Recital by visiting choir

The Graduate Choir NZ, conducted by Terence Maskell, will give a gala performance at St Paul’s...
The Graduate Choir NZ, conducted by Terence Maskell, will give a gala performance at St Paul’s Cathedral this Saturday night. PHOTO: SUPPLIED
One of the country’s foremost choral ensembles, Auckland’s Graduate Choir NZ, will present a gala recital in Dunedin this weekend.

Directed and conducted by Terence Maskell, the Graduate Choir NZ will perform this Saturday night, from 7pm at St Paul’s Cathedral, with accompaniment from Dunedin City Organist David Burchell and pianist Chris Artley.

The choir’s repertoire spans a broad range of genres, from Renaissance music to contemporary choral compositions, including New Zealand music.

Saturday’s concert will feature accompanied and unaccompanied works by local composers, including Anthony Ritchie’s Song of Hope, Richard Madden’s Set me as a Seal, and Artley’s Tupuārangi.

The programme will also feature works by Antognini, Mendelssohn, Schumann, Tschesnokoff and Holst, as well as Robert Parsons’ Ave Maria, along with a taste of the choir’s lighter repertoire.

The choir was founded by Maskell in 2001, starting out as a group from Aorere College, including former students Pene Pati and Amitai Pati, who now have international opera careers, including as members of Sol3 Mio.

The choir has expanded over the years to include singers from across greater Auckland.

In 2014, Maskell received a Local Heroes Medal in the Kiwibank New Zealander of the Year event, for his contribution to music training and direction, particularly among young singers.

brenda.harwood@thestar.co.nz