http://www.nzso.co.nz/ NZSO news en-nz Sun, 01 Aug 2010 10:08:18 +1200 Sun, 01 Aug 2010 10:08:18 +1200 http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss onClick(TM) - http://www.onclick.co.nz http://www.nzso.co.nz/news_and_media/nzso_blog/_view/id_37/nzso_breaks_it_down_with_leading_aussie_conductor Audiences new to classical music will hear two famous masterpieces broken into bits in August, in two special Wellington concerts marking a new departure for the NZSO. Respected Australian conductor Richard Gill will lead the Orchestra for Close Encounters at the Wellington Town Hall on August 19 and 20 , presenting classical music with a fresh twist. Thursday’s concert breaks down Beethoven’s famous Sixth Symphony, and Friday’s unpicks Dvorak’s shimmering Ninth – revealing the composers’ tricks of the trade and explaining why these symphonies soar. The NZSO will play both extracts and a full movement from each work, with Richard Gill on piano. Hear why the Dvorak is also called From the New World , and find out how Beethoven’s symphony earned the nickname Pastoral . Richard Gill is internationally respected as a leading music educator. He is Music Director of Victorian Opera and Artistic Director of the Sydney Symphony Orchestra’s education programme. He has worked extensively with all Australia’s leading orchestras and has received an Order of Australia Medal, along with many other awards. Close Encounters is based on his wonderfully popular “Discovery” series with the Sydney Symphony. Close Encounters is Wellington’s chance to get up close and personal with the nation’s symphony – offering two essential concerts for anyone who always wanted to know more about classical music, but was afraid to ask! This is an NZSO Community Programme, proudly supported by The Community Trust of Wellington. NZSO Close Encounters Proudly supported by The Community Trust of Wellington Richard Gill conductor Beethoven Symphony No. 6 Pastoral (extracts) Wellington Town Hall / Thu 19 August / 6.30pm Dvorak Symphony No. 9 From the New World (extracts) Wellington Town Hall / Fri 20 August / 6.30pm Book at TICKETEK Mon, 26 Jul 2010 12:26 +1200 http://www.nzso.co.nz/news_and_media/nzso_blog/_view/id_36/nzso_selects_classical_stars_of_the_future The New Zealand Symphony Orchestra has revealed an exciting line-up of the country’s most promising classical musicians for the 2010 NZSO National Youth Orchestra . Selectors have chosen 85 players to make up New Zealand’s most prestigious youth orchestra, with the youngest aged just 12 and the eldest, 25. Their hometowns include Whangarei, Cambridge, Tauranga, Nelson, Porirua, Palmerston North and Waiheke Island, as well as the main centres. Unusually, this year’s line-up features five sets of siblings, and an all-male Flute section. Each year the Orchestra meets in Wellington for an intensive week of musical training under a brilliant guest conductor, before making its debut in a special concert series. The NZSO is delighted to announce that this year’s maestro is young Bulgarian conductor Rossen Milanov , the newly-appointed Music Director of the Princeton Symphony Orchestra. Described as “athletic and entertaining to watch”, he is deeply committed to youth in music, as Music Director of leading US training orchestra Symphony C and the New Symphony Orchestra in his native Sofia. He is also Artistic Director of The Philadelphia Orchestra at The Mann Center for Performing Arts. Emerging piano star Jason Bae will debut with the NZSO National Youth Orchestra as guest soloist. The 18-year-old is a second-year student at Auckland University’s School of Music. He says: “It is an absolute honour for me to collaborate with the world-renowned conductor, Maestro Milanov. I can’t thank the NZSO National Youth Orchestra enough for giving me this amazing dream-come-true opportunity." The NZSO National Youth Orchestra will debut in Wellington on 26 August and Auckland on 28 August , performing Stravinsky, Rachmaninov, John Adams and Vaughan Williams. The NZSO National Youth Orchestra is presented by Principal Sponsors, The Adam Foundation and Crowne Plaza . Rossen Milanov conductor Jason Bae piano Vaughan Williams Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis Stravinsky Concerto for Piano and Wind Adams The Chairman Dances Rachmaninov Symphonic Dances Wellington, Thursday 26 August, 7:30pm, Michael Fowler Centre Book at TICKETEK Auckland, Saturday 28 August, 7:30pm, Auckland Town Hall Book at THE EDGE Mon, 19 Jul 2010 12:19 +1200 