One of NZ’s leading choreographer/filmmakers, DANIEL BELTON, in collaboration with composer and Stroma’s own MICHAEL NORRIS, brings to life a major new work of dance film. Featuring live music provided by a small Stroma ensemble, TIMEDANCE is a meditation on history, memory, time and space. The music — a modern "filtration" of one of Bach’s best-loved Baroque dance suites for 2 violins, cello, piano and live electronics — shimmers with glistening energy and luminescence, while Belton’s mesmerising images flicker and flow.

PROGRAMME

Michael Norris & Daniel Belton — TIMEDANCE

Jan-Bas Bollen, Jac Grenfell & Daniel Belton — Soma Songs

One of NZ’s leading choreographer/filmmakers, DANIEL BELTON, in collaboration with composer and Stroma’s own MICHAEL NORRIS, brings to life a major new work of dance film. Featuring live music provided by a small Stroma ensemble, TIMEDANCE is a meditation on history, memory, time and space. The music — a modern "filtration" of one of Bach’s best-loved Baroque dance suites for 2 violins, cello, piano and live electronics — shimmers with glistening energy and luminescence, while Belton’s mesmerising images flicker and flow.

PROGRAMME

Michael Norris & Daniel Belton — TIMEDANCE

Jan-Bas Bollen, Jac Grenfell & Daniel Belton — Soma Songs

This ground-breaking new chamber opera from Ross Harris and Vincent O’Sullivan (Requiem for the Fallen) powerfully portrays Gallipoli as both a military story and one of domestic New Zealand.

Wives and families at home in Wellington are as much to the fore as men in uniform at the front in an innovative depiction of the 1915 battle of Chunuk Bair.

Directed by Jonathan Alver, with award-winning tenor James Egglestone as Wellington Regiment Lieutenant-Colonel William Malone, and the score performed by Stroma New Music Ensemble conducted by Hamish McKeich, Brass Poppies offers fresh perspectives on World War I, along with music and emotional resonances that will stay with you long after the curtain falls.

Co-produced by New Zealand Festival, Auckland Arts Festival and New Zealand Opera, with support from the Lottery Grants Board.

New directions in indigenous musical forms — Stroma meets New Zealand's masters of taonga puoro.

FEATURING

Ariana Tikao (voice & taonga puoro)

Alistair Fraser (taonga puoro)

Hamish McKeich (conductor)

PROGRAMME

Philip Brownlee/Ariana Tikao Ko te tātai whetū for ensemble and taonga puoro

Dylan Lardelli Musical Box for ensemble and taonga puoro

Tristan Carter Tohoraha for strings & taonga puoro

Gillian Whitehead Hineraukatauri for flute & taonga puoro

Ariana Tikao Ka taka te mōtoi for ensemble, voice & taonga puoro

Hirini Melbourne & Ariana Tikao Amokura for ensemble, voice & taonga puoro

Less is more — the scintillating sounds of the minimalist movement.

FEATURING

Hamish McKeich (conductor)

PROGRAMME

Steve Reich Double Sextet for ensemble

Julia Wolfe Lick for ensemble

Alison Isadora Alt for string quartet

Terry Riley In C for ensemble

Music from the frontiers of sound & technology

The works on this programme share a fascination with the materiality of sound, by revealing its inner structures in a series of meditative dronescapes that will fill the resonant spaces of City Gallery Wellington. Composers such as Kaija Saariaho, Salvatore Sciarrino, Luigi Ceccarelli and Annea Lockwood all provide deep and enveloping listening experiences.

Also featured is the world premiere of a new concerto for throatsinger, ensemble and live electronics by Michael Norris, with soloist Wellington-based throatsinger and improviser, Jonny Marks.

FEATURING

Mark Carter (conductor)

Jonny Marks (throat-singing)

Ed Allen (prepared horn)

PROGRAMME:

Kaija Saariaho Cendres for alto flute, cello and piano

Salvatore Sciarrino Fauno che fischia a un Merlo for flute and harp

Annea Lockwood Immersion for 3 percussion

Luigi Ceccarelli Respiri for prepared horn and electronics

Kaija Saariaho Ciel Étoilé for double bass and percussion

Michael Norris Sygyt for ensemble, throat-singer, and electronics

Drums that strike themselves. Loudspeakers that pivot and pirouette. Pianos whose keys tap dance ghostly toccatas. Welcome to a brave new world of mechatronic music, where self-playing instruments rule.

Autonomous instruments have fascinated composers since the dawn of the mechanical age. The most famous of these is arguably Georges Antheil’s epic work Ballet Mécanique (1925) – best described as The Rite of Spring meets heavy metal.

In Mechanical Ballet, experience the wonder for yourself as a crowd of mechatronic loudspeakers and percussion instruments come to life – created by Wellington-based musicians/engineers Jim Murphy, Bridget Johnson, Mo Zareei and David Downes. They keep pace with percussionists from leading Kiwi new music ensemble Stroma and top New Zealand pianists Sarah Watkins and Stephen De Pledge.

This concert of virtuosic proportions features two seminal works by US minimalist icon Steve Reich, Drumming Part 1 and Piano Phase, as well as world premieres of works by composers Bridget Johnson, David Downes and Michael Norris. The future starts here.

FEATURING

Stephen De Pledge, Sarah Watkins (piano)

Lenny Sakofsky, Jeremy Fitzsimons, Justin DeHart, Yoshiko Tsuruta (percussion)

PROGRAMME:

Steve Reich Drumming Part I for four percussionists

Mo Zareei Rasping Music for brutalist mechatronic sound-sculptures

David Downes Superflux for robotic drumkit, electronic playback

Michael Norris Tidal Flow for amplified percussion quartet and robotic drums

Bridget Johnson Pas de Quatre for mechatronic loudspeakers

Steve Reich Piano Phase for two pianos

Georges Antheil Ballet Mécanique for two pianos, four percussionists, four MIDI pianos and robotic percussion

Drums that strike themselves. Loudspeakers that pivot and pirouette. Pianos whose keys tap dance ghostly toccatas. Welcome to a brave new world of mechatronic music, where self-playing instruments rule.

