1. Coronation St or Eastenders?

Coronation St. I am a fan! I like Rita the matriarch. Roy is loyal.

2. Facebook or Instagram?

Facebook—a great way to keep in touch.

3. What’s on your playlist?

Apart from choral music, I love music theatre. My favourite is The Sound of Music.

4. Favourite Composer?

Mendelssohn.

5. Always wanted to sing?

Yes, apparently at two years old I would sing to people from atop of the dining room table.

6. Decision to take up the baton?

I was eight. After watching my teacher conduct the school musical, I started opening picture books and conducting the stories.

7. Another childhood memory…

I was also eight when I noticed the television was dusty, so I brought in the garden hose and gave it a good clean. Mum was livid!

8. Food you crave but shouldn’t…

Ice-cream, in pairs. I buy two big bikkie ice-creams at once. Chocolate buttons and jelly babies. White chocolate and macadamia nut biscuits from Subway.

9. Career highlight (so far)?

So many, but NZSSC Artistic Director is up there.

10. Advice to teenage self?

Be true to yourself.

1. How did you first hear about NZSSC?

My first encounter was at the 2010 Big Sing Finale. I was in the audience with my school choir. The concert sounded so incredible that I still have a vivid memory of it. It had a massive impact on me and I set a goal to be part of the next NZSSC cycle.

2. What are the highlights from your time in NZSSC?

To be perfectly honest, NZSSC was life-changing for me. Without it, I would not have made the decision to pursue a professional singing career and be where I am now.

I definitely value the friends I made,  friends who had the same passion as me—to sing!. Often we are the odd ones at school, but in NZSSC, everyone is just as odd as you! I  met one of my closest friends, Tom Kitchen, in the choir. The friends you make in NZSSC are the ones you hang on to for the rest of your life. There is a very special bond within the choral community.

During my time in NZSSC, we toured to South Africa. One of the places we stayed was a safari park in Johannesburg. One morning we woke up for breakfast but couldn’t get out of our little hut. There was a giraffe sitting in front of our door. Another memory is pictured below …

3. You are currently performing in NZ Opera’s Carmen…

I have been involved with NZ Opera for a few years now. I was very fortunate to make my operatic debut in the 2014 production of La Boheme in Christchurch. Fast forward three years, I am now based in Auckland and am part of the Freemason NZ Opera Chorus.

I have also been part of the chorus for The Bone Feeder, La Cenerentola, Tosca, Nixon in China, Othello and the Magic Flute.

4. Very soon you will be beginning the Dame Malvina Major Opera Studies programme. One of only six to be accepted …

It is an honour to be selected for the programme. It’s a rare opportunity to work solely on ‘recitative’ – a style of delivery used in opera. It’s delivering lines in a foreign language by singing them in rhythm. Recitative is often challenging if one does not speak the language. Recitative is what moves the story line in an opera, so getting it right and delivering the details is incredibly important.

One of the other singers in the programme is fellow NZSSC member, Katherine McIndoe, who was choir leader during my time. The programme will be invaluable for all six of us before we embark on our studies overseas in the next year or so.

5. Where would you like to be five to ten years?

Ultimately, the goal is still to sing professionally. Currently, I am touring around cities but it would be nice to be able to settle down a little while also pursuing a singing career.

6. Any advice for young singers just starting out?

Be clear of  your own definition of success. Everyone is different, so make it your own. You will receive a lot of advice, some amazing, some not so amazing . It is up to you to digest the information and take on what applies to you. You cannot please everyone. As one of my colleagues said to me recently, just be the best version of yourself, and that is more than enough.

The concert is a rare opportunity to see two internationally-acclaimed youth choirs performing together.  It will feature the world premiere of a commission from internationally acclaimed Latvian composer, Eriks Esenvalds, performed by both choirs.

The New Zealand Secondary Students Choir is our national choir for 13 to 18 year olds. It gathers the country’s finest young voices from all over the country and offers them a once in a lifetime opportunity—a two-year membership to learn from top New Zealand vocal teachers and consultants. The NZ Youth Choir features 51 of our best singers, aged 18-25 years.

There are 24 Auckland teenagers in the 2017/18 New Zealand Secondary Students Choir,  with a record seven from Dilworth School and five from neighbouring Auckland Diocesan School. Takapuna Grammar, St Mary’s College, Epsom Girls Grammar School, St Cuthbert’s College, St Kentigern College, Kings College, Westlake Girls and Kristin School are also represented in the choir.

During their six days in Auckland, NZSSC students will be under the baton of their Artistic Director Andrew Withington. They’ll also have the incredible opportunity to work with top international composers and conductors, including American Andre Thomas and Latvian Eriks Esenvalds, as part of the programme for the New Zealand Choral Federation’s Choral Connect. Choral Connect is a conference for choral conductors, composers and singers.