http://www.nzso.co.nz/news_and_media/nzso_blog/_view/id_35/nzso_and_west_end_stars_create_american_musical_magic The New Zealand Symphony Orchestra and stars of London’s West End will bring Broadway’s golden age to dazzling musical life in Auckland and Wellington next month, with the hit show The World of Rodgers & Hammerstein . West End singers Jacqui Scott and Andrew Halliday will perform best-loved songs from Oklahoma!, South Pacific, Carousel, The King & I and The Sound of Music , accompanied by the Orchestra in a perfect concert for musical theatre fans. The programme includes popular classics Some Enchanted Evening, My Favourite Things, Edelweiss, Climb Every Mountain and Surrey with a Fringe on Top , as well as orchestral pieces from Rodgers & Hammerstein’s legendary shows. Acclaimed entertainer Jacqui Scott is a leading lady of the West End, with key roles in Evita, Cats and Miss Saigon as well as numerous TV appearances and three solo albums under her belt. Andrew Halliday made his West End debut as Raoul in The Phantom of the Opera . He has performed in countless stage musicals, including playing Jesus in Jesus Christ Superstar , Munkustrap in Cats and Brad in The Rocky Horror Picture Show . Leading the NZSO is British conductor Martin Yates , who has two decades of experience as musical director of many of the West End’s most important shows. As well as his work with respected UK orchestras like the London Symphony and Royal Philharmonic, he regularly conducts the Royal Ballet at Covent Garden. As an accompanist, Martin Yates has worked with international classical stars Jose Carreras, Bryn Terfel and Yo-Yo Ma. The World of Rodgers & Hammerstein is an entertaining celebration of Broadway’s most successful song-writing duo of all time, combining the symphonic brilliance of Richard Rodgers with Oscar Hammerstein’s unforgettable lyrics. It is sponsored by Sunday Star-Times in association with Phonak NZ Ltd. Join the NZSO for a show-stopping, toe-tapping night of musical magic! The World of Rodgers & Hammerstein Sponsored by Sunday Star-Times In association with Phonak NZ Ltd New Zealand Symphony Orchestra & West End International Martin Yates conductor Jacqui Scott and Andrew Halliday Wellington Michael Fowler Centre / Fri 6 August / 8pm Book at TICKETEK Auckland Aotea Centre / Sat 7 August / 8pm and Sun 8 August / 2.30pm Book at THE EDGE Thu, 08 Jul 2010 12:08 +1200 http://www.nzso.co.nz/news_and_media/nzso_blog/_view/id_34/pietari_inkinen__liwei_qin NZSO presents dream team for July tour Emotions will run high when the NZSO combines a dream team of super-composers, star conductor Pietari Inkinen and exceptional young cellist Li-Wei Qin for a tour of Auckland, Hamilton, Napier and Wellington next month. In two opulent programmes, the Orchestra will present a full sweep of the Austro-Germanic classical tradition from Haydn , Schumann and Brahms to Mahler and Schoenberg . Brilliantly expressive virtuoso Li-Wei last performed with the NZSO at the Olympic Cultural Festival in Beijing in 2008, where a delighted audience threw bouquets of flowers on stage. On this tour Li-Wei will perform Schumann’s touching Cello Concerto for audiences in Auckland, Wellington and Napier. In a second programme in Auckland, Hamilton and Wellington, he will play Haydn’s Cello Concerto No. 1 – lost to history until its surprise discovery in 1961. The second programme includes Mahler’s epic Symphony No. 5, continuing the NZSO’s Mahler cycle conducted by its youthful Music Director, Pietari Inkinen. Mahler’s Fifth is famous for its aching beauty and emotional force – a musical high water mark for a quality orchestra, and a thrill to play. This tour also features the world premiere of New Zealand composer Ross Harris’s Three Pieces for Orchestra , which the Orchestra will tour to the great halls of Europe later this year. Commissioned by the NZSO, it is inspired by three of the cities on the Orchestra’s international concert schedule – Vienna, Düsseldorf and Lucerne – and the great composers Mahler, Wagner and Schumann. Lush, passionate and grand in scale, this tour is a wonderful showpiece for an Orchestra fresh from this month’s double-five-star review by prestigious international title, BBC Music Magazine . A pre-concert talk by guest speakers will take place 1 hour prior to each performance. Li-Wei will sign exclusive copies of his latest CD of Beethoven Cello Sonatas, not yet available in NZ stores, at each concert interval. Pietari Inkinen & Li-Wei Qin Li-Wei Qin