Three National Choirs Perform Carmina Burana

New Zealand Youth Choir, Voices NZ and NZSSC will form 150+ singer massed choir this July

For the first time in two decades, the NZ Secondary Students' Choir, New Zealand Youth Choir and Voices New Zealand will join forces to present Carl Orff’s iconic Carmina Burana on 23 July at Auckland’s Holy Trinity Cathedral.

From the opening chorus of the instantly recognisable O Fortuna through the ups and downs of the wheel of fortune, this is a rare opportunity to see our national choirs staging one of the most iconic choral works of the 20th century.

"Carmina Burana, with its storytelling and elemental rhythms, creates the worlds of the wheel of fortune, at certain times joyful and filled with hope, and at other times filled with bitterness and grief. The 13th century text is accessible and speaks about the fickleness of fortune and wealth, joy in spring and the pleasures and perils of drinking, gluttony, gambling and lust! “ says Artistic Director Karen Grylls, who will also conduct the piece on the night.

“This version for soloists, mixed choir, children's choir, two pianos and six percussion, was authorized by Orff and is the one we will perform. It allows for clarity and impact from our ensembles and a showcase for our soloists.”

The soloists are all alumni of the national choirs, Natasha Te Rupe Wilson (soprano), Oliver Sewell (tenor) and James Harrison (Baritone).

The evening will open with a world premiere of a newly commissioned work by ‘Compose Aoteraoa!’ grand prize winner Rosa Elliot. The 24 year old Christchurch based composer and singer has created the work Forest Song during her time as composer-in-residence at the national choirs.

This is a one-night-only performance from three choirs of rare talent and well over one hundred of the country’s best choral voices. The beautiful Holy Trinity Cathedral will be filled with the sounds of Orff’s down-to-earth, primal directness, showcasing one of the most human of all choral compositions. Tickets can be booked through ticketmaster.co.nz

Date:

Auckland, 23 July 2022, Holy Trinity Cathedral, 7.30pm

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For further information and interview requests, please contact Arne Herrmann, ceo@choirsnz.co.nz 027 2761751

More information about:

Karen Grylls, ONZM

Karen Grylls ONZM is Associate Professor in Choral Conducting at the University of Auckland. She conducted the New Zealand Youth Choir from 1989 to 2011, founded Voices NZ in 1998 and with the New Zealand Secondary Students’ choir now under the aegis of Choirs Aotearoa New Zealand, she is currently Artistic Director of these three internationally acclaimed national choirs. From 2011 to 2013, Karen was also Artistic Director of Toronto’s Exultate Chamber Choir.

During her time at the University of Auckland, Karen has established a postgraduate pathway in Conducting at the Masters and Doctoral level. She received an Auckland University Distinguished Teaching Award in Music (1996), and an Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit (ONZM) for her services to choral music (1999). She is also the recipient of two national citations for services to New Zealand music.

Karen is much in demand as an adjudicator for competitions and festivals worldwide, most recently in Bali and Taipei, the 48th International competition in Tolosa, and the Marktoberdorf International Chamber Choir Competition, Bavaria. She is sought internationally as a choral clinician and regularly conducts masterclasses and workshops in Wales, England, North America, Canada, Singapore and Australia. In August 2019 Karen was a plenary speaker at the Oxford Conducting Institute and at the Sydney Conservatorium Conference. Since the outbreak of the pandemic online lecture appearances have included the Sydney International Series (Gondwana), Toronto, Los Angeles, Boston and Montreal. In July 2022 she is on the jury of the Tokyo International Chamber Choir Competition.

More info about the Soloists:

Natasha Te Rupe Wilson (Te Arawa, Ngā Puhi), – Soprano

Natasha has a Bachelor of Music, (Honours, first-class), majoring in classical vocal performance, from the University of Auckland. From 2018 – 2019, Natasha was based in San Francisco, where she completed her Post-Graduate Diploma in Vocal Studies, at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, under the tutelage of César Ulloa. Natasha made her professional debut with New Zealand Opera, and was a Dame Malvina Major Emerging Artist with the company in 2018. Natasha was a member of the Kiri Te Kanawa Foundation’s mentoring programme in 2016, and has been supported by the foundation ever since.

Natasha was a member of the New Zealand Youth Choir from 2014-2016

James Harrison – Baritone

James Harrison graduated with First Class Honours from the University of Auckland, New Zealand, and after a year as an Emerging Artist with NBR New Zealand Opera, studied with Margaret Kingsley at the Royal College of Music where he won the prestigious Lies Askonas Prize, the McCulloch Prize for Opera and a special Director’s Prize. James then went on to the National Opera Studio.

