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.
Composer Lyell Cresswell: truth, lies and a brilliant Piano Concerto
Stephen De Pledge is preparing to premiere Lyell Cresswell's final work, his Piano Concerto No 3, with the NZSO in four New Zealand cities. The composer's quirky autobiography will be launched before each concert.
From Scratch @ 50: 625 MOONS
The iconic New Zealand percussion ensemble From Scratch is celebrating its 50th birthday with a month-long residency.
Somi Kim’s Pictures: virtuosity on full display
Somi Kim’s new album Pictures at an Exhibition pairs Mussorgsky’s piano masterpiece with a new work, Aotearoa Pictures, by New Zealand composer Janet Jennings.
STROMA: playing with light and colour
An imaginative, superbly played programme from new music ensemble STROMA shows the group is an essential part of our musical fabric.
Suite Aotearoa: magic woven from our natural world
Pianist Sharon Joy Vogan conceived, commissioned and performed the new works for the magical album, Suite Aotearoa, collaborating with taonga pūoro specialist Horomona Horo.
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.
Barton and Brodsky: story-telling magic in sound
The programme Barton and Brodsky, touring for Chamber Music NZ, is full of surprises as five brilliant musicians blend cultures, histories and sounds.
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.
NZTrio: folksongs, dances and dreams
The NZTrio’s Homeland Three concert Dumky, toured throughout New Zealand, delighted the Wellington audience with energy and intensity.
Jenny McLeod: calling the tune
In the biography Jenny McLeod: A Life in Music, Norman Meehan captures the composer’s eloquent, witty and individual voice.
At the World’s Edge Festival: electrifying ensembles
Violinists Benjamin Baker and Justine Cormack have created something special with their At the World’s Edge Festival in Central Otago. AWE 2023 was an exhilarating event in many ways.
Violinist Benjamin Baker and the birth of a chamber music festival
New Zealand-born violinist Benjamin Baker is bringing the success of his international career to his leadership of a new chamber music festival in an awe-inspiring landscape.
STROMA: intimate musical dialogues
STROMA paid tribute to composers Jenny McLeod and Kaija Saariaho, presented new works by young composers of Aotearoa and ended a superbly-played concert with a theatrical work by Norma Beecroft.
NZ Opera’s new head, Brad Cohen: sharing the power of music
Brad Cohen, incoming General Director of New Zealand Opera, talked to Five Lines about his training and career as a conductor and his drive to share the power of music through the intimacy of the singing voice.
Voices New Zealand and the shining light of Karen Grylls
The recent concert “When Light Breaks” revealed many aspects of the art of Dr Karen Grylls, who has been made a Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit for her outstanding contributions to choral music.
APO and Cresswell’s Dragspil: a concerto comes home
Classical accordionist James Crabb performs the New Zealand premiere of Lyell Cresswell’s Dragspil with the APO, a work written for Crabb to play at the 1995 BBC Proms.
The Unruly Tourists: an opera, a composer and a departing director
NZ Opera’a General Director Thomas de Mallet Burgess commissioned the opera The Unruly Tourists from composer Luke di Somma. The controversial project has just completed its first season in Auckland.
New Zealand String Quartet: the wearing of the green
The New Zealand String Quartet collaborated with Irish composer and musician Dave Flynn for a joyous programme on St Patrick’s Day.
Eve de Castro-Robinson premiere: a quiet centre in NZTrio concert
Eve de Castro-Robinson’s new work, the willing air, is the quiet centre of a marvellously curated programme by NZTrio called Homeland 1.
The Earth Child: A Mansfield centenary tribute album
Composer Janet Jennings has curated a brilliant album as tribute to Katherine Mansfield, marking the centenary of the writer’s death and including her own setting of Mansfield’s Earth Child poems.