NZSSC Executive Officer Anna Bowron says, “The visit to Auckland is only the second full rehearsal course for the 2017-2018 choir, but the students are already really starting to gel as a choir. The six days together will allow them to perfect their repertoire for performance. And of course, our first performance will be a very exciting one indeed.”

The 2017/2018 choir met for the first time in April in Wellington, under the gaze of its patron, Her Excellency The Right Honourable Dame Patsy Reddy, Governor-General of New Zealand, who visited the rehearsals (Stuff article here).

New Zealand Secondary Students in Concert with NZ Youth Choir
7-9pm, Wed 12^th July. Holy Trinity Church, 446 Parnell Rd, Parnell. Door sales ONLY.
Tickets: $45 (waged), $35 (unwaged) and $20 (students/scholars) www.nzsschoir.com/events

For more information or images, contact: Rachel Healy, PUBLICIST. 0275277732, rachel@rachelhealy.co.nz

How did the July course go?

Greta Healy-Melhuish (Wellington East Girls College): The highlight was seeing the choir gel before my eyes. People who barely knew each other at the Wellington course formed close friendships, and the banter was strong! And a special mention must go to Carole’s impeccable morning teas.

Ren-C Tamayo (St Pats College): It was amazing to have a week of singing! It provided a kind of retreat from everyday life, which was awesome.

Any low points?

Greta: The fatigue that goes hand-in-hand with long days and the immense levels of excitement.

What did you learn at the course?

Ren-C: How important it is for a choir to really enjoy singing.

Greta: That if my voice is tired, as much as I love to belt it out with my alto sisters, sometimes I need to tone it down in rehearsals. It’s not worth the recovery.

Does the ‘new’ choir still feel new?

Greta: No …it wasn’t long into the July course before the air was alive with beatboxing, instrument-playing and K-Pop.

Ren-C: It felt like we’d known each other a lot longer than three months… kind of like a second home.

You got an extra two days in Auckland due to your flight being cancelled…

Ren-C: There were definitely ups and downs! But we were well compensated with two nights at the Crowne Plaza, buffet breakfasts, Carl’s Jr, belting out Salve Regina in a church, and just getting to be tourists in Auckland.

Favourite morning tea …

Greta: That’s a pretty mean question. All of Carole’s morning teas are my favourite. But I especially like it when there are multiple types of hummus.

Favourite moments with Brent (NZSSC Assistant Director) or Andrew (Artistic Director) …

Ren-C: When Brent plays the bongos

Greta: When Andrew says, “Good for you!”

Tell us about working with internationally-acclaimed Latvian composer, Eriks Esenvalds?

Ren-C: He was such an eloquent speaker, and so down to earth. He really engaged us with the piece. He made me realise how different it is to sing a song in the way that the composer actually intended it to sound.

Greta: I think everyone was a bit star-struck. He had so much wisdom to share. It was such a privilege to have the composer there when we were performing the piece.

How about American guest conductor, André Thomas?

Ren-C: He was humble, relaxed and funny! He lifted the atmosphere of both choirs (NZSSC was performing in Auckland with the NZ Youth Choir). I learned how much we take conductors for granted.

Greta: What a man! He had so much energy and passion. I certainly learnt a lot about the nuances of conducting, which I didn’t even know existed.

Did these two men have different approach to what you are used to?

Ren-C: Yes definitely, to see them work their magic was incredible.

Andrew has recently completed his PhD in Choral Pedagogy. What does this mean to you and the choir?

Greta: Andrew’s work towards his PhD has been closely linked with the choir for many years now. It’s certainly introduced a lot of young singers to the universe of ‘just tuning’—an invaluable asset.

Ren-C: During the first course, when Andrew talked about his PhD in depth, I was in awe. I felt ‘just tuning’ already when I sang with others, but I never really knew what it was. So to see it researched and presented at such a high calibre was impressive. It will not only benefit NZSSC, but other choirs around the world.

What sort of music do you listen to at home?

Ren-C: A lot of RnB and Jazz, but I fluctuate—from Barbershop, Classic Rock, Pop, Rap, Alternative and Funk!

Greta: A range of genres. I’ll listen to nearly anything. Some favourites are James Blake and Sufjan Stevens though.

What’s NZSSC given you so far?

Greta: Because I’m in my third year with the choir, I do look back and realise how lucky I am to have had this opportunity. I can’t imagine my life without NZSSC. Where I would be if Brent (Stewart) hadn’t told me to audition when I was 14?  NZSSC has  given me so many skills, not just around my singing, but it’s broadened my social sphere.

