Introducing Frank & Erin

Originally from Amsterdam, guitarist Frank John brings his technical brilliance to this duo. Born & raised in Taranaki, Erin provides the contrast with her Pacific rhythms and smooth and smoky vocals.  The couple has gained a reputation for breathing life into interpretations of their favourite songs and tunes, with tight harmonies and solid arrangements of well-known standards, hidden gems and their own compositions.

Recently, they teamed up with bass maestro, Rob Greenfield, to record a collection of original instrumental compositions, ‘Lost For Words’. The EP also features their son, Ryan [guitar], along with friends Jude Douglas and Liz Merton [violins] and Cindy Muggeridge [keyboard].  Writing is underway for a vocal album.

Whether it's a sizzling instrumental or the soulful delivery of a ballad this partnership creates a unique sound and something for every audience.

What [insert] of music do you play?

ERIN: Good music - soul music.
FRANK: Our repertoire is a bit of every thing from the 1930s to today - we call it 'ConFusion'. Basically, it comes down to what we enjoy playing. So, it varies from blues to gypsy, americana to classical. Erin can pull out the banjo or ukelele, for a different direction. It seems to work. And, Rob complements our unique sound.
ERIN: Contemporary acoustic guitars have extraordinary whakapapa and are so versatile - American Roots, Classical, Gypsy, Folk, Swing, Rag, Rock, Country (not Western), Funk, Caribbean, African. And, Rob can catch most styles we throw at him. We were having trouble searching 'in the wild' for a 'tasteful' bass player in small town Aotearoa NZ, so we're really lucky to have Rob on upright bass (double bass).

Our instruments
Frank: Cordoba Orchestra CE; Williams (NZ), Resonator (By request)
Erin: Cordoba Fusion; Takamine TAN76; Deering banjo; Washburn OU28TE-A Ukelele
Rob: Double-bass; Electric Bass (By request)