Signature, Trail of Sounds by Kennedy Warns As part of its multimillion millennium outlay, the Canadian government not only connected up the last portions of the epic 16,000 km Trans Canada walking trail but also commissioned the country’s most famous name in jazz, Oscar Peterson, to compose a suite to commemorate the achievement.… Read the rest

Sunday News, News, by Lee Umbers The Popstars phenomenon hasn’t been true bliss for the woman who trained the Kiwi all-girl group. Tonight, the debut single by TrueBliss has gone gold in its first week and is expected to enter the New Zealand charts at No.… Read the rest

Brass Publication, written by Helen Ravlich If there’s one woman you’d like to see draped over a grand piano whispering sweet nothings into a microphone whilst you swig the last of your martini, it’s jazz diva Caitlin Smith.  Partially blind, with a voice to rival the love child of Mariah Carey and Ricky Martin, and the looks of Shania Twain meets Britney meets Aaliya, what she lacks in perfect vision she makes up for in talent.… Read the rest

Music, The Fondue Set blends standards, styles and techniques in its jazz recipe by Brenda Ward The Fondue Set is no as cheesy as it sounds. It’s the name of an Auckland-based jazz trio that has just put out a similarly whimsically named CD, Stick a Fork In It.… Read the rest

CAITLIN SMITH AND THE FONDUE SET, In Review by Lesley Staniland CAITLIN SMITH’S stage presence is as enormous as the Empire State Building, her voice as smooth as Baileys. This jazz singer, it seems, can handle anything with the greatest of ease, from Spring Can Really Hang You Up the Most to Burt Baccarach’s swingier What the World Needs Now or the more introspective Trains and Boats and Planes.… Read the rest