From left, NZSO Section Principal Flute Bridget Douglas, guest pianist Jian Liu and Section Principal Robert Weeks on
stage at Wellington’s Michael Fowler Centre for the first time since the COVID-19 lockdown
The New Zealand Symphony Orchestra this week returned to rehearsing and performing at Wellington’s Michael Fowler Centre, which is allowed under COVID-19
Alert Level 2.
For the first time since late March, groups of NZSO players are able to rehearse together on stage and have their
performance filmed and streamed to all New Zealanders. All rehearsals and performances follow Ministry of Health
guidelines, including social distancing.
Performances on stage this week included the last in the series Ryman Healthcare presents Discovering Beethoven, curated by NZSO Concertmaster Vesa-Matti Leppänen.
Earlier performances in the series were filmed in each player’s home and edited together. The finale will premiere at
4pm this Sunday, 24 May.
“It is such a pleasure to be back on the MFC stage playing with colleagues again at the same time and in the same
space,” says NZSO Section Principal Flute Bridget Douglas.
“After almost two months having to play together remotely I was really missing the immediacy of our music-making and the
ease of communication that can only be experienced when you're all together. It's food for the soul to be back playing
the glorious music of Beethoven. We hope our audience enjoys listening to it as much as we enjoyed recording it.”
Douglas will perform the first movement of Beethoven’s sublime Trio for Piano, Flute and Bassoon with NZSO Section
Principal Bassoon Robert Weeks and guest pianist Jian Liu.
Discovering Beethoven celebrates the 250th anniversary of the great composer’s birth in 2020. The streamed performance on Sunday features
three other works – Three Equali, Quintet in E-flat Major and String Quartet No. 14.
Due to COVID-19 restrictions, the NZSO has cancelled all concerts with audiences until August and has instead streamed
more than 20 new performances. The return to the Michael Fowler Centre allows the national orchestra to significantly
expand what it can play and stream. More details will be announced soon.
Next week the NZSO will also stream Sei Solo 5, featuring NZSO violinist Simeon Broom performing three movements from Johann Sebastian Bach’s Violin Partita No. 3.
Sei Solo is a six-part series where NZSO string players perform their favourite movements from one of Bach’s solo partitas,
sonatas or suites, and share their thoughts on what the baroque composer’s music means to them.
Each performance was filmed by a player performing in their home and curated by NZSO Guest Assistant Concertmaster
Jessica Oddie. Sei Solo 5 will premiere at 7.30pm on Wednesday, 27 May.
Other online performances since the COVID-19 lockdown have included the weekly series Play Our Part where NZSO players and international guests performed in their homes, an ongoing series of educational videos called Music Room, and previously-filmed NZSO concert performances.
Discovering Beethoven and Sei Solo 5 are supported by NZSO project partner RNZ Concert.
All performances can be viewed at https://live.nzso.co.nz/ and Music Room videos at nzso.co.nz/nzso-engage/music-room/ via smart TV, mobile phone, tablet or computer.Ryman Healthcare Presents Discovering Beethoven
VESA-MATTI LEPPNEN Curator and Concertmaster
BEETHOVEN Three Equali, WoO 30
DAVID BREMNER Trombone
MATTHEW ALLISON Trombone
MARK DAVEY Guest Trombone
SHANNON PITTAWAY Bass Trombone
BEETHOVEN Trio for Piano, Flute and Bassoon in G Major, WoO 37 I. Allegro
BRIDGET DOUGLAS Flute
ROBERT WEEKS Bassoon
JIAN LIU Guest Piano
BEETHOVEN Quintet in E-flat Major, Op.16 II. Andante Cantabile
ROBERT ORR Oboe
PATRICK BARRY Clarinet
ROBERT WEEKS Bassoon
SAMUEL JACOBS French Horn
JIAN LIU Piano
BEETHOVEN String Quartet No. 14 in C-sharp Minor, Op. 131 VII. Allegro, VI. Adagio quasi un poco andante
VESA-MATTI LEPPÄNEN Concertmaster
ANDREW THOMSON Section Principal Second Violin
JULIA JOYCE Section Principal Viola
ANDREW JOYCE Section Principal Cello
ONLINE PREMIERE | live.nzso.co.nz| Sunday 24 May| 4.00pm
Sei Solo 5
SIMEON BROOM Violin
JS BACH Violin Partita No. 3 in E Major, BWV 1006ONLINE PREMIERE
| live.nzso.co.nz| Wednesday 27 May| 7.30pm