New Year Concert sets the tone for 2015

2015 is going to be a big year for the Cook Islands as it marks the 50th anniversary of internal self governance. There will undoubtedly be lots of parties and celebrations and Motone Productions got things off to a great start with a family-friendly concert at Nukupure Park (aka Ngatangiia sports field) on New Year's Day. Even the weather played its part in what turned out to be a wonderful occasion. We'd had seven days of rain from Christmas Day to New Year's Eve but January 1 was fine and sunny, well, for most of the day.
Cook Islands News estimated the crowd at 'Tarekareka - our people, our music' to be about 800 at its peak and local talent lined up to entertain them all.
This video includes popular trio Island Groove; Arorangi gospel singers The Boys of Harmony with our new star Ridge Ponini who later treated the audience to some more operatic items first with his cousin then with Kiwi-Cookie Bonaventure Allan-Moetaua; and finally the Triggerfish duo of Kura Happ and Mo Newport.
The concert also included the Takitumu drummers, Kahiki and special guest stars from New Zealand Annie Crummer and her father Will Crummer with his band the Royal Rarotongans.
A fireworks display ended the evening and even the rain during the latter part of the show didn't spoil the event.
More about the concert on the CINews website.
http://www.cookislandsnews.com/features/entertainment/item/49785-concert-prayers-answered-as-rain-holds-off-till-finale
Incidentally, Ridge Ponini has been accepted by Otago University Department of Music to study opera starting this year. Unfortunately he wasn't able to get scholarship funding for his first year, possibly because it was a late application or maybe because the Cook Islands education department aren't interested on opera.
Hope he has better luck next year.