Deborah Wai Kapohe At Temple

Deborah Wai Kapohe
Soprano B.Mus B.A. LRSM

Temple Friday 10th August And Sunday 12th August (at the York Street Studios Acid Test)

Singer/Songwriter Deborah Wai Kapohe has been writing her own material since an extra-long Opera Tour of Australia, during which she prayed from under a Kunanarra Coconut tree for entertainment. A song fell down from the tree and Deborah returned to NZ to begin her recording company Ring Trout CDs. She has released one CD for friends and Family and currently is waiting at the side of the road for another bus to take her to the finish of her second CD called "I unwrap you ".

Deborah flies to the Temple on Friday the 10th to provide a taste of " I unwrap you " along with Sam Benge , a stunning young guitarist whom you can find on the latest Strawpeople CD and at Auckland University .

Best known for performing opera, Deborah is also noted for her solo performances self-accompanied by classical guitar. She has performed to critical acclaim in a range of venues and occasions. Chamber Music NZ has invited Deborah to tour NZ next year with her guitar and voice concert.

She plays Spanish, Italian, Brazilian and English music by composers such as Lorca , Villa Lobos , Giuliani and Britten . "I think this classical influence is very strong in my music as well as the way I use my voice in quite an instrumental way at times . The guitar and voice to me is the ultimate combination, I enjoy singing with an orchestra but the intimacy of the guitar is my favourite."

"Why I do my own stuff in a contemporary style is a further exploration of the human voice which fascinates me. I enjoy making sounds that in classical are either not stylistically correct or simply would not project in a larger space in which I sing un amplified.

"Among a strong cast Deborah Wai Kapohe was outstanding. Hers is a voice to die for - pouring out aria after aria in rich highly coloured sound, flexible yet charged with emotion - definitely New Zealand's next great soprano." Simon Tipping Capital Times March 1999

Indeed, Deborah Wai Kapohe's international career continues to develop at an impressive rate.

She has just returned from her highly successful public London debut in the Cathcart Spring Proms at Royal Albert Hall, from which a number of invitations for future performances have been issued.

Already recognised as an outstanding talent in New Zealand, Deborah is in significant demand, regularly appearing in Arts Festivals, Operas, Proms, Concerts, Recitals and Special Events.

She has performed principal roles with all the professional opera companies in New Zealand, as well as OzOpera; Opera Australia; and Chamber Made in Australia, and in 2000 performed in the Beijing Music Festival.

She is noted for her portrayal of Pamina in The Magic Flute - a role she has made her own in New Zealand and Australia. In 1999, Deborah made her debut in the role of Mimi in La Boheme with Opera New Zealand. Other traditional roles include Rosalinde in Die Fledermaus and Sophie in Massenet's Werther.

Equally, Deborah is also in significant demand in premiere Opera performances. These include Outrageous Fortune by New Zealand Composer - Gillian Whitehead; Wide Sargasso Sea and Gauguin for Chamber Made in Australia; and as The Child in Grandma's Shoes , a joint production between Opera Australia and Theatre of Image in Sydney, Jan 2000.

"The one enjoying herself the most is Deborah Wai Kapohe, whose enthusiasm was infectious. She has a wonderfully warm rich voice and can act. She was very convincing as the child avoiding charicature she imbued her character with strength, dignity and also a great sense of childlike wonder and fun. Wai Kapohe has been called the next Kiri Te Kanawa but she is an individual talent who deserves her own star status and this may be just the vehicle to catapult her there." Troy Lennan The Daily Telegraph Sydney 21 - 1 - 00

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