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.
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.
Music & Memory: a tribute concert for Barry Brickell
Music & Memory was a tribute concert for potter Barry Brickell, a remarkable event devised by Robert Oliver that linked 16th century music for viols, taonga pūoro, words and images to celebrate one of Aotearoa’s most original thinkers.
Soprano Morag Atchison’s debut album: The Distance
Morag Atchison’s debut album features the songs of composer David Hamilton in a beautifully performed recital.
NZ Opera’s Ihitai ’Avei’a - Star Navigator: a journey to understanding
NZ Opera’s production Ihitai ’Avei’a - Star Navigator boldly crosses artistic, cultural and stylistic boundaries while attracting new audiences to the art form.
Composer Reuben Jelleyman: radical transformations
New Zealand composer Reuben Jelleyman recently won the SOUNZ Contemporary Award for his work Catalogue, composed in Paris. What route has he taken to this prestigious Award, and what happens next?
NZTrio: seductive interpretations
The NZTrio are on the road with their Legacy 3 programme.The Wellington performance revealed the Trio at their musical best.
At the World’s Edge: musical bonfire in the mountains
Two violinists have set a musical bonfire alight in the awe-inspiring landscapes of Central Otago. Their second festival was a boldly programmed event in intimate venues, with top-notch international and local musicians.