In New Zealand classical music, the writers of words are routinely hidden from view. If they care so little, why not settle for humming the melody, asks NZ’s inaugural poet laureate, Bill Manhire. I watched the Whānau London Voices concert the other day, and admired the initiative and spirit of the venture, as well as … Read more
As New Zealand’s musicians return to the concert hall, Richard Betts checks in with our classical music organisations for reasons to be cheerful. For a country that’s been shut since March, we’ve been surprisingly well-served by the performing arts. Most impressive was NZ Opera convincing TVNZ to broadcast a 2015 production of Puccini’s Tosca. So … Read more
Madeleine Chapman took her piano-playing nephew Harper to see the orchestra for the first time. Madeleine: When I was very small, I used to sit in the hallway at home with my closest siblings and we would ask our brother Bernard, a teenager at the time, to play songs on the piano. We would name … Read more
Orchestral music performance is an art form, but how do you engage with something you’ve never experienced before? Samiyah Alghamdi and Anna Knox attend NYO Celebrates in Wellington and unpack what they hear. The National Youth Orchestra and the New Zealand Youth Choir were performing as part of the NZSO’s 2019 Podium Series, which was … Read more