Guitar Legend Slash to Perform at G-TARanaki International Music Week

New Plymouth District Council is proud to announce that Slash, one of the world’s most legendary guitarists, will be coming to New Plymouth to headline G-TARanaki International Music Week 11 – 15 August.

The former lead guitarist of Guns N’ Roses, who also formed supergroup Velvet Revolver, has performed with the likes of Michael Jackson, AC/DC and more recently collaborated with Fergie, Iggy Pop, Ozzy Osbourne and Chris Cornell on his newly released self-titled solo album.

“Slash is one of the biggest names among world guitarists and G-TARanaki is the only chance that his fans will have to see him this year in New Zealand” says Mayor Peter Tennent.

“G-TARanaki is a huge event and it’s fantastic to have Slash as the headline act.”

Slash will perform in concert on Saturday 14 August at TSB Stadium and also in an exclusive midnight session the same night at New Plymouth’s Puke Ariki museum.

The five-day event features two major concerts, three exclusive midnight sessions, Sky Academy workshops and master classes with Uli Jon Roth, industry focused discussion forums, performance based clinics and an exhibition of rare guitars.

More artists will be announced shortly.

Tickets for G-TARanaki go on sale through Ticketmaster.co.nz from Monday 31 May.

G-TARanaki 2008 was New Zealand's first international guitar festival. Held in New Plymouth in July, it was the inspiration of the late Garry Sharpe-Young as a forum for young people to collaborate with music industry professionals, in an environment that encourages participation with an optimistic future vision.

G-TARanaki 2008 featured a celebration of all things guitar including guitarists and bands from a range of genres including Rock, Funk, Classical, Jazz, Blues and Metal. Two concerts were held at New Plymouth's TSB Stadium, headlined by Joe Satriani and featuring Uli Jon Roth, Vernon Reid, Gilby Clarke, Alex Skolnick Trio and Glenn Hughes.

The New Plymouth District Council Events Team, along with American promoter Dan Allen, wants to fulfil Garry’s vision for G-TAR 2010 to successfully deliver an entertaining line-up of events as well as real educational opportunities.

“When I landed in New Plymouth in March and got the news that I had lost my good friend and business partner Garry Sharpe-Young, I was in shock, terribly saddened and my first thought was to get back on the plane and come home. But I could feel him sitting on my shoulder urging me on so that’s what we’re going to do—and do it even bigger and better than he imagined. This is a great honor for us,” said Dan Allen of GMS.Group, Inc.

"Garry’s passing was a huge shock and a great loss for the Council and the community. As a tribute to Garry we are honoured to continue with G-TAR in his memory and are looking forward to realising his dream,” says General Manager Customer Services, Cathy Thurston.

The event’s new tag line, ‘Learn from Legends’, embraces the opportunities G-TAR will bring for aspiring artists or working professionals who want to learn more about the industry.

“It’s about making A-list artists accessible to New Zealanders through concerts and intimate midnight sessions, creating awareness of the opportunities within the music industry through forums, and developing the artistic talents of young aspiring artists through the Sky Academy workshops and master classes,” says Manager Events, Melissa Devine-Collins.

Another new addition to G-TARanaki 2010 is the establishment of a Youth Steering Group which will drive areas of the event through consultation with their peers to ensure it resonates with the young people of Taranaki.

"As G-TARanaki has a focus on young aspiring artists in Taranaki, it’s important that we involve youth to ensure we are providing something they will enjoy and benefit from in someway.

"We’ve already had some great feedback and direction on the types of artists they would like to see, so we feel the Youth Steering Group is going to be a positive addition to G-TAR 2010,” says Mrs Devine-Collins.

Visit www.gtaranaki.co.nz for more information about G-TARanaki and sign up to receive the latest information via e-newsletters.