On the concert platform James has sung with Sir David Wilcocks (Messiah) at the Royal Albert Hall; the Choir of King’s College, Cambridge (Creation) also at the Royal Albert Hall; the Classical Opera Company at the Barbican; and Peter Schreier (Weihnachts Oratorium) at St John’s Smith Square. Along with Lindy Tennent-Brown, James has given a series of recitals throughout England, worked with Graham Johnson's Young Songmakers and with The Prince Consort. James is now a member of an exciting new group, The Blind Tiger Ensemble.

James made his debut for English National Opera in Tansy Davis’ Between Worlds and made his ROH debut in Opera Holland Park’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland at The Lindbury Studio. His operatic roles include Christus in the London Handel Festival’s world premiere staging of Handel’s Brocke’s Passion; Papageno/The Magic Flute for Merry Opera Company; Escamillo/Carmen and Onegin/Eugene Onegin for Riverside Opera; Bello/La Fanciulla del West for Opera Holland Park; Conte Alamaviva/Le Nozze di Figaro for Regent’s Opera; Hortensius La Fille du Regiment/Opera della Luna; Scarpia/Tosca for Opera UpClose; Mauregato in Schubert’s Alfonso und Estrella; work with Mid-Wales Opera and extracts from Don Giovanni with the London Mozart Players. James has also covered roles for English National Opera, Opera North and Garsington.

James regularly returns to New Zealand to sing in opera and concerts including the title role in the world premiere of Eve de Castro Robinson's opera Len Lye; Valentin/Faust and Father/Hansel & Gretel for NBR Zealand Opera and concerts with Auckland Choral Society, the Auckland Philharmonia and Christchurch City Choir.

James was a member of the New Zealand Youth Choir from 1993-1996

Oliver Sewell – Tenor

New Zealand tenor Oliver Sewell has been praised for “his lovely, burnished tone color, natural sense of line, and unstinting generosity” (Phillymag). He has performed as a soloist at the Lincoln Centre’s Alice Tully Hall and the Rose Theatre, and in Carnegie Hall.

Other highlights include performing Giannetto in La gazza ladra with Teatro Nuovo, Fernand in La favorite, Ferrando in Cosi fan tutte and Alfredo in La Traviata all at the Academy of Vocal Arts, Mozart’s Mass in C Minor with Kent Tritle, with George Manahan performing Danceny in The Dangerous Liaisons and Tamino in Die Zauberflöte, plus playing Father Pirrone in scenes and workshop of Michael Dellaria’s upcoming opera The Leopard.

Other roles include Brighella and Tanzmeister in Ariadne aux Naxos (Academy of Vocal Arts), Ernesto in Don Pasquale (Crested Butte Music Festival, Colorado), Gastone in La Traviata (New Jersey Festival Orchestra and New Zealand Opera), Benoit in Le roi l'a dit, (Manhattan School of Music Opera Studio), Corrado in Il Corsaro (New Zealand School of Music) and Biondello in L’oca dell Cairo (Days Bay Opera).

From 2018 until 2020 he was a Resident Artist at the Academy of Vocal Arts in Philadelphia.

Oliver was a member of the New Zealand Youth Choir from 2008-2009

Rosa Elliott - Composer

Rosa Elliott is a young composer from Christchurch, where she recently completed a BMUS and BA at the University of Canterbury majoring in Composition and English Literature. Rosa is currently completing her Honours in Composition at the University of Auckland.

In 2017, Rosa was recognised as a winner of the New Zealand Trio Composition Competition for her piano trio 'Voices of the Air'. Rosa has since won two Douglas Lilburn Composition Prizes for her works, 'Landfall,' for solo percussion, and 'What Have You Done to Your Rivers?' which will be recorded this year by the NZSO as part of the NZ Composer Recording Sessions. Rosa is also interested in sonic arts, and was a composer and performer for the Word Festival performance, 'Free Radicals', for her piece for women’s choir and fixed media.

Rosa was a winner of the SOUNZ Big Sing Competition in 2015 for her choral work 'Requiem', which has been performed by several high school choirs at subsequent Big Sing competitions. Rosa has since been recognised in particular for her choral composition. 'Those Others' was premiered by the New Zealand Youth Choir at the Choral Connect conference in 2017, and has been performed frequently by NZYC during their three-year cycle. In 2018, Rosa was commissioned by Supertonic to write three new choral works, followed by a commission to write 'Cry the Wounded Land' for the New Zealand Secondary School’s Choir in 2019. Written in memory of the March 15th mosque shootings, the piece had a visceral impact on both choir and audience during their south island tour.