Autonomous instruments have fascinated composers since the dawn of the mechanical age. The most famous of these is arguably Georges Antheil’s epic work Ballet Mécanique (1925) – best described as The Rite of Spring meets heavy metal.

In Mechanical Ballet, experience the wonder for yourself as a crowd of mechatronic loudspeakers and percussion instruments come to life – created by Wellington-based musicians/engineers Jim Murphy, Bridget Johnson, Mo Zareei and David Downes. They keep pace with percussionists from leading Kiwi new music ensemble Stroma and top New Zealand pianists Sarah Watkins and Stephen De Pledge.

This concert of virtuosic proportions features two seminal works by US minimalist icon Steve Reich, Drumming Part 1 and Piano Phase, as well as world premieres of works by composers Bridget Johnson, David Downes and Michael Norris. The future starts here.

FEATURING

Stephen De Pledge, Sarah Watkins (piano)

Lenny Sakofsky, Jeremy Fitzsimons, Justin DeHart, Yoshiko Tsuruta (percussion)

PROGRAMME:

Steve Reich Drumming Part I for four percussionists

Mo Zareei Rasping Music for brutalist mechatronic sound-sculptures

David Downes Superflux for robotic drumkit, electronic playback

Michael Norris Tidal Flow for amplified percussion quartet and robotic drums

Bridget Johnson Pas de Quatre for mechatronic loudspeakers

Steve Reich Piano Phase for two pianos

Georges Antheil Ballet Mécanique for two pianos, four percussionists, four MIDI pianos and robotic percussion

Author Alex Ross pulled back the curtain for the masses and hit the best seller lists with his compelling and revelatory history of twentieth-century music, The Rest Is Noise.

A tour-de-force of musicology and social history, Ross dispels the elitist myths surrounding modernist and post-modernist masterpieces, allowing audiences to share in his passion for this repertoire.

In partnership with the Auckland Writers Festival, Ross shares the stage with the exquisite mezzo-soprano Bianca Andrew and Aotearoa’s pre-eminent modern music ensemble STROMA. Together they present a musical tasting session that winds through the ages featuring work by Ravel, Bartók, Stravinsky and, of course, the modernist master himself, Schoenberg.

FEATURING

Alex Ross (narrator)

Bianca Andrews (soprano)

Bridget Douglas, Pat Barry, Emma Sayers, Vesa-Matti Leppänen, Andrew Thomson, Ken Ichinose, Hamish McKeich (Stroma)

PROGRAMME:

Arnold Schoenberg Pierrot Lunaire (selections)

Maurice Ravel No. 3 from Chansons Madécasses

Béla Bartók No. 3 from Constrasts

Olivier Messiaen VI from Quartet for the end of time

György Ligeti Balada si joc

Igor Stravinsky ‘Full Fathom Five’ from Three Songs from William Shakespeare

Jenny McLeod For Seven (selections)

Luciano Berio O King

Pierre Boulez Improvisé, pour le Dr. Kalmus

Iannis Xenakis Charisma

Gillian Whitehead Manutaki

Kaija Saariaho Oi Kuu

David Lang Short Fall

Author Alex Ross pulled back the curtain for the masses and hit the best seller lists with his compelling and revelatory history of twentieth-century music, The Rest Is Noise.

A tour-de-force of musicology and social history, Ross dispels the elitist myths surrounding modernist and post-modernist masterpieces, allowing audiences to share in his passion for this repertoire.

In partnership with the Auckland Writers Festival, Ross shares the stage with the exquisite mezzo-soprano Bianca Andrew and Aotearoa’s pre-eminent modern music ensemble STROMA. Together they present a musical tasting session that winds through the ages featuring work by Ravel, Bartók, Stravinsky and, of course, the modernist master himself, Schoenberg.

FEATURING

Alex Ross (narrator)

Bianca Andrews (soprano)

Bridget Douglas, Pat Barry, Emma Sayers, Vesa-Matti Leppänen, Andrew Thomson, Ken Ichinose, Hamish McKeich (Stroma)

PROGRAMME:

Arnold Schoenberg Pierrot Lunaire (selections)

Maurice Ravel No. 3 from Chansons Madécasses

Béla Bartók No. 3 from Constrasts

Olivier Messiaen VI from Quartet for the end of time

György Ligeti Balada si joc

Igor Stravinsky ‘Full Fathom Five’ from Three Songs from William Shakespeare

Jenny McLeod For Seven (selections)

Luciano Berio O King

Pierre Boulez Improvisé, pour le Dr. Kalmus

Iannis Xenakis Charisma

Gillian Whitehead Manutaki

Kaija Saariaho Oi Kuu

David Lang Short Fall

Author Alex Ross pulled back the curtain for the masses and hit the best seller lists with his compelling and revelatory history of twentieth-century music, The Rest Is Noise.

A tour-de-force of musicology and social history, Ross dispels the elitist myths surrounding modernist and post-modernist masterpieces, allowing audiences to share in his passion for this repertoire.

In partnership with the Auckland Writers Festival, Ross shares the stage with the exquisite mezzo-soprano Bianca Andrew and Aotearoa’s pre-eminent modern music ensemble STROMA. Together they present a musical tasting session that winds through the ages featuring work by Ravel, Bartók, Stravinsky and, of course, the modernist master himself, Schoenberg.

FEATURING

Alex Ross (narrator)

Bianca Andrews (soprano)

Bridget Douglas, Pat Barry, Emma Sayers, Vesa-Matti Leppänen, Andrew Thomson, Ken Ichinose, Hamish McKeich (Stroma)

PROGRAMME:

Arnold Schoenberg Pierrot Lunaire (selections)

Maurice Ravel No. 3 from Chansons Madécasses

Béla Bartók No. 3 from Constrasts

Olivier Messiaen VI from Quartet for the end of time

György Ligeti Balada si joc

Igor Stravinsky ‘Full Fathom Five’ from Three Songs from William Shakespeare

Jenny McLeod For Seven (selections)

Luciano Berio O King

Pierre Boulez Improvisé, pour le Dr. Kalmus

Iannis Xenakis Charisma

Gillian Whitehead Manutaki

Kaija Saariaho Oi Kuu

David Lang Short Fall

Author Alex Ross pulled back the curtain for the masses and hit the best seller lists with his compelling and revelatory history of twentieth-century music, The Rest Is Noise.

