|
Interest in SING AOTEAROA 09 is growing apace, with 15 chamber and community choirs, totalling more than 500 singers, already confirmed to attend.
Visit our new SA09 page with full details of the weekend festival.
Why not treat yourself to:
-
A weekend of outstanding choral music performed by some of New Zealand's top choirs
-
The enjoyment of singing in the combined choir of 600-800 voices conducted by international conductors, Simon Carrington and Sanna Valvanne
-
Improving your knowledge of choral music, with a choice of 32 workshops run by world-class tutors
-
Experiencing Māori musical culture at a variety of interesting locations, including the famous Pohutu Geyser at Te Puia
________________________________________________________________________________________
ADVERTISEMENT
GONDWANA VOICES
The National Children's Choir of Australia
in concert
Holy Trinity Cathedral, Auckland
With Guest Choir: Choralation (Westlake Girls' and Boys' High Schools)
SATURDAY 4 JULY 2009 @ 7.00 PM
Admission: $20 adult $10 concession
For further information tel (09) 489 4179 ext 220
________________________________________________________________________________________
ADVERTISEMENT
New Zealand Secondary Students' Choir
in Concert
Friday July 10, 7.00pm
Christchurch Cathedral
Cathedral Square
Tickets $20 / $15 (concession)
One school-aged child free with every two paying adults
Tickets at the door or tel 04 976 8557/ email nzssc@xtra.co.nz
Music Director: Andrew Withington
Haydn, Mendelssohn, Brahms, Richard Oswin, Douglas Mews, Gershwin, Wehi Whanau
______________________________________________________________
TRAVELLING DOWN FROM AUCKLAND TO ROTORUA FOR SA09?
Discount busfares are available from nakedbus.com
Prices from $1!
______________________________________________________________
National Library's Music Services and Collections review now complete
The review looked at the current music services based on the library's General Collections. The consultation process was successful in that it attracted a cross section of respondents. For more
information read the Summary of Submissions, it provides a detailed outline of the review and its outcome - see below.
Will the Library be getting rid of any of its music collection?
The National Library is not getting rid of any of its collections. Nor will any of its collections be transferred to other institutions. The Library will also be keeping all of its current obsolete format recordings. The Library will continue to collect all formats of New Zealand published material and any material about or by New Zealanders that is published overseas. For example, if Dame Kiri Te Kanawa publishes a CD in the UK, we'll buy it and add it to the General Collection.
Will the interloan and score hire service change?
No, the existing interloan service and score hire will continue to operate as it does now.
What changes will users experience?
There will be no change to how customers currently use and access music material from the National Library. The Music Centre will continue to be part of the Alexander Turnbull Library, as it has been since 1 July 2007.
What will change?
There will be changes to the Library's General Collection donation policy. In future, donations will be the exception rather than the rule.
The donation policy will focus on strengthening the New Zealand and Pacific music component, in line with the Library's New Generation Strategy to 2017. Purchased music resources will be more tightly
focussed to ensure they meet the current demand of the Library's users.
Note: the Alexander Turnbull Library donation policy is different to the Library's General Collection policy and was not covered under this review.
For more information please refer to the Summary of Submissions on their website http://www.natlib.govt.nz/about-us/news/music-review-completed
_____________________________________________________________________________
NZCF Members online
All NZCF members have been sent a letter with their new membership number as well as some instructions. We want all members to verify (and correct, if necessary) their contact details online as soon as possible, adding in their email address, in particular. Please go to our website - home or member's page - for more information.
Each NZCF region also now has a regional online administrator, who has access to local database. If you need help with any changes to your contact details or access to your membership number (which is on your membership card as well as on the envelope Breve came in), please contact them in the first instance. They are:
NZCF Auckland - Olive Leddy
09 476 4049
olive.leddy@nzcf.org.nz
NZCF Waikato Bay of Plenty - Ann-Elise Miles (temporary)
07 348 2498
annelise.miles@nzcf.org.nz
NZCF East Coast - Ngaire Shand
06 876 9388
nshand@xtra.co.nz
NZCF Manawatu/Wanganui - Stanley Barnes
stanb@xnet.co.nz
NZCF Taranaki - Gerald Tubby
gtubby@clear.net.nz
NZCF Wellington - Elizabeth Crayford
04 381 0977 / 021 523 015
ecrayford@xtra.co.nz
NZCF Canterbury/West Coast - Heather Mace
03 358 2494 or 021 222 9242
heather.mace@nzcf.org.nz
NZCF Otago - John Leslie
awa-iti@xtra.co.nz
NZCF Southland - Di Lenihan
03 217 6764 or 027 698 8648
di.lenihan@nzcf.org.nz
____________________________________________________________________
|
NEW! Visit THE BIG SING 09 BLOG here
Designed by Chris Burcin, this page is your chance to have your say (and read the opinions of others) about TBS09
___________________________________________________________________
Survey about music scores
See our Resources page or download the survey form and mail/email it to the NZCF as soon as possible. We have extended to the deadline to 15 August and hope to hear from all member choirs by then.
