Five Lines is a collection of writings about music in Aotearoa New Zealand by Elizabeth Kerr. It features short articles, artist profiles and reviews of concerts, operas and albums. You can subscribe - it’s free - at the bottom of any story.
The Young Virtuosi: dazzling competition winners on tour
Competition winners Yeyeong Jenny Jin, violin, and Jeonghwan Kim, piano, have shown their virtuosity and musicianship in 11 concerts around New Zealand.
New Zealand piano music: walking with the birds
Pianist Jian Liu’s playing on his new 3-disc album of New Zealand piano music is lyrical and luminous, and full of respect for the music.
Beneath the trees: voices of women of Aotearoa
Beneath the trees: 21x21 is a new album of songs by 21 women composers of Aotearoa, setting words by our female poets. It’s an invaluable addition to the canon of New Zealand song.
NZ String Quartet: Unique counterpoints of Aotearoa
In their new album Notes from a journey ll, Te Haerenga, the New Zealand String Quartet continues its journey through the music of Aotearoa.
Woven Pathways: the NZ String Quartet reflects on the human experience
The concerts of the NZ String Quartet’s national tour, Woven Pathways, showed the power of a string quartet to explore emotions and experiences.
Music of Aotearoa
A 1999 work for taonga pūoro and flute has inspired a new generation of composers.
Dame Gillian Whitehead at 80: weaving the threads together
Dame Gillian Whitehead is 80 years old. Now living in New Zealand, she has woven together the threads of her Māori and pākeha heritage in recent works.
Inside, outside and not about gender
A review of a recent concert, “Inside-Out”, by the SMP Ensemble and a postscript about “music by women” in concert programmes.
11 Frames: a rich collection of New Zealand music
Violinist Andrew Beer and pianist Sarah Watkins won a New Zealand Music Award (the ‘Tui’) as Classical Artist of the Year for 2020.