Ripeka Potiki).
Zara and Kelly Ann bring a wealth of experience across all genres of music. They will provide you with excellent feedback to help guide you in your singing journey. We promise: No Nasty Judges! Just good, helpful, positive advice.
Zara Ballara
Born in Ōtautahi (Christchurch), Zara returned in 2012 after a 16-year career of performing and teaching in London. She started lessons aged 8 and worked her way through traditional graded classical exams in preparation for her formal studies at Victoria University, Wellington with Emily Mair. In 1996 she married fellow performance student Carlo Ballara, and together they headed for London.
She completed her postgraduate studies at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, and in 2000, won the prestigious Maggie Teyte prize. In 2002 she made her début at Wigmore Hall, London, performing ‘Encantos, The Songs of Spain’ for the Company of Singers and Players. Zara has sung as a solo artist throughout the UK and Europe, but since starting a family has focused her efforts on voice teaching, both peripatetically and privately.
Recently, she has begun pursuing a DMA (Doctorate of Musical Arts). Her research is focused on reimagining Māori waiata into the classical hybrid art song form. Her findings will then be used to arrange 18 traditional published Māori waiata. Her aim is to create a recital programme of beautiful waiata, to be shared with students and audiences across Aotearoa. She believes, songs are the caretakers of our stories - treasured taonga.
Although trained as a classical opera singer Zara has an interest and appreciation of all musical styles and genres. Her current degree programme at UC creates tailor-made recital programmes, which use an eclectic mix of genres and styles from pop to opera and art song to musical theatre. Students are actively encouraged to perform programmes that reflect their individual tastes while also discovering repertoire outside of their comfort zones. This is in order to help them grow as singers and to create a personalised musical journey.
As a private and itinerant singing teacher Zara has also teaches graded singing exams through both Trinity College and ABRSM. She teaches all 3 syllabuses: Classical singing, Musical Theatre and Rock and Pop. Recently she began preparing students for their ATCL Diploma in Musical Theatre which proved very successful.
Zara realises that as singing teachers it is our job to inspire and encourage our students to sing whatever they want, in the healthiest way possible.