Robyn Sutherland

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Phone 021 252 7632
robyn@robynsutherland.com

Musical Bio

Robyn has been working in the music industry in New Zealand since 1980 & has played solo & with well known performers like Rick Bryant, Karen Hunter, the Paua Fritters & Midge Marsden as both bassist & singer.

She has been a bass player and singer on the covers band circuit in her home town of Dunedin for over 15 years playing in rock/pop groups and in duos. Bump and Grind featuring Mark Blandford and Matt Hall and Alien Antics also featuring Matt Hall, were the last bands in Dunedin Robyn played with before moving to Auckland. Mark Blandford and Matt Hall now play with The Elevators in Christchurch where they have a residency 6 nights a week at Mickey Finn's Irish Pub in Hereford St. If you are in Christchurch and appreciate well played rock music with good harmonies and scorching guitar you should check them out!

She has played at corporate functions, weddings & funerals, on TV, national tours - performed at pubs, clubs, theme dinners, restaurants & garden parties. She's also played festivals like Sweetwaters, Mountain Rock & WOMAD & at various food & wine festivals.

Robyn has also taught beginner bass and beginner guitar privately and for music shop Sounds Musical in Dunedin. She has experience with tutoring bands and has also taught bass and guitar and some larger group tutoring at St Peters College in Mt Eden at their after school rock music classes with fellow musician Cadzow Cossar. She also taught some music at Metro College in Mt Eden and enjoyed jamming with the students playing drums and bass and encouraging their playing.

Based in Auckland since 1994 & concentrating primarily on her harp playing, bass playing, singing and composition - Robyn has worked with:

Winterland - Gothic, Dark Wave rock band -as bassist and backing vocalist performing live gigs and also playing on the Alone in A Fairground album

Rick Bryant and the Jive Bombers - Rhythm and Blues Group -
as a backing vocalist and sometimes called on as a bassist as well.
The Jive Bombers also played one of Robyn’s songs called The Moon which she sang lead vocals on.

Jan Hellriegal - as bassist and backing vocalist, two of Robyn’s original songs were included in Jan's longer nights of playing, The Moon and Journey.

Incantata - Medieval duo - with Caroline Lynn. Incantata‘s songlist included Medieval and Pilgrim songs, selections of the Cantiga de Santa Maria, haunting Sephardic & Traditional songs from around the world, early chant and original works.

Robyn currently performs regularly playing the harp & singing, mostly at weddings and corporate events. She plays a 34 string Aoyama lever harp which is a Japanese made instrument. It is a beautiful golden coloured maple harp with tiger stripes in the woodgrain on the back.

She also hires out harps to students and others and teaches lever harp for beginners - both children & adults.

Robyn sings with the Oratia Singers, a local community choir under the direction of Jennifer Gash.

She is also currently on the committee of the New Zealand Harp Society.

Personal Bio

Robyn's home town is Dunedin where she played in rock covers bands around the pub and club circuits as a bassist and singer from the age of 16.

For many years she worked as a printer in various photographic laboratories while working on her music on her days off and in the weekends.

She developed an interest in Tai Chi at the age of 21 which has stayed with her and she is passionate about caring for the health of the older generation. Prevention is better than cure and Tai Chi is a great way to keep people moving well into their golden years. Robyn has held Tai Chi classes for health and relaxation at various venues round Auckland. She practices Yang style and has taught the short form, long form and the 42 step at various places including community centres, schools, Odyssey House and the Auckland Deaf Association. Robyn has also completed an instructors course for the Peter Lam Tai Chi for Arthritis as taught in conjunction with ACC falls prevention programmes.

She likes to grow her own food as much as possible and has a sizeable edible garden.

An interest in the lifecycle of the Monarch butterfly has lead to several swan plants appearing in the garden and a small butterfly house where the caterpillars can safely grow. It is amazing how many butterflies now come to visit and is a constant delight.

If you hire a harp you may well leave with an electronic tuner and a tuning wrench in a hand felted bag made by Robyn. Fibre arts are also an interest and the harp studio walls are slowly being covered by shelves of wool and other interesting craft bits and pieces.

An interest in technology now sees her working with computers on a daily basis. It is amazing to see what is evolving on the internet and many an hour is spent at the computer desk.

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