Bio

Ahjay Stelino has the soul of a musician and the mind of an engineer. This combination has produced a musician with distinctive skills with which to express his love of music.

A singer-songwriter-guitarist and pianist, Ahjay is involved in the whole creative process of music from composition, to instrument design and to how music affects the human nature. His rhythmic acoustic renditions also possess a resplendent repertoire of musical styles - the sentiment of Billy Joel and Paul Simon, the raw energy of Queen and Aerosmith and the contemporariness of Robbie Williams.

An avid songwriter, Ahjay has been composing for the past 5 years. His music aims to present 'Reality Framed in Song' and represents an authentic sample of songs drawing from his experiences as a young man in a young country.

2003 has seen Ahjay reach the semi-finals of the prestigious 'York Street Studios Acid Test' at the Temple Bar in Auckland. He's also performed at the 'Parachute Music Festival' at Matamata and the 'Wellington Fringe Festival'. In addition he can be regularly be seen performing at original music venues around Wellington.

In May of 2002, Ahjay recorded his demo cd, 'Bites of Reality' at Gillian Craig's Flying Saucer studios in Wellington.

At Auckland University, where he completed a Bachelor of Mechanical Engineering with Honours, Ahjay developed a composite electric guitar for which he was featured in several magazines, newspapers and websites (NZ Musician, Central Leader, www.nzoom.com, NZ Engineering News, Business to Business and Wanganui Chornicle). It also won him the Tradenz prize for 'An Innovative Project with Potential for Global Commercialisation' in 2000 and a place in the finals for the pan-university 'Institute of Professional Engineers NZ Student Design Award' in 2001.

In July of 2003, Ahjay has launched a new 3 piece band 'Ignorance.' Hear and experience the band in venues around Wellington and the country in the coming months