Rosa was given the opportunity to attend the Oxford University Composing for Choirs Summer School in 2019, from which the performance of her work 'Out of Reach' by the Bowling Green State University choir in Ohio was made possible.

www.rosaelliott.com

More info about

New Zealand Youth Choir

The New Zealand Youth Choir (NZYC) has achieved considerable success since its formation in 1979. Performances in New Zealand and twelve international tours including visits to the UK, Europe, Canada, USA, Australia, Singapore, the Republic of Korea, China and a Pacific Tour to Fiji, Tonga, Niue, New Caledonia and Sydney have firmly established its reputation for consistency, energy and excellence. The Choir is comprised of around fifty 18 to 25-year-old singers and operates on a 3-year audition cycle.

NZYC has performed more than 400 public concerts in its 43 year-long history. During that time NZYC competed at international competition around the globe, winning many titles including the ‘Choir of the World’ title at the International Music Eisteddfod in Llangollen in 1999, the Grand Prix Slovakia, the Silver Rose Bowl in ‘Let the Peoples Sing’, Mixed Choir category in Cantonigros, Spain, and the Grand Prix at the IFAS in Pardubice Czech Republic.

NZYC recorded more than 10 albums with ‘Gaude’ being a finalist of the New Zealand Music Awards. The most recent release ‘Hokorua’ is a compilation of 31 pieces recorded over the now over 40 year long history of the choir.

Nzyouthchoir.com

Voices New Zealand

Voices New Zealand Chamber Choir, with Music Director Dr Karen Grylls, made its début at the 1998 New Zealand International Arts Festival and later that year won awards at the Tolosa International Choral Competition in Spain.

As a nationally selected choir of the highest calibre, VOICES is a chamber choir that is flexible in size, and capable of performing a wide repertoire. Many of the singers are alumni of the New Zealand Youth Choir.

Recent performance highlights include the 2018 European Tour to London, Hamburg, Berlin, Aix-en-Provence and Barcelona, appearances in Jack Body’s ‘Passio’, Tippet’s ‘A Child of our Time’ and Britten’s ‘War Requiem’ (all Auckland Arts Festival), and Ross Harris’ ‘Requiem for the Fallen’ (also NZ Festival and Dunedin Arts Festival). A sell-out gala concert with Dame Kiri Te Kanawa was one of the classical highlights in the 2016 New Zealand Festival. VOICES performed an especially commissioned work ‘The Unusual Silence’ by Victoria Kelly at the WW100 commemorations in Le Quesnoy, France in November 2018. VOICES created a new, dramatically-staged, environmental programme ‘Taonga Moana’ in 2019 which toured to nine New Zealand centres with Chamber Music New Zealand.

Critically acclaimed recordings include Spirit of the Land (winner of a ‘TUI’, a New Zealand Music Award for Best Classical Album), and Voice of the Soul.

With its distinct New Zealand sound, performing music from Aotearoa/New Zealand and infusing the qualities of its pacific origins into the classic choral repertoire, VOICES has established itself as the country’s premier national and professional choir. VOICES regularly performs at Arts Festivals around the country, collaborates with orchestras, Chamber Music New Zealand, Taonga Puoro and other artists across creative genres.

VOICES tours internationally and is the choir-of-choice for arts festivals and special projects.

Voicesnz.com

New Zealand Secondary Students’ Choir

The national choir for secondary school students, aged 13 to 18 years, the New Zealand Secondary Students Choir has up to 60 members, with nationwide auditions held every second year. NZSSC gathers each school holidays for a week of rehearsals and concerts throughout the country. Many students find membership a life-changing experience, making clear their future path as a singer/musician. They go on to join the New Zealand Youth Choir, study voice or music at university, and become strong components of the New Zealand choral and wider music community.

The NZSSC aims to develop New Zealand’s finest young singers so they can realize their potential in music and singing. Our members have the opportunity to learn from some of New Zealand’s most experienced conductors and vocal coaches, to sing with other equally talented young singers from all over the country and to represent New Zealand both here and overseas.

The roots of the New Zealand Secondary Students Choir can be traced to a choral course for secondary students in the 1960s, and a performance in 1967 with the actual foundation of the choir being formalised in 1986. During that time NZSSC has given hundreds of concerts and undertook 13 international tours to, Singapore, Hong Kong, Australia, Hawaii, Malaysia, China, Canada, USA, Argentina, and South Africa.

International tours were often planned around major choir competitions at which NZSSC won many accolades; at the Hong Kong International Youth & Children’s Festival NZSSC took the top award and won the title “The World’s Choir”, at the World Choir Games in Xiamen, China, the choir gained a Gold Award (Champion Mixed Voice Youth Choir) and a Silver Award (Folk and Ethnic Music). NZSSC was named Outstanding Choir of the Festival and won Gold at the Pacific Basin Choral Festival, Hawaii. At the International Choral Kathaumixw in Powell River, Canada, NZSSC took three first place awards. In this, the 11th Kathaumixw, NZSSC earned more awards than any other choir in any year over the history of the competition, a record which still stands.

nzsschoir.com

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