_________________________________________________________________
Attendance at THE BIG SING Finale and ..."A Conductor's Toolkit" by Karen Grylls
The NZCF is inviting all TBS secondary school choir conductors to attend the Finale. Even if their choir is not participating in the competition, this is an opportunity to learn from and be inspired by twenty two of the country's top secondary school choirs in action, as well as talk and exchange ideas with colleagues from around the country. The Finale runs from 27 to 29 August, starting on the Thursday morning and concluding with the gala concert on the Saturday night.
In addition, Associate Professor Karen Grylls will present a workshop on choral conducting, entitled "A Conductor's Toolkit", on the Sunday morning from 9.00am to 12.30pm. This is an exciting opportunity to observe and gain practical advice from a pre-eminent New Zealand choral practitioner. A choir will be in attendance for some of the conductors to work with - so the workshop is very "hands-on".
Conductor's Toolkit: Fine Tuning your Choir
9:30- 10:45 Part I
The Choir
The choral sound: What makes a good sound?
The conductor: What skills are required?
10:45 - 11:15 Morning tea
11:15 - 12:45pm Part II
The Mechanics: Putting it into practice.
What do you hear?
What do you do next?
12:45pm Conclusion:
Where to from here....
The NZCF offers to conductors:
- free entrance to the Finale, including the Gala Concert;
- a reception on the Saturday evening at 5.30pm, at which future directions for THE BIG SING will be announced;
- "A Conductor's Toolkit" - workshop on conducting by Karen Grylls, on the Sunday morning (including morning tea). Conductors will be responsible for their own transport and accommodation
This is an ideal opportunity for schools to support what is a strong developmental opportunity for choral conductors at all levels.
RSVP or enquiries to THE BIG SING National Coordinator, Elizabeth Crayford, at ecrayford@xtra.co.nzor on 021 523 015.
_________________________________________________________________________________
TBS CHOIRS FOR THE FINALE
Congratulations to the 20 selected choirs, the two reserve choirs, and the two guest choirs. In all there will be 22 choirs participating in the National Finale in the Dunedin Town Hall from August 27 to 29, 2009. Here are the choirs, in geographical order.
AUCKLAND
1. Saints Alive - St Cuthbert's College
2. St Cecilia Singers - Diocesan School for Girls
3. Voicemale - Westlake Boys' High School
4. Choralation - Westlake Boys' & Girls' High Schools
5. Grammar Voices - Auckland Grammar School
6. The Fundamentals - Rangitoto College
7. Belissimo - Whangaparaoa College
MANAWATU/WANGANUI
8. OK Chorale - Palmerston North Boys' High School
WELLINGTON
9. Wellington College Chorale - Wellington College
10. Con Anima - St Patrick's College, Wellington
NELSON/MARLBOROUGH
11. Bella Voce Marlborough Girls' College
CANTERBURY/WEST COAST
12. Resolutions - Rangi Ruru Girls' School
13. Bel Canto - Burnside High School
14. Chapel Choir - Christ's College
15. Schola Cantorum - Christ's College
16. Con Brio - Villa Maria College
17. Magna Voce - Burnside High School
OTAGO/SOUTH CANTERBURY
18. Craighead Chorale - Craighead Diocesan School
19. Sings Hilda - St Hilda's Collegiate School
20. Craighead Choir - Craighead Diocesan School
Reserve 1. Aorora Voices - Burnside High School
Reserve 2. Cantare - Westlake Girls' High School
GUEST CHOIRS
The Tenners - Sacred Heart Girls' College, New Plymouth
Otago Girls' High School Choir - Otago Girls' High School
______________________________________________________________________________________
SOUNZ/NZCF Choral Composition Award 2009
Congratulations to the winner of the NZCF/SOUNZ composition award, Grace Park of Westlake Girls High School. This year the adjudicator was David Hamilton, with the final results moderated by Richard Madden. Grace will receive a cash prize of $250, supported by SOUNZ Centre for New Zealand Music, and a copy of the winning score will be held by SOUNZ as a perusal copy. The NZCF Auckland Choral Composition Trophy will be held by Westlake Girls High School for a year.