Plans for next year?

Ren-C: Biomedical Sciences in Auckland, or Health Science First Year in Otago. I’m in pursuit of a future in medicine. I hope music remains a part of my life, I can’t imagine a life without it!

Greta: I’m abandoning Wellington for the bright lights of Auckland to study Law and a BA in film and art history. But anything could happen! I won’t be studying music, but it will still be a huge part of my life, and I’m hoping to join an Auckland choir.

On tour in Argentina with NZSSC a group of us linked arms  as we walked through the streets of Buenos Aires, singing Si te quiero es por que sos. It’s a beautiful ballad that served as a political love song to the people of Argentina during a dark period of politics that saw thousands of people ‘disappear’ in horrible circumstances. The lyrical content points to two lovers walking hand-in-hand in the street, but the poem took on a completely deeper and stronger meaning for Argentinian during this turbulent time. In terms of its place in the musical folklore of the country, it’s akin to our Pokarekare Ana.

Almost ten years later, I still clearly remember the looks on the faces of the people on the street; some looked surprised, others openly emotional. The most remarkable thing happened, people started singing along and walking with us! We looked up above and people in apartments  were throwing open their windows and also singing. It was like a movie scene and it was one of the purest moments of connection with music I’ve ever experienced. They didn’t know why we were singing their song, and we could not have possibly anticipated the reaction, but the joy and the emotion from that spur of the moment decision to just start singing will always stay with me.

I first heard about NZSSC from my grandmother who had read about it in the paper. We were not a particularly musical family, but everybody in the family loved music of every variety. My grandmother used to sing Maori lullabies to me and my dad forced a musical education of sorts on me — Freddy Mercury, Queen, Prince and the Red Hot Chili Peppers every morning on the way to kindergarten.

But there were two people who really inspired me. Sharon Stephens, my violin teacher, and Coryn Knapper, my first vocal teacher. I learned to read, write and interpret classical music and that’s where it all started to make sense for me.

When I joined the choir as a shy fourteen year old, I was a relatively timid musician but an enthusiastic singer. Robert Wiremu  (NZSSC Artistic Director at the time) would tell us to ‘put the end consonant on the final quaver’. I had absolutely no idea what to mark in my score. It was a scary experience to begin with, but I loved it and I wanted to learn. The skills I gained were immensely useful. I learned to think faster, work in a team, sing and think as a chorister. I learned to appreciate and sing a variety of musical works that I came to love and I am pretty sure I could probably still sing most of them from memory today! … NZSSC gave me the most incredible chance to travel this beautiful country and to travel overseas for the first time; I’ll be always grateful for that.

My most embarrassing memory from NZSSC was when auditioning for a solo in front of Robert. I was the youngest in the choir and very nervous. My voice started wobbling and shaking and I thought I was going to melt into the floor with sweaty embarrassment. It was awful! I didn’t get the part but it was a highlight in a way, teaching me a lesson about preparation and dealing with nerves.

I made life-long friends like Isabella Moore, a friend and inspiration in recent years as we have both traversed the operatic field in New Zealand and overseas. She’s been so supportive and kind to me. It always gives me joy when I see some of the amazing things everyone is doing now, and the career paths we are on. A couple of ex-NZSSC members are based in London now, which is where I am heading, so hopefully we can catch up! While you may not remain as close as you once were during the choir, there is a network of incredible people out there who I was fortunate enough to spend just a bit of time with, and who I know I can reach out to.

I auditioned for the Dame Malvina Major Emerging Artist programme with New Zealand Opera because I had always seen it as a goal. My first audition was unsuccessful and for a little while I was quite disappointed. Then I realised that I had been handed the chance to go away and rethink. Dame Malvina took me on as a pupil and supported me but also let me know exactly what was missing in my singing. We worked together and I kept competing in as many competitions I could. I was successful the following year and I had the most marvellous experience working with New Zealand Opera as an intern. It was one of the best and most rewarding years in my singing life so far.

I first heard about the Lexus Song Quest when it was still the Mobil Song Quest. I knew Dame Kiri Te Kanawa and Dame Malvina Major had won and I remember, at seven years old, asking my grandmother when I would be old enough to enter. So it had been a dream for a long time! In 2014, the  first time I auditioned, I was the youngest semi-finalist and awarded the Radio New Zealand listener’s prize. My friend Isabella Moore won the whole thing! Last year, I came  third. it was an absolutely incredible moment. A highlight was also meeting Yvonne Kenny, an Australian soprano, whose voice I have always loved and who will be my singing teacher in London.

