Local Musicians Support Mental Health Awareness Week

New Zealand celebrates Mental Health Awareness Week on every second week of October. This year the theme is “What’s your global handprint?” ‘Ko te tutukitanga, ka totoro, ka kawe kee, ka whakatau te manawanui’. The achievement is reaching out, bringing change, and establishing confidence.

The World Federation theme has been used as a starting point to develop the theme for New Zealand Mental Health Awareness Week 2008. Making mental health a global priority: scaling up services through citizen advocacy and action. The theme calls on us to reflect on the past and look toward the future. It seeks to make good mental health a global issue and asks us to think about how we can support this goal.

To celebrate this special week, Toi Ora Live Art Trust, Regional Consumer Network, Mental Health Foundation, Like Minds, Like Mine and CADS (Community Alcohol and Drugs Service) are together organizing an annual October gig. Last year, the performances on the night included local musician such as; Sam RB, Ryan Cardo, Johnny Matteson, Mahinarangi Tocker & Co, Fagan & Lig and the Bads. This year the performances on the night will include music from"  

• AJ Bell, A talented and critically acclaimed voices in alt-country, folk pop, a song writer with his feet firmly on NZ soil
• SamRB, a self recording new artist of the folk persuasion
• Johnny Matteson, a well known advocate for “Mad Musicians” who released his first self titled debut album in 1999.
• Literatti Performance Poetry, Auckland-based performance poetry group.
• Local musician, Gareth Edward and TRIMZ,
• George D. Herderson (from the Puddle), the Puddle have contributed an almost mythical and romantic legacy to New Zealand music.

The gig will be held at the Wine Cellar, St Kevins Arcade, K’ Road, Newtown. Doors open at 7pm, entry by gold coin donation. It starts at 7 pm, is free, this event is extra-special because it was first set up by the late Mahinarangi Tocker.

Many of the performers have been involved with mental health promotion activities for the past decade and some bring their own personal perspectives to their awareness-raising work. 

(Thane Kirby, writer.)