A tour-de-force of musicology and social history, Ross dispels the elitist myths surrounding modernist and post-modernist masterpieces, allowing audiences to share in his passion for this repertoire.

In partnership with the Auckland Writers Festival, Ross shares the stage with the exquisite mezzo-soprano Bianca Andrew and Aotearoa’s pre-eminent modern music ensemble STROMA. Together they present a musical tasting session that winds through the ages featuring work by Ravel, Bartók, Stravinsky and, of course, the modernist master himself, Schoenberg.

FEATURING

Alex Ross (narrator)

Bianca Andrews (soprano)

Bridget Douglas, Pat Barry, Emma Sayers, Vesa-Matti Leppänen, Andrew Thomson, Ken Ichinose, Hamish McKeich (Stroma)

PROGRAMME:

Arnold Schoenberg Pierrot Lunaire (selections)

Maurice Ravel No. 3 from Chansons Madécasses

Béla Bartók No. 3 from Constrasts

Olivier Messiaen VI from Quartet for the end of time

György Ligeti Balada si joc

Igor Stravinsky ‘Full Fathom Five’ from Three Songs from William Shakespeare

Jenny McLeod For Seven (selections)

Luciano Berio O King

Pierre Boulez Improvisé, pour le Dr. Kalmus

Iannis Xenakis Charisma

Gillian Whitehead Manutaki

Kaija Saariaho Oi Kuu

David Lang Short Fall

Author Alex Ross pulled back the curtain for the masses and hit the best seller lists with his compelling and revelatory history of twentieth-century music, The Rest Is Noise.

A tour-de-force of musicology and social history, Ross dispels the elitist myths surrounding modernist and post-modernist masterpieces, allowing audiences to share in his passion for this repertoire.

In partnership with the Auckland Writers Festival, Ross shares the stage with the exquisite mezzo-soprano Bianca Andrew and Aotearoa’s pre-eminent modern music ensemble STROMA. Together they present a musical tasting session that winds through the ages featuring work by Ravel, Bartók, Stravinsky and, of course, the modernist master himself, Schoenberg.

FEATURING

Alex Ross (narrator)

Bianca Andrews (soprano)

Bridget Douglas, Pat Barry, Emma Sayers, Vesa-Matti Leppänen, Andrew Thomson, Ken Ichinose, Hamish McKeich (Stroma)

PROGRAMME:

Arnold Schoenberg Pierrot Lunaire (selections)

Maurice Ravel No. 3 from Chansons Madécasses

Béla Bartók No. 3 from Constrasts

Olivier Messiaen VI from Quartet for the end of time

György Ligeti Balada si joc

Igor Stravinsky ‘Full Fathom Five’ from Three Songs from William Shakespeare

Jenny McLeod For Seven (selections)

Luciano Berio O King

Pierre Boulez Improvisé, pour le Dr. Kalmus

Iannis Xenakis Charisma

Gillian Whitehead Manutaki

Kaija Saariaho Oi Kuu

David Lang Short Fall

Author Alex Ross pulled back the curtain for the masses and hit the best seller lists with his compelling and revelatory history of twentieth-century music, The Rest Is Noise.

A tour-de-force of musicology and social history, Ross dispels the elitist myths surrounding modernist and post-modernist masterpieces, allowing audiences to share in his passion for this repertoire.

In partnership with the Auckland Writers Festival, Ross shares the stage with the exquisite mezzo-soprano Bianca Andrew and Aotearoa’s pre-eminent modern music ensemble STROMA. Together they present a musical tasting session that winds through the ages featuring work by Ravel, Bartók, Stravinsky and, of course, the modernist master himself, Schoenberg.

FEATURING

Alex Ross (narrator)

Bianca Andrews (soprano)

Bridget Douglas, Pat Barry, Emma Sayers, Vesa-Matti Leppänen, Andrew Thomson, Ken Ichinose, Hamish McKeich (Stroma)

PROGRAMME:

Arnold Schoenberg Pierrot Lunaire (selections)

Maurice Ravel No. 3 from Chansons Madécasses

Béla Bartók No. 3 from Constrasts

Olivier Messiaen VI from Quartet for the end of time

György Ligeti Balada si joc

Igor Stravinsky ‘Full Fathom Five’ from Three Songs from William Shakespeare

Jenny McLeod For Seven (selections)

Luciano Berio O King

Pierre Boulez Improvisé, pour le Dr. Kalmus

Iannis Xenakis Charisma

Gillian Whitehead Manutaki

Kaija Saariaho Oi Kuu

David Lang Short Fall

Author Alex Ross pulled back the curtain for the masses and hit the best seller lists with his compelling and revelatory history of twentieth-century music, The Rest Is Noise.

A tour-de-force of musicology and social history, Ross dispels the elitist myths surrounding modernist and post-modernist masterpieces, allowing audiences to share in his passion for this repertoire.

In partnership with the Auckland Writers Festival, Ross shares the stage with the exquisite mezzo-soprano Bianca Andrew and Aotearoa’s pre-eminent modern music ensemble STROMA. Together they present a musical tasting session that winds through the ages featuring work by Ravel, Bartók, Stravinsky and, of course, the modernist master himself, Schoenberg.

