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The hunt is on nationwide for a band to open for Elton John in Dunedin!

Friday 1 July 2011, 9:52AM

By Capital C

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DUNEDIN

Capital C: Concerts, the New Zealand promoters for the Elton John concert in Dunedin this November have announced they are launching a nationwide search for an opening band.

The special promotion going to the country during July is specifically designed to find an accomplished band that can play for 30-40 minutes at the start of the concert at the new Forsyth Barr Stadium in front of over 30,000 people.

Company CEO Phil Sprey says, ‘historically we have tried to get upcoming local talent to open for our international headlined concerts’, ‘we promoted bands like The Valves, Pearl and Sonic Altar who all excelled at the opportunity’.

The ‘OPEN 4 ELTON’ promotion will offer the successful band a CV opportunity that few have plus their airfares, accommodation and a $5000 cash prize will make this a sought after spot. The promoter is looking for a band in the pop/rock genre and one that compliments the programme, plus anyone entering must have performed professionally or semi-professionally in front of an audience, have a body of original material and preferable have already produced a CD or DVD of their own work.

Sprey says, ‘ New Zealand is rich in talent most of which just doesn’t get real chance to perform on a larger scale, our funding agencies have been very bad in supporting a number of artists, largely because they don’t ‘fit’ a very narrow criteria and a often biased one at that.’

The on air on line promotion is being supported by Classic Hits with a judge’s panel and a big public participation element. To find out more, enter your band or vote, visit www.classichits.co.nz.