22 June 2006
Music contest announces National Finalists
Eight groups have been selected to compete in the National Final of the 2006 New Zealand Community Trust Chamber Music
Contest. The groups are from Auckland, Christchurch, Hawkes Bay and Hamilton.
In no particular order they are: The King Trio (Kings College), Santorini (St Cuthbert’s College), Farr from Russia
(Westlake Girls High School) from Auckland, A La Ves (Burnside, Lincoln and Cashmere High Schools), The Young Trio
(Burnside High School) and Adidam (Burnside High School) from Christchurch. For the first time in many years there are
two finalists from the provinces, Fourtitude (Woodford House, Havelock North High School and Lindisfarne College) from
Napier and Trois Chaud Escargots (Hillcrest High School and St Peter’s School) from Hamilton.
"In recent times the majority of groups selected have been from Auckland and Christchurch, with the odd winning group
from Wellington. This year two groups from outside these main centres have played their way into the National Final, and
this sends a fantastic signal to the provincial centres that it is possible to be selected if they get everything just
right," said Megan Mannering Organiser of the New Zealand Community Trust Chamber Music Contest.
This year’s National Final will be held at the Wellington Town Hall on Saturday 5 August and will be adjudicated by
Dimity Hall and Julian Smiles, members of The Goldner String Quartet who toured for Chamber Music New Zealand earlier
this year. [http://chambermusic.co.nz/artists/102.php]
This year the National Finalists will be competing for a larger prize pool thanks to support from the James Wallace Arts
Trust. Each member of the winning group will receive the James Wallace Arts Trust prize of $1000 each. In addition to
this they will also receive the Arthur Hilton Memorial prize of a relevant musical text valued at $100. (Arthur Hilton
is a former president of CMNZ who started the contest in 1965).
Nationwide District Contests were held in 14 centres during June with a total of 538 chamber music groups made up of
2,033 students, competing for a place in the final. The District Contests were adjudicated by a selection of top New
Zealand musicians including Owen Clarke, Miranda Adams, Richard Mapp, Brigid O’Meeghan, Sarah Watkins, David Matthews
and Deborah Rawson.
NZCTCMC Organiser Megan Mannering says, “The adjudicators agreed that the future of New Zealand chamber music is in very
good hands. Students have performed very challenging repertoire to a near professional level.”
The New Zealand Community Trust Chamber Music Contest is the longest running youth music competition in New Zealand and
is the only national chamber music competition for young musicians and composers in the country. The competition
includes an Original Composition section which allows young people to enter an original work suitable for a chamber
music ensemble. The 2006 winner of the Original Composition section is Wellington student Tabea Squire. She will be
awarded the SOUNZ (Centre for New Zealand music) prize of $500 when her composition is performed alongside competing
groups at the National Final in Wellington. Prominent New Zealand School of Music Lecturer in Composition, Michael
Norris, adjudicated the entries and judged Tabea’s piece Random Berg 7, to be the most outstanding work in the
competition.
“Random Berg 7 is a most impressive exploration of colours, ideas, rhythms, textures, and all sorts of other musical
parameters," said Norris.
In presenting the New Zealand Community Trust Chamber Music Contest, Chamber Music New Zealand acknowledge funding from
the New Zealand Community Trust, Creative New Zealand, The James Wallace Trust and SOUNZ.
NEW ZEALAND COMMUNITY TRUST CHAMBER MUSIC CONTEST - Saturday 5 August, Wellington Town Hall
ENDS