FEATURING

Alex Ross (narrator)

Bianca Andrews (soprano)

Bridget Douglas, Pat Barry, Emma Sayers, Vesa-Matti Leppänen, Andrew Thomson, Ken Ichinose, Hamish McKeich (Stroma)

PROGRAMME:

Arnold Schoenberg Pierrot Lunaire (selections)

Maurice Ravel No. 3 from Chansons Madécasses

Béla Bartók No. 3 from Constrasts

Olivier Messiaen VI from Quartet for the end of time

György Ligeti Balada si joc

Igor Stravinsky ‘Full Fathom Five’ from Three Songs from William Shakespeare

Jenny McLeod For Seven (selections)

Luciano Berio O King

Pierre Boulez Improvisé, pour le Dr. Kalmus

Iannis Xenakis Charisma

Gillian Whitehead Manutaki

Kaija Saariaho Oi Kuu

David Lang Short Fall

Author Alex Ross pulled back the curtain for the masses and hit the best seller lists with his compelling and revelatory history of twentieth-century music, The Rest Is Noise.

A tour-de-force of musicology and social history, Ross dispels the elitist myths surrounding modernist and post-modernist masterpieces, allowing audiences to share in his passion for this repertoire.

In partnership with the Auckland Writers Festival, Ross shares the stage with the exquisite mezzo-soprano Bianca Andrew and Aotearoa’s pre-eminent modern music ensemble STROMA. Together they present a musical tasting session that winds through the ages featuring work by Ravel, Bartók, Stravinsky and, of course, the modernist master himself, Schoenberg.

FEATURING

Alex Ross (narrator)

Bianca Andrews (soprano)

Bridget Douglas, Pat Barry, Emma Sayers, Vesa-Matti Leppänen, Andrew Thomson, Ken Ichinose, Hamish McKeich (Stroma)

PROGRAMME:

Arnold Schoenberg Pierrot Lunaire (selections)

Maurice Ravel No. 3 from Chansons Madécasses

Béla Bartók No. 3 from Constrasts

Olivier Messiaen VI from Quartet for the end of time

György Ligeti Balada si joc

Igor Stravinsky ‘Full Fathom Five’ from Three Songs from William Shakespeare

Jenny McLeod For Seven (selections)

Luciano Berio O King

Pierre Boulez Improvisé, pour le Dr. Kalmus

Iannis Xenakis Charisma

Gillian Whitehead Manutaki

Kaija Saariaho Oi Kuu

David Lang Short Fall

The revolution is here! Prepare yourself for big works and bold sounds from some of the most iconic ‘sonic revolutionists’ of the twentieth century — Witold Lutoslawski, György Ligeti, Kaija Saariaho and Iannis Xenakis. The next generation is represented by a world premiere from leading young New Zealand composer Reuben Jelleyman. Iconic Sonics will be held in the beautiful gallery spaces of City Galley Wellington, surrounded by images from their 'Iconography of Revolt' exhibition.

FEATURING

Hamish McKeich (conductor)

PROGRAMME

György Ligeti (HUN) • Ramifications for 12 solo strings

Kaija Saariaho (FIN) • New Gates for flute, viola and harp

Iannis Xenakis (GR) • Aroura for 12 solo strings

Reuben Jelleyman (NZ) • Designs for chamber ensemble (world premiere)

Witold Lutoslawski (POL) • Chain I for large ensemble

Join us to celebrate 125 years of women’s suffrage in New Zealand, in this concert of dynamic and diverse new works by women composers from New Zealand and Australia. Stroma will perform the music of Jasmine Lovell-Smith, Sarah Ballard, Alison Isadora, Antonia Barnett-McIntosh, Eve de Castro-Robinson and Lisa Illean in a high-octane cross-genre and cross-cultural collaboration with leading jazz octet The Jac, soprano Barbara Paterson, and a quartet of players of traditional Indian instruments.

FEATURING

Hamish McKeich (conductor)

Barbara Paterson (soprano)

The Jac (jazz octet)

Swami Madhuram Puri (bansuri)

Laurence Baker (harmonium + voice)

Pavla Charapovova (karatalas)

Thomas Vine (mridanga)

PROGRAMME

Eve de Castro-Robinson (NZ) • Quiet at her window for soprano and ensemble

Lisa Illean (AUS) • Cantor for soprano and ensemble

Alison Isadora (NZ/NL) • Stemmen

Sarah Ballard (NZ) • Paramātmā for Indian musicians and ensemble

Jasmine Lovell-Smith (NZ) • New work for jazz octet and ensemble

Antonia Barnett-Mcintosh (NZ) • New work

Immerse yourself in the music of composers who redefined the very boundaries of music. An intimate evening of song, water, glass, harmonics, beat frequencies & vases.  Featuring music by Alvin Lucier, James Tenney, John Cage, Chiyoko Szlavnics, Peter Ablinger and Antonia Barnett-McIntosh.

FEATURING

Barbara Paterson (voice)

Antonia Barnett-McIntosh (voice)

Ken Ichinose (cello)

PROGRAMME

John Cage (US) • Aria

Peter Ablinger (GER) • Weiss / Weisslich 31e for water and glass tubes

Chiyoko Szlavnics (CAN) • Triptych for AS

Alvin Lucier (US) • Music for Cello with One or More Amplified Vases

James Tenney (US) • ‘Shimmer’ from Glissade

Antonia Barnett-Mcintosh (NZ) • New work for voices

Immerse yourself in the music of composers who redefined the very boundaries of music. An intimate evening of song, water, glass, harmonics, beat frequencies & vases.  Featuring music by Alvin Lucier, James Tenney, John Cage, Chiyoko Szlavnics, Peter Ablinger and Antonia Barnett-McIntosh.

FEATURING

Barbara Paterson (voice)

Antonia Barnett-McIntosh (voice)

Ken Ichinose (cello)

PROGRAMME

John Cage (US) • Aria

Peter Ablinger (GER) • Weiss / Weisslich 31e for water and glass tubes

Chiyoko Szlavnics (CAN) • Triptych for AS

Alvin Lucier (US) • Music for Cello with One or More Amplified Vases

James Tenney (US) • ‘Shimmer’ from Glissade

Antonia Barnett-Mcintosh (NZ) • New work for voices

An evocative evening of chamber music evoking the sea and sky. Sometimes quiet and contemplative, sometimes tempestuous and stormy, Stroma performs six works from around the world are inspired by the natural environment. The concert also celebrates the iconic works of one of New Zealand’s most experienced, senior composers, John Rimmer, who celebrates his 80th birthday in 2019.

