Rehabilitation through Rhythm at Waikeria Prison

A concert performed by prisoners at Waikeria Prison’s Karaka Unit demonstrates how music can be a medium for positive change.

Volunteer Julie Dowden worked with the men once a week for ten weeks to prepare for the concert. The eight performers began with a range of skill sets and experience, some with none at all.

Julie, who is a local music teacher and member of the Hamilton Philharmonic Orchestra where she plays the electric fiddle, has been volunteering at the prison since December 2015.

Waikeria Volunteer Coordinator Nadine Allen enjoyed the 90 minute show.

“The atmosphere was really positive as they opened their concert. I was impressed, they sounded amazing, the mixture of bass, guitar, drums, and vocals blended so well, they had really moulded as a team.”

Julie joined them for the first number as she added her electric fiddle in the mix, then she stepped away and left them to perform a mixture of covers and their own creations.

Nadine said that “it was clear that the audience was truly entertained. There was lots of clapping, singing, swaying and even a bit of dancing!”

The next music programme at the prison will commence soon and will include moving some of the men to a more advanced level, and also allowing new men to join.

Waikeria Prison provides a range of programmes and projects that focus on rehabilitation through the arts and has been recognised for their work in this area before, winning the National Aotearoa Arts Access Corrections Leadership Award in 2015.

Prison Director Kevin Smith recognises the value in music as therapy. He says “both research and experience has shown us that the arts and creative expression can be a powerful tool in supporting the rehabilitation process of prisoners and helping their reintegration back into their communities on release.”

He adds that “providing a creative outlet, along with the confidence, dedication and resilience developed when learning an instrument is just one part of a wider range of interventions.”

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