Lighthouse Function Centre Dargaville

01/09/2025

Get ready for a laugh riot in Dargaville! Join "itsthatmadguy" at the Lighthouse Function Centre on Saturday 6th September at 7pm. R18. Grab your tickets now. Full details below.

itsthatmadguy - Too Much Information, Returning to one of his many “home ..., Lighthouse Function Centre, Dargaville, Northland, 6 September 2025,

23/12/2024

In the Accordion Gems exhibition, to compliment the symbolic All Blacks Silver Fern logo found in the accordion bellows of world champion accordionist Grayson Masefield, Jose Vuletich kindly donated an All Blacks Jersey signed by legendary player Jonah Lomu on one of his visits to Dargaville. These items are displayed alongside numerous and very rare compositions written for the men in Black.

For Kevin’s concert he asked the Dargaville Primary School Kapa Haka Roopu to include Tutira Mai nga Iwi as one of their items, as it also served as a theme song for the All Blacks campaign.

When checking with Jose to see if she might let the lead of the Kapa Haka Roopu wear the jersey, she not only said yes, but she said she had more, so we were actually able to feature six students wearing the All Blacks collectors jerseys!

Lomu was famed for his unprecedented speed, strength and agility. He became the youngest ever All Black when he played his first international in 1994 at the age of 19. Lomu was inducted into the International Rugby Hall of (2007) and IRB Hall of Fame (2011).

His jersey proudly accompanies the All Blacks musical items found in the newly refreshed Music Wing.

You can read a full report with more pictures on the Accordions Worldwide website at: https://accordions.news/kevin/museum/reports/2024/

22/12/2024

Sunday saw the 19th Museum fundraiser ‘An Afternoon of Music with Kevin Friedrich and Friends’. This popular sold out concert featured guests from overseas as well as local stars including a set by world champion accordionist Grayson Masefield and violinist Andrew Beer (concert master of the Auckland Philharmonia), the 50 strong Kapa Haka Roopu from the Dargaville Primary School, a 22 piece North Shore Accordion Orchestra from Auckland conducted by renowned New Zealand composer Gary Daverne, a Dargaville favourite Lionel Reekie and an array of other talented local and invited guest artists.

You can read a full report with more pictures on the Accordions Worldwide website at: https://accordions.news/kevin/museum/reports/2024/

22/12/2024

On November 30th and December 1st, the Dargaville Museum and Lighthouse Function Centre became the epicenter of accordion activities as dignitaries, performing artists and guests assembled from as far afield as Italy, China, the United Kingdom, Australia, the USA and across New Zealand, attended the opening ceremony of the updated and expanded Music Wing.

Hosted by Music Wing curator Kevin Friedrich, special guests attending and speaking at the Opening Ceremony were Grant McCallum (Member of Parliament, Northland, National Party), Craig Jepson (Mayor of Kaipara District), Mirco Patarini from Italy (President of the Confédération Internationale des Accordéonistes, Member of the International Music Council, an Official NGO partner of UNESCO), Professor Li Cong from China (President - Accordion Association of Chinese Musicians Association and Vice President - Confédération Internationale des Accordéonistes), Cong Yu (Crystal) Wang from China (Director - Accordion Professional Comm., Shanghai Musicians Assoc., Dean – Dept. of Western Music at Shanghai Normal University), Marcel Riethmann (Chairman of the Accordion Examination Board of New Zealand), Sonja Palinich (President of the New Zealand Accordion Association), and Ross Newlove (President of the Dargaville Museum).

You can read a full report with more pictures on the Accordions Worldwide website at: https://accordions.news/kevin/museum/reports/2024/

23/10/2024

Tickets are selling fast for our "Happy Holidays" concert - an afternoon of music with Kevin Friedrich & friends.