Rimmer’s piece, Where Sea Meets Sky 2, originally written in 1975, was inspired by a trans-Tasman plane journey, in which the composer was entranced by the qualities of light and play when looking out of his window at the horizon of the Tasman Sea. Deirdre Gribbin’s dark and mesmerising string quartet, What the Whaleship Saw, is based on the gruesome story of survival and cannibalism amongst the crew of the Nantucket whaler, the Essex, after it was wrecked by a whale. Also featured is the iconic brass work Fog Tropes by Ingram Marshall, which featured in the soundtrack to the feature film Shutter Island. Other works in the concert include the luminous shades of 13 Couleurs du Soleil Couchant (13 Colours of the Setting Sun) by Tristan Murail, the hypnotic minimalism of Reflections by young Icelandic composer Anna Thorvaldsdottir, and the evocative bass flute and harp work Pearls of the Sea by Eve de Castro-Robinson.

There will be a pre-concert at the venue Q&A at 6:45pm, with John Rimmer and Michael Norris.

FEATURING

Hamish McKeich (conductor)

PROGRAMME

Tristan Murail • Treize couleurs du soleil couchant (NZ premiere)

Eve de Castro-Robinson • Pearls of the Sea

Anna Thorvaldsdottir • Reflections (NZ premiere)

John Rimmer • Where Sea Meets Sky 2

Ingram Marshall • Fog tropes (NZ premiere)

Deirdre Gribbin • what the whaleship saw (NZ premiere)

A rich collection of works inspired by non-Western musical traditions from around the world, including the unforgettable song cycle, Luciano Berio’s Folk Songs, sung by outstanding New Zealand soprano Bianca Andrew, the world premiere of a work by John Psathas, and the NZ premiere of An Overture devised by Celeste Oram, Rob Thorne, Ludwig van Beethoven and ensemble. These works feature the violin of US virtuoso Keir GoGwilt and the taonga puoro of Rob Thorne and Alistair Fraser.

FEATURING

Bianca Andrew (mezzo-soprano)

Keir GoGwilt (violin)

Alistair Fraser (taonga puoro)

Rob Thorne (taonga puoro)

Hamish McKeich (conductor)

PROGRAMME

Luciano Berio • Folk songs

Julia Wolfe • Reeling (NZ premiere)

John Psathas • Irirangi (Meditation) (world premiere)

Jack Body • Bouyi

Anna Clyne • A wonderful day (NZ premiere)

An Overture (NZ premiere) devised by Celeste Oram, Rob Thorne, Ludwig van Beethoven, and ensemble

An evening of intimate chamber music, with five exciting composers from NZ and overseas, in the beautiful surroundings of the New Zealand Portrait Gallery. With guest soloists French cello virtuoso Séverine Ballon and Wellington-based taonga puoro legend Alistair Fraser, this concert also features the evocative masterwork Rain Coming by legendary Japanese composer Toru Takemitsu.

FEATURING

Séverine Ballon (cello)

Alistair Fraser (taonga puoro)

Hamish McKeich (conductor)

PROGRAMME

Salina Fisher • Kingfisher (NZ premiere)

Rebecca Saunders • Ire (NZ premiere)

Liza Lim • An Ocean Beyond Earth (NZ premiere)

Ashley Fure • Soma (NZ premiere)

Alistair Fraser & Simon Eastwood • New Work (world premiere)

Toru Takemitsu • Water Ways

(This is the first of the performances of Idiosyncrophilia — the second, below, is at 7pm)

Welcome to the quirky, curious world of Neil Feather's invented instruments. Surrounded by a mesmerising soundscape composed by Rosie Langabeer, the instruments — with names such as 'The Wiggler', 'Nondo' and 'Magnapooters' — whizz, whirr and crunch under the spotlight. A triumph of handmade analogue technology, these deliciously idiosyncratic instruments are made from materials such as cigar boxes, hacked-up guitars and vibrators. Come experience Idiosyncrophilia — a 45-minute semi-improvised soundscape. Immerse yourself in sonic invention!

FEATURING

Neil Feather, Erika Grant & Dan Beban (invented instrument performers)

PROGRAMME

Rosie Langabeer • Idiosyncrophilia: Suite for Invented Instruments

This concert supported by Creative New Zealand, Lilburn Trust, Stout Trust and the Wellington City Council.

(This is the second of the performances of Idiosyncrophilia — the first, above, is at 5:30pm)

Welcome to the quirky, curious world of Neil Feather's invented instruments. Surrounded by a mesmerising soundscape composed by Rosie Langabeer, the instruments — with names such as 'The Wiggler', 'Nondo' and 'Magnapooters' — whizz, whirr and crunch under the spotlight. A triumph of handmade analogue technology, these deliciously idiosyncratic instruments are made from materials such as cigar boxes, hacked-up guitars and vibrators. Come experience Idiosyncrophilia — a 45-minute semi-improvised soundscape. Immerse yourself in sonic invention!

FEATURING

Neil Feather, Erika Grant & Dan Beban (invented instrument performers)

PROGRAMME

Rosie Langabeer • Idiosyncrophilia: Suite for Invented Instruments

(This is the first of two repeat performances on the same evening — the second, at 8:30pm, is listed below)

Back by popular demand, Stroma explores the hip laneways of musical experimentalism. Composed theatre, musical bodies, comic strips, bandaging and a bit of Laura Branigan will star in this offbeat, set of works that you will be thinking about long after the show is over.