cello Pietari Inkinen conductor Concert 7 SCHOENBERG Transfigured Night SCHUMANN Cello Concerto BRAHMS (orch. Schoenberg) Piano Quartet Wellington Michael Fowler Centre / Fri 16 July / 6.30pm Book at TICKETEK / 0800 842 538 Napier Municipal Theatre / Tue 20 July / 8pm Book at TicketDirect / 0800 484 2538 Auckland / Fri 23 July / 6.30pm Book at THE EDGE / 0800 289 842 Concert 8 HARRIS Three Pieces for Orchestra HAYDN Cello Concerto No.1 MAHLER Symphony No.5 Wellington / Sat 17 July / 8pm Book at TICKETEK / 0800 842 538 Hamilton / Thu 22 July / 8pm Book at TICKETEK / 0800 842 538 Auckland / Sat 24 July / 8pm Book at THE EDGE / 0800 289 842 Fri, 18 Jun 2010 12:18 +1200 http://www.nzso.co.nz/news_and_media/nzso_blog/_view/id_33/nzso_earns_double_fivestars BBC Music Magazine awards double-five stars to CD by NZSO 28 May 2010 The New Zealand Symphony Orchestra and tenor Simon O’Neill have earned a double five-star review for a CD of Wagnerian arias, from the prestigious international title BBC Music Magazine . Simon O’Neill’s voice on Father and Son (EMI) is described as “thrilling...with real character and verbal sensitivity” and is assigned five stars in the magazine’s just-released June issue. Reviewer Michael Scott Rohan also awards five stars for the recording itself, writing: “He [O’Neill] is lavishly supported here by his homeland orchestra under Pietari Inkinen”. The magazine selected Father and Son as its “Opera Choice” of the month. The CD was recorded in August 2009 at Wellington’s Michael Fowler Centre and features scenes and arias from Lohengrin, Die Walküre, Siegfried, Götterdämmerung and Parsifal . http://www.bbcmusicmagazine.com/ Fri, 28 May 2010 12:28 +1200 http://www.nzso.co.nz/news_and_media/nzso_blog/_view/id_32/sonnets_unplugged__orchestrated_shakespeare NZSO | Sonnets Unplugged - Orchestrated Shakespeare Passion. Obsession. Jealousy. Turmoil. Shakespeare packed it all into his sonnets which remain deeply mysterious, hundreds of years later. Sonnets Unplugged is an exciting new departure for us – the world premiere of a fully-orchestrated original drama, setting 16 of Shakespeare’s sonnets to music by Gareth Farr. It’s brought to life by actors Rima Te Wiata and Kristian Lavercombe, who reveal the sonnets in a new way by linking them into a strong storyline based around three characters – the poet, his mistress, and his muse. Synopsis: William, alone and un-inspired, decides to invoke the god of all poetry. A tale of obsessive love follows, made all the more intense when William’s beloved male Muse becomes an enticing but frightening female. Under the Muse’s influence, William experiences the complexities and sorrows of human desire. Determined to capture the essence of love in poetry, and unable to disbelieve or escape the very visions he has created, William’s fantasy turns nightmare Anyone who loves the language of love should not miss this concert! Gareth calls it a darkly passionate “sound world” full of acting, song and dance. William Shakespeare will never be the same! Ticket price: Adults $15, Students $5 Auckland Town Hall / Fri 18 June / 1.30pm Book at THE EDGE / 0800 289 842 Christchurch Town Hall / Thurs 24 June / 9.30am Book at TICKETEK / 0800 842 538 Wellington Town Hall/ Wed 30 June / 12 noon Book at TICKETEK / 0800 842 538 Wed, 05 May 2010 12:05 +1200 http://www.nzso.co.nz/news_and_media/nzso_blog/_view/id_30/nzso_set_to_make_kiwis_proud_as_it_takes_on_europe The NZSO has revealed the dates for its upcoming International Tour, further confirming its position among the world’s finest classical ensembles. This is the most extensive and prestigious international tour ever undertaken by the NZSO in its 63-year history. By invitation only, the Orchestra will perform in the greatest halls of Europe including the hallowed Musikverein in Vienna, which represents the pinnacle for any international orchestra. Peter Walls, NZSO CEO, says, “The NZSO is developing an enviable reputation in the symphonic world. Our commitment to artistic excellence is putting New Zealand on the world stage. “As a nation we are good at celebrating our achievements in sport, business and innovation. This is another opportunity for New Zealanders to be proud.” The NZSO is also delighted to be celebrating the re-signing of Pietari Inkinen as the orchestra’s Music Director. “Right from my first encounter with the NZSO, I saw that they were highly committed to presenting great symphonic music with a freshness that is contagious,” says Pietari Inkinen. Pietari