This is the place to get the latest news on chamber music in New Zealand, read special features on artists, music and events, and find out what the critics have to say about our most recent concert tours.
We have a highly-skilled and experienced group of professional chamber musicians lined up to adjudicate this year's Chamber Music Contest, see who will be on the panels...
Introducing New Zealand composer Jack Body, the co-producer and one of the key collaborators behind Chamber Music New Zealand's upcoming tour Tales from the Forbidden City.
Tales from the Forbidden City is the culmination of a year's work, of travel between two countries, of music that will astonish your ears, elight your eyes and stretch your mind.
This week marks the 20th year of the Adam Summer School for Chamber Music. Run by the New Zealand String Quartet Trust it was founded by our advocate Michael Houstoun alongside members of the Quartet with an aim to provide the country’s best young string players and pianists with an opportunity to commit themselves to intense chamber music-making over one week together.
By Peter Williams, Hawkes Bay Today -
"It is difficult to pick out a single highlight but top place on the list probably belongs to pianist Michael Houstoun for his outstanding achievement in the performance, after a gap of 20 years since first performed, of all 32 of the Beethoven Piano Sonatas. They were memorable last time but this time there was an added maturity and assurance in his playing that resulted in some truly stunning performances. A standout for me was his superlative playing of the Appassionata Sonata – Sonata No 23 Op. 57 in F Minor."
It has been a mammoth year of concerts and events for Chamber Music New Zealand. We hope you have enjoyed all that's been on offer as much as we have enjoyed bringing it to you.
Puertas Quartet, who toured in our Encompass 2012 series, are returning for a summer of concerts in Auckland, Martinborough, Christchurch and Arrowtown.
20-year-old Salina Fisher, a member in the 2007, 2008 and 2010 Chamber Music Contest winning ensembles, last week was named the winner of the NZSO TODD Corporation Young Composers Award for 2013.
Sibling musicians Stella (violin) and Sally Kim (cello) and their friend Tina Kim (piano) of Auckland’s Trinity Trio, were announced the winners of the 8th Annual Pettman/ROSL Arts International Scholarship for a New Zealand Chamber Ensemble which took place over the weekend in Hamilton.
November 11th 2013 saw the final performance of Michael Houstoun's year-long journey reCycling Beethoven's 32 piano sonatas in 40 concerts around the country.
As Michael Houstoun nears the end of his heroic Beethoven reCYCLE series revisiting the 32 Piano Sonatas, I am reminded of a comment that the pianist made back in 1989.
This November the UK'sCavaleri Quartet will feature on stage, adjudicate and coach at the highly regarded Pettman/ROSL Arts Scholarship Auditions, as well as touring the country and raising money for charity.
A full Holy Trinity Cathedral is usually reserved for midnight mass or funerals of the famous, but there were few empty seats at the Wednesday concert by the Tallis Scholars under Peter Phillips.
The spiritual journey that Michael Houstoun has made to celebrate his 60th birthday is truly inspiring. I admire his stamina, his incredible memory, his dedication and aloneness.
Southland people were treated to a feast of Beethoven last Sunday with Michael Houstoun playing part of his repertoire of 32 Beethoven piano sonatas at the Civic Theatre on the occasion of his 60th birthday.
In the world of early music the Tallis Scholars are about as big a name as there is. Founded in 1973 by Peter Phillips they have become a household name, with their reputation extending beyond the narrow world of Renaissance music.
This year’s Auckland Chamber Music Society Prize winners were decided on Sunday 20 October, 2pm at the Music Theatre, Auckland University School of Music. Congratulations to the Counterstreich Quintet.
Violin I. Violin II. Viola. Cello. Possibly the best ensemble ever created: sharing in common all the richness of timbre a bow can create upon a string, but also startlingly different, the pitch of each voice able to sing out in complete independence as well as blend seamlessly into the whole.
A week ago, the Goldner String Quartet cellist, Julian Smiles, extolled the pleasures of exploring Mendelssohn, and the composer's Opus 13 launched the group's concert on Thursday night.
Based on how popular our Beethoven reCYCLE concerts have been and developments in seeking a suitable venue for our 2014 season, Chamber Music New Zealand has decided to relocate the final three Beethoven reCYCLE concerts from The Grange Theatre at Middleton Grange School.
This spring pianist Piers Lane is touring the country with the Goldner String Quartet and will be playing two of the finest piano quintets in the repertoire - Elgar's Piano Quintet in A minor and Franck's Piano Quintet in F minor. Piers took some time to play a game of 'complete the sentence' with us, so we could get to know him a little better...
The TSB Showplace in New Plymouth, including the Theatre Royal, where CMNZ holds all of the Kaleidoscopes Concert Season performances will be closed from 2 September 2013 until 1 March 2014 in order to strengthen and upgrade the building to meet the latest National
There was no obligation to stay glued to your seat in silence at a chamber music concert at TSB Theatre Royal yesterday. The audience shouted, clapped, danced, sang along and stomped their feet as trombone quartet BonaNZa and musical director of Wellington Community Choir Julian Raphael performed.