FEATURING

Barbara Paterson (soprano)

Elliot Vaughan & Marcus Jackson (performers)

PROGRAMME

Cathy Berberian Stripsody for for soprano

Yoko Ono Wrapping music for for ensemble and wrappers

Jessie Marino Rot Blau for for two performers

Alvin Lucier 'Clarinet' from Still and Moving Lines of Silence in Families of Hyperbolas for for clarinet and sound

James Tenney Having Never Written a Note for Percussion for for tam-tam

Julius Eastman Joy Boy for for four instruments

Elliot Vaughan Futures Past for for mixed ensemble

This concert supported by Creative New Zealand, Lilburn Trust, Stout Trust and the Wellington City Council.

(This is the second of two repeat performances on the same evening — the first, at 7pm, is listed above)

Back by popular demand, Stroma explores the hip laneways of musical experimentalism. Composed theatre, musical bodies, comic strips, bandaging and a bit of Laura Branigan will star in this offbeat, set of works that you will be thinking about long after the show is over.

FEATURING

Barbara Paterson (soprano)

Elliot Vaughan & Marcus Jackson (performers)

PROGRAMME

Cathy Berberian Stripsody for for soprano

Yoko Ono Wrapping music for for ensemble and wrappers

Jessie Marino Rot Blau for for two performers

Alvin Lucier 'Clarinet' from Still and Moving Lines of Silence in Families of Hyperbolas for for clarinet and sound

James Tenney Having Never Written a Note for Percussion for for tam-tam

Julius Eastman Joy Boy for for four instruments

Elliot Vaughan Futures Past for for mixed ensemble

In 2021 we will celebrate the end of our 20th anniversary season with a concert featuring some of our favourite music and composers, including a repeat performance of Stroma's original commission from Jenny McLeod, entitled 'Cat Dreams', in honour of her 80th birthday. Also hear NZ premieres of works by Salina Fisher and Michael Norris, two favourites from Saariaho and Berio, and a guest appearance by Wellington taonga puoro legend Al Fraser in his luminous collaboration with composer Simon Eastwood.

FEATURING

Alistair Fraser (taonga puoro)

Bridget Douglas (flute)

PROGRAMME

Jenny McLeod Cat Dreams for mixed ensemble

Salina Fisher Lumina for mixed ensemble

Kaija Saariaho Terreste for flute and ensemble

Simon Eastwood and Alistair Fraser Te Aitanga Pepeke for taonga puoro and ensemble

Luciano Berio Ricorrenze for wind quintet

Michael Norris Gyri for mixed ensemble

This concert supported by Creative New Zealand, Lilburn Trust, Stout Trust and the Wellington City Council.

Join Stroma on Wellington’s famous 'classical crawl', Classical on Cuba for a short half-hour 'taster menu’ of contrasting styles and energies. Featuring four of our top soloists— Anna van der Zee, Bridget Douglas, Thomas Guldborg and Ken Ichinose—this concert includes two works for vocalising flutist (by Toru Takemitsu and Michael Norris), gorgeous duos with percussion (by Salina Fisher and Gareth Farr), plus an exciting tribute to Greek composer Iannis Xenakis, whose 100th anniversary was in May.

PROGRAMME

TORU TAKEMITSU (JAP) — Voice for vocalising flutist

SALINA FISHER (NZ) — Komorebi for violin and vibraphone

GARETH FARR (NZ) — Kembang Suling (Mvt I) for flute and marimba

MICHAEL NORRIS (NZ) — Piccled for vocalising piccolo player

IANNIS XENAKIS (GR) — Dhipli Zyia for violin and cello

Dream Architects features three world premieres from New Zealand composers: Dream Compass by Chris Cree Brown, I write and chew and crack my bones and think about hospitality by Ihlara McIndoe and A Memory by Gemma Peacocke.

Dream Compass by Chris Cree Brown attempts to navigate musical material in a similar way to a sleeper steering a dream; I write and chew and crack my bones and think about hospitality by Ihlara McIndoe is a critique of the ‘social and bureaucratic microcosm in which our art germinates and manifests itself’, while A Memory by Gemma Peacocke is a setting of a poem of the same name by Irish-born New Zealand-American anarchist and modernist poet Lola Ridge.

Also on the programme is the NZ premiere of Reuben Jelleyman’s Klein Fountain, nominated for the 2021 SOUNZ Contemporary Prize, an homage to Felix Klein who conceived of the Klein Bottle, and ‘imaginary architecture’ that represents a 4D topology. Klein Fountain evokes the imaginary flow of water through such a bottle in an inventive, sonically brilliant manner.

Rounding out the concert are works by Anna Thorvaldsdottir and Iannis Xenakis, the latter's 100th anniversary being celebrated in 2022.

FEATURING

Barbara Paterson (soprano)

Hamish McKeich (conductor)

PROGRAMME

IANNIS XENAKIS (GR) — Rebonds A for solo percussion

CHRIS CREE BROWN (NZ) — Dream Compass for mixed ensemble (premiere)

IHLARA McINDOE (NZ) — I write and chew and crack my bones and think about hospitality for soprano and mixed ensemble (premiere)

REUBEN JELLEYMAN (NZ) — Klein Fountain for flute, violin, percussion and piano (NZ premiere)

GEMMA PEACOCKE (NZ) — New work for ensemble and soprano (premiere) 

ANNA THORVALSDOTTIR (ICE) — Spectra for ensemble (NZ premiere)

IANNIS XENAKIS (GR) — Dhipli Zyia for violin and cello

This concert supported by Creative New Zealand, Lilburn Trust, Stout Trust and the Wellington City Council.

Celebrating what Stroma is all about: big, bold sounds and compelling musical experiences, featuring commissions from leading New Zealand composers Linda Dallimore, Karlo Margetić, Dylan Lardelli and Kerian Varaine, plus Charlotte Bray's expressive Renga Miniatures and Iannis Xenakis's stonking ensemble work Anaktoria.