One of the choirs at THE BIG SING National Finale, to be held from 27 to29 August, will be approached to perform this composition at the gala concert. Grace will also be invited to attend the Finale as a guest of the NZCF to participate in the final rehearsals of the piece, and to be presented with the award. Accommodation and airfares will be provided by the NZCF.
Well done to all students who entered the competition this year, especially those named below who were commended by the adjudicator.
____________________________________________________________________
Comments from SOUNZ Competition adjudicator David Hamilton
This year's competition saw eleven entries from around the country. Significantly, most of the entries, and all the placed works, were from girls. Texts were drawn from a wide variety of sources - both sacred and secular. It was also pleasing that several works had recordings of performances sent in.
All eleven entries had considerable merit and understood writing for the voice, and in several cases another 'working over' of the material would result in a very successful choral composition. Each composer demonstrated an ability to effectively set a text, and to handle the choral idiom. My final choice was quite hard, as several works stood out for different reasons, and the top two works were both fine pieces in very different styles.
The winning work, Grace Park's "Benedicat tibi Dominus", is marked by an exciting rhythmic setting in Latin of a familiar biblical text ("The Lord bless you and keep you..."). The composer has a fine ear for interesting harmonies, and the SATB texture is varied and well supported by its piano accompaniment. Grace is a student at Westlake Girls High School where she is very involved in music activities. She is no stranger to competition success, having taken first place in the 2008 student composition competition organised by Auckland's V8 Vocal Ensemble.
I gave a second place to Bryony Gibson-Cornish for her evocative and atmospheric piece "South Brighton Love Song". I was keen to acknowledge that this work stood out from the other commended pieces for its sensitive and imaginative writing.
The full list of results is:
First place
Grace Park (Westlake Girls High School): "Benedicat tibi Dominus"
Grace Park is a Korean-born Aucklander who came to New Zealand in 1995, and is a year 13 student at Westlake Girls High School. She has won awards and first places in several singing competitions such as the North Shore Performing Arts Competition and the Lockwood Aria (now The New Zealand Aria). Grace achieved her first award for composition in 2008 when she won the V8 Ensemble Student Composition Competition Award. Grace was in Key Cygnetures choir for 4 years and toured Europe when Key Cygnetures was awarded first place in the choir section at the "Summa Cum Laude Festival" international music festival in Vienna in 2008. She now sings with the new top choir of Westlake, Choralation. Grace wishes to continue her music studies at university and hopefully become a professional singer as well as becoming a film score composer
Second place
Bryony Gibson-Cornish (Rangi Ruru Girls School): "South Brighton Love Song"
Highly commended
Annalise Higgins (Corran School): "A Little Christmas Magic"
Gemma Lee (Westlake Girls High School): "Te Deum"
Commended
Tiffany Wood (Corran School): "Amazing"
Entries were also received from: Brooke Abbott (Rangi Ruru Girls School), Reuben Chin (Cashmere High School) Jemma Hartley (Queen Margaret College), Penelope Lake (Queen Margaret College), Rebecca Lee (Queen Margaret College), Jesse Sheehan (Wellington College).
Click here for a link to the SOUNZ page
_________________________________________________________________________________
FESTIVAL AND VENUE COMBINE TO FIGHT SWINE FLU - UPDATED 18 June 2009
The outbreak of swine flu has forced choral singers from Westlake Girls' and Papatoetoe High Schools to be quarantined for several days. This has meant that, collectively, five school choirs cannot compete this week in the northern regional festival of THE BIG SING, being held in the Auckland Town Hall, even though one of them has been a frequent Gold Award winner at the national Finale.
The NZCF has arranged for the choirs to be assessed alone, early next week when the quarantine has been lifted. To ensure fairness in the judging process, the five affected choirs will perform their chosen works in the same venue. The adjudicator will be Peter Watts. Managers THE EDGE have generously made the Town Hall available for this audition on Monday 22 June, at no charge.
For this reason the announcement regarding selection of choirs for the Finale will be delayed until the adjudicators have conferred - predicted to be a few days after this assessment on the 22nd June.
WATCH THIS SPACE FOR MORE UPDATES
______________________________________________________________________________________
Changes to the NZCF's Constitution and Notice of AGM
At a Special General Meeting held on Thursday 26 March 2009, the Constitution was amended to shift the final date for holding each year's Annual General meeting from 30 June to 30 September.
This was done to allow the AGM to coincide with the holding of THE BIG SING's Finale, usually held towards the end of August in each year. The change allows the AGM to be held in different locations and also reduces travel costs for National Executive and Governance Board members' attendance.
This year, the NZCF National AGM will be held on Sunday 30 August in Dunedin.
Download a copy of the revised NZCF constitution
| 