is highly regarded internationally, commended by critics on the concert stage and in recordings. He is fast establishing himself as one of the most exciting talents of the new generation of conductors, a rapid rise for a 30-year-old. Peter Walls says, “We are very fortunate to have Pietari. He is in huge demand internationally and it was a coup for our national orchestra to secure him for another three years. This adds to the NZSO’s international reputation for boldness when it comes to artistic foresight.” The NZSO will be touring from late October through to mid November, starting in Shanghai at the World Expo Concert and finishing in Hamburg. The start of the tour falls on the 64th anniversary of the NZSO’s very first rehearsal. About the International Tour The NZSO will be travelling to the following venues · 29 October - Shanghai, China: World Expo Concert · 3 November - Freiburg, Germany: Concert Hall · 4 November - Maribor, Slovenia: Narodni Dom Maribor · 6 November - Vienna, Austria: Musikverein · 7 November - Lucerne, Switzerland: Concert Hall of the Culture and Convention Centre · 8 November - Geneva, Switzerland: Victoria Hall · 10 November - Stuttgart, Germany: Liederhalle · 11 November - Mannheim, Germany: Rosengarten · 13 November - Frankfurt, Germany: Alte Oper · 14 November - Essen, Germany: Philharmonie · 15 November - Dusseldorf, Germany: Tonhalle · 16 November - Hamburg, Germany: Laeiszhalle Fast facts: · The NZSO is one of the oldest national symphony orchestras in the world. Established in 1946 as a “peace offensive”. · There are 90 players in the orchestra. · The NZSO tours New Zealand all year round, from Northland to Invercargill. When it is not performing, it is based in Wellington. · The NZSO has created and performed the musical score for dozens of films including The Lord of the Rings, Lovely Bones, Under the Mountain, Dean Spanley, Rain of the Children, Predicament and Separation City. · The NZSO attracts talented musicians and composers from all over the world who want to belong to New Zealand’s national orchestra.· In symphonic circles it is very common to have to a mix of nationalities, but the NZSO is unique as 63 per cent of the orchestra is New Zealand born. · Over one million NZSO CDs have been sold worldwide in the past 10 years. · Over 100 concerts played annually throughout New Zealand. Fri, 23 Apr 2010 12:23 +1200 http://www.nzso.co.nz/news_and_media/nzso_blog/_view/id_28/gramophone_uk_lists_pietari_inkinen_conducting_the_nzso_with_hilary_hahn_as_one_of_the_best_events_worldwide The April 2010 edition of Gramophone Magazine (UK) lists Pietari Inkinen conducting the NZSO with Hilary Hahn as one of the "Best Events Worldwide" Wed, 24 Mar 2010 12:24 +1200 http://www.nzso.co.nz/news_and_media/nzso_blog/_view/id_27/nzso_concertmaster_vesamatti_leppnen_takes_part_in_a_social_experiment_for_campbell_live Do we not recognise talent and beauty unless we’ve paid good money for it? Watch NZSO Concertmaster Vesa-Matti Leppänen on TV3's Campbell Live to find out Tue, 09 Feb 2010 12:09 +1200 http://www.nzso.co.nz/news_and_media/nzso_blog/_view/id_23/2009_todd_young_composer_announced The NZSO Todd Young Composers Award is the NZSO’s education programme’s flagship composition project. Taking place annually, the award gives young New Zealand composers the opportunity to have an original work written for full orchestra rehearsed and recorded by the full force of the NZSO. This year we received a record breaking 32 entries. Of these, 12 works were selected by the adjudication panel of noted composer Ross Harris, conductor Hamish McKeich and principal NZSO percussionist Lenny Sakofsky to be workshopped and recorded. After an exciting 2 days of workshops, rehearsals and recording sessions, the panel made the decision to present the award to Natalie Hunt for her work Rain II . Natalie was also the 2009 National Youth Orchestra composer-in-residence, for which her work Only to the Highest Mountain was included in the NYO 50th Anniversary concert tour to Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch. The orchestra’s choice award, which was based on feedback from members of the orchestra, was awarded Robbie Ellis for his work Feral, followed closely by Natalie Hunt and Tabea Squire’s piece Vee Dub and the Little Tiger go wandering All of the pieces recoded as part of the 2009 NZSO Todd Young Composers Award will be broadcast as part of a Radio New Zealand’s Young New Zealand programming in October. Thu, 27 Aug 2009 12:27 +1200