PROGRAMME

LINDA DALLIMORE (NZ) — Everything Feels Different Now for ensemble (premiere)

DYLAN LARDELLI (NZ) — Glow Close for ensemble (NZ premiere)

CHARLOTTE BRAY (UK) — Renga Miniatures for ensemble (NZ premiere)

KERIAN VARAINE (NZ) — AN DOOR for electric bass and ensemble (premiere)

KARLO MARGETIĆ (NZ) — Bricks and Mortar for ensemble (NZ premiere)

IANNIS XENAKIS (GR) — Anaktoria for ensemble

This concert supported by Creative New Zealand, Lilburn Trust, Stout Trust and the Wellington City Council.

EXPLORE OUR GALLERIES OF SOUND.

Featuring Jerome Kavanagh Poutama (taonga puoro), and a guest saxophone quartet.

This is no ordinary concert — you’ll ‘choose your own adventure’ by exploring the beautiful spaces of Toi Art at Te Papa (Levels 4 & 5) while Stroma plays multiple, simultaneous performances of ambient, spatial music throughout the evening.

Spread over 2½ hours, you can come and go as you please. Have a drink at the bar, then wander around the spaces to experience the sound events. Follow the schedule, or see where your ear takes you. If you position yourself right, you might even hear two or three pieces at the same time. If you miss a piece the first time, you can catch it again later in the evening.

Centred around the current exhibition from the Mataaho Collective, Stroma will be performing experimental works by renowned composers such as Pauline Oliveros, John Cage, James Tenney and Tom Johnson, as well as a selection of works by New Zealand composers. Low-level ambient sonic art by Wellington-based sonic artists will mingle with the acoustic sounds of Stroma, while prominent taonga puoro musician Jerome Kavanagh Poutama will respond musically to the artworks’ kaupapa.

Works included in the concert:

• John Cage Four for string quartet
• John Cage 4'33"
• John Cage Solo for Voice 13, 26 & 49
• John Cage Aria
• John Cage Four5
• John Cage Five
• John Cage Typewriter Music
• John Cage In a Landscape
• John Cage Dream
• John Cage Radio Music
• Ruth Crawford Seeger III from String Quartet 1931
• Eve de Castro-Robinson Whisper
• Eve de Castro-Robinson Whorl
• Julius Eastman Joy Boy
• Simon Eastwood The Spindle of Necessity
• Tom Johnson Rational Melodies I, III, IV, X
• Alvin Lucier I am sitting in a room
• Rachael Morgan Interiors II
• Michael Norris Prolation Canon on an Ancient Hurrian Hymn
• Pauline Oliveros 70 Chords for Terry
• Pauline Oliveros From Unknown Silences
• Pauline Oliveros A Fluting Moment
• Frederic Rzewski To the Earth
• Giacinto Scelsi Maknongan
• James Tenney Beast
• James Tenney In a large, reverberant space
• James Tenney Saxony
• James Tenney Critical Band
• James Tenney Shimmer
• James Tenney Cellogram
• James Tenney August Harp
• James Tenney Swell Piece for Alison Knowles
• James Tenney On Never Having Written a Note for Percussion
• La Monte Young Composition 1960 #7

This concert supported by Creative New Zealand, Lilburn Trust, Stout Trust and the Wellington City Council.

COME FACE TO FACE WITH THE SOLOISTS OF STROMA.

An intimate evening of poignant and compelling ‘musical conversations’, featuring tributes to recently passed composers Jenny McLeod and Kaija Saariaho, alongside three works by the next generation of New Zealand composers, and a work by lesser-known Canadian composer Norma Beecroft. The programme features two world premieres: and finding air between us by Marcus Jackson and Waipu by David Mason. It will also be the chance to hear Liam Furey’s Disturbances III: Light composed last year, which creates a parallel between the way that matter and energy interact with each other and the musical interferences and disturbances present in the score

PROGRAMME

Marcus Jackson and finding air between us for ensemble

David Mason Waipu for ensemble

Kaija Saariaho Oi Kuu for bass flute and cello

Norma Beecroft Face à Face for two amplified bass flutes and percussion

Liam Furey Disturbances III: Light for clarinet, viola and piano

Jenny McLeod Seascapes for violin, cello and piano

EXUBERANT, JOYFUL MUSIC TO CELEBRATE THE ARRIVAL OF SPRING!

From the patterns and permutations of György Ligeti and Carola Bauckholt, to the luscious tonal landscapes of Nina C. Young and Missy Mazzoli, there will be something for everyone. New Zealand composers are featured through a memorial to Lyell Cresswell and a world premiere by outstanding young composer Micah Thompson.

PROGRAMME

Lyell Cresswell Fogli Rugginosi for ensemble

Carola Bauckholt Treibstoff for ensemble

György Ligeti Balada si Joc for two violins

György Ligeti Wind Quintet

Micah Thompson Speaking Music for ensemble (world premiere)

Nina C. Young Memento Mori for string quartet

Missy Mazzoli Ecstatic Science for large ensemble

CHOOSE YOUR OWN (SONIC) ADVENTURE. AGAIN.

Following the acclaimed ‘performance installation’ at Te Papa in 2023, Stroma return to play multiple, simultaneous performances of ambient, spatial music in the gorgeous gallery spaces of City Gallery Wellington. The centrepiece is a new work by Riki Gooch, Poutama, a work in four parts for improvising taonga puoro ensemble blending with the sounds of Stroma’s musicians.

Throughout the evening, surround yourself in meditative, hypnotic works by composers such as Salina Fisher, Hildur Guðnadóttir, John Luther Adams, Pauline Oliveros, Dai Fujikura, James Tenney, Jonathan Harvey, Alex Turley, Michael Norris, Salvatore Sciarrino and, of course, John Cage. You can come and go as you please. Have a drink at the bar, then wander around the spaces to experience the sound events. Follow the schedule, or see where your ear takes you. 

FEATURING

Riki Gooch and Rangatuone Ensemble (taonga puoro): Te Kahureremoa Taumata, Dr Ruby Solly, Komako Silver, Māia-te-oho Holman-Wharehoka, Al Fraser

Salina Fisher (koto)

PROGRAMME

Riki Gooch — Poutama: 12 Steps of Ascension (PREMIERE)

Salina Fisher — woman 女 beneath a wave 波

Pauline Oliveros — A Fluting Moment, Antiphonal Meditation, Heart of Tones, Rock Piece

Michael Norris — Cirrus Drift

Hildur Guðnadóttir — From the other place

John Luther Adams — Canticles of the Sky, Roar

James Tenney — Harmonium #1 , Harmonium #7, Saxony

Alex Turley — Cloudscapes

John Cage — Five & One4

Salvatore Sciarrino — L’addio a Trachis

Felipe Lara — Meditation and Calligraphy

Toshio Ichiyanagi — Still Time III

Jonathan Harvey — Still

Dai Fujikura — Harahara & Inkling

Kaleidoscopes of refracted colour burst from the page, in this prismatic concert of luminous music. A world premiere by NZ/Canadian composer Nicholas Denton Protsack sits alongside meditative music by his compatriots R Murray Schafer and John Luther Adams, renowned for capturing the shifting colours of their wild northern landscapes. Other works in the light-themed programme are by NZ composer Leila Adu-Gilmore, Daniela Terranova (Italy) and Bree Van Ryk (Australia), rounded out by the dazzling final work Grammar of Dreams by Finnish composer Kaija Saariaho.

PROGRAMME

Leila Adu-Gilmore (NZL) — Alyssum

R Murray Schafer (CAN) — String quartet No. 2: Waves

Nicholas Denton Protsack (NZL/CAN) — A Gleaming Thing (PREMIERE)

John Luther Adams (CAN) — The Light Within

Daniela Terranova (ITA)— Rainbow Dust in the Sky

Bree Van Reyk (AUS) — Light for the First Time

Kaija Saariaho (FIN) — Grammaire des reves (Grammar of Dreams)

Two of Wellington’s most beloved musical ensembles, Stroma and The Jac, join forces to explore the hinterlands where jazz and classical music collide. Featuring works by New Zealand’s own compositional talents Callum Allardice, Justin ‘Firefly’ Clarke, Lucy Mulgan and Jasmine Lovell-Smith, together with top international names in experimental jazz and electropop, Anthony Braxton, Carla Bley, Anna Webber and Laurie Anderson.

FEATURING

The Jac

Barbara Paterson

PROGRAMME

Callum Allardice A Gathering

Justin ‘Firefly’ Clarke The Curious Flight of the Fledgling Chalkydri (world premiere)

Anthony Braxton Composition 142

Lucy Mulgan In opera this'd be an overture but it's not so it isn't (world premiere)

Laurie Anderson From the Air

Anna Webber Idiom VI (Movement 5)

Jasmine Lovell-Smith Cerulean Haze

Carla Bley Awful Coffee

Experimental cinema reimagined with contemporary sounds.

As part of the 2025 midwinter Lōemis Festival, Anemic Cinema conjures up the surrealist spirit of early avant-garde film by matching experimental films with contemporary live scores played with panache by Stroma. Highlights include two world premieres: Len Lye’s primordial Tusalava with newly imagined score by Andrew Faleatua featuring Pacific drums, and David Long’s dazzling take on David Downes’s hypnotic animation Fish, Moon. In addition, composers Olga Neuwirth, Iris ter Schiphorst, Yannis Kyriakides and Feona Lee Jones breathe new life into well-known classics of early experimental cinema by Luis Buñuel, Salvador Dalí, Marcel Duchamp, Man Ray, Marc Allégret, Maya Deren and Viking Eggeling. This concert sees sound and image collide in ecstatic abstraction — come join us at the Roxy for a night to remember.

PROGRAMME

Andrew Faleatua: Tusalava (premiere) — film by Len Lye

David Long: Fish, Moon (premiere) — film by David Downes

Yannis Kyriakides: Anémic Cinéma — film by Marcel Duchamp/Man Ray/Marc Allégret

Feona Lee Jones: String Quartet No. 2 “Adrenaline” — film by Maya Deren

Iris ter Schiphorst: Un Chien Andalou — film by Luis Buñuel/Salvador Dalí

Olga Neuwirth: Symphonie Diagonale — film by Viking Eggeling

Kaua e mate wheke, mate ururoa | Don’t die like an octopus, die like a hammerhead shark.

A true story of the heroism and humiliation of Captain Roger Dansey, a Māori soldier on the frontline of a European war, Mate Ururoa is an urgent new chamber opera from legendary New Zealand composer Dame Gillian Whitehead (Ngai Te Rangi, Tuhoe). With the originally planned 2021 premiere at New York’s Carnegie Hall cancelled due to the pandemic, Wellington Opera is proud to present the world premiere of this important new work by one of Aotearoa’s greatest living artists here in Pōneke. Performed in English and te reo Māori by Māori-American baritone David Tahere alongside acclaimed taonga pūoro practitioner and mezzo Ariana Tikao, with director Sara Brodie.

Celebrating 25 years of exploring new musical worlds.

Heaven & Earth marks 25 years of Stroma’s fearless exploration of sound and spirit since our inaugural concert Wind, Rain & Light in August 2000. We recall the theme of that first concert by similarly evoking musical impressions of the earth below and the sky above. Featuring a world premiere by New York-based NZ composer Leila Adu-Gilmore, the programme includes Olivier Messiaen’s ecstatic Louange à l’immortalité de Jésus, Gemma Peacocke’s Sky Fields, John Rimmer’s Where Sea Meets Sky 2, Michael Norris’s new piano trio The Spaces In Between, and—to mark the recent passing of Sofia Gubaidulina—her meditative Garden of Joy and Sorrow. Come join us in celebrating a quarter century of intrepid sonic exploration from the musicians of Stroma.

PROGRAMME

Olivier Messiaen: Louange a l’immortalité de Jésus

Gemma Peacocke: Sky Fields

John Rimmer: Where Sea Meets Sky 2

Leila Adu-Gilmore: Commissioned work (premiere)

Sofia Gubaidulina: Garden of Joy and Sorrow

Michael Norris: The Spaces In Between