I studied at Auckland University under Dr. Morag Atchison primarily, coached by Rosemary Barnes, David Kelly and Robert Wiremu. While I was there, I also attended the NZ Opera School. NZOS has been an integral part of my music training. It focuses on a holistic approach to training; daily fitness exercises (yoga, walking, muscle training), language and music coaching, voice lessons, stage craft, concert work, public and private master classes, it’s pretty full-on!

I became passionate about Pacifica Youth Education at Auckland University. I had a job as a Pasifika Student Mentor and Ambassador, which involved travelling out to high schools around Auckland and talking to the students about tertiary studies/helping them with any exams we could. It really motivated me to represent my communities as best I can, because role-modelling for our rangatahi is so important. Just as I look up to the examples of those New Zealanders who have been such trail blazers in the Classical Music world (the likes of Dame Malvina Major, Dame Kiri Te Kanawa, Iosefa Enari, Simon O’Neill, and most recently, Pene and Amitai Pati, Isabella Moore), there are the next generation of students coming through who are looking to us to help them on their way, too.

My other great passion is history. I recently contributed to a WW100 project called Luck of the Draw. I have taken a real keen interest in New Zealand history of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries and the ways in which our identity as Kiwis has been formed by world events, as well as local events. Luck of the Draw was a great chance to do something quite challenging. I’ve never written lyrics for a hip hop song before! It was a meeting of two of my loves.

Duffy Books in Homes is also close to my heart. My grandfather was always buying and sneaking books into the house under my grandmother’s nose (who insisted we had too many!). He would read me a story every night. Through Duffy Books, thousands of children across the country receive free books and are actively encouraged to read and be engaged in their learning. As a volunteer, my work is to go into the schools, give talks to the students and distribute the books. I hope Duffy Books in Homes continues to help support the young New Zealanders for a long time to come!

Right now I’m preparing to sing the role of Giulietta in Bellini’s, ‘I Capuleti e I Montecchi’ to be produced by the Auckland Opera Studio in 2018. We’re rehearsing so early because half the cast is moving to the UK next month. I’m also getting ready to travel to Melbourne in two weeks for a recital at the Australian National Academy of Music with Liam Wooding, a student at Auckland University with me. A typical day for me involves a lot of poetry as I am trying to memorise Schumann’s Liederkries Op.39 for this recital. I’m also prepping for two competitions in the next two weeks! It is a busy month but I wouldn’t have it any other way.

My goal has always been to be the very best singer and performer I can be. in the future, I would love to be working in Europe as well as at home with New Zealand Opera. But I have a lot of study and apprenticeship to go to earn my stripes. Hopefully I will be working with inspiring people and getting to study/perform operatic repertoire that is appropriate for my voice type, and challenging for me. As long as I’m in work that keeps me busy and in love with my career, I’ll be happy.

To young singers just starting out I would say: you can do it! There’s no one way to go, and there’s plenty of people out there who are going to help and support you. A career in music has its challenges and is not without disappointment. I’m still in the process of being able to turn the ‘no’s into ‘not yet’s. That skill is a necessary one in music. Just remember that not everybody’s path is the same and everyone has their day. Music is about love, despair, old stories, new ones. You have to experience the range  yourself, otherwise what kind of musician would you be? If you’re willing to work hard, set realistic goals and stay determined, I think things have a way of working out.

It’s one of three concerts over the weekend that will mark the end of a six-day Christchurch visit. Following the SCAPE concert, our national choir for 13-18 year olds will give a more formal performance at St Mary’s Pro-Cathedral, 3:15pm, 7 October, and the next day at the Transitional Cathedral’s morning service.

NZSSC gathers our finest young voices from all over the country and offers a once in a lifetime opportunity — a two-year membership to learn from top vocal teachers and consultants.  Members meet every school holidays for intensive workshops and rehearsals.  While in Christchurch, students will also receive performance coaching from actor, Jennifer Ward-Lealand  and kapa haka training from Christchurch-based Puanaki Whanau.

There are currently four Christchurch members in the choir:  Samantha Hickford of Christchurch Girls High School; Alex Meekings of Burnside High School; Holly Evans of Rangi Ruru Girls’ School; and Billie MacGibbon of St Margaret’s College.

NZSSC students rehearse under the direction of Andrew Withington, a Christchurch local who recently completed his PhD in Choral Pedagogy at Canterbury University. Composer, pianist and conductor Matthew Everingham will also join the choir for the week as a resident intern. Matthew currently runs the choral programme at St Andrew’s College and through the NZSSC will receive invaluable experience conducting and accompanying a national-level choir.

New Zealand Secondary Students Choir Performing in Christchurch:

Sat 7 October, 11am, Free entry
Margaret Mahy Playground

Sat 7 October, 3:15pm
St Mary’s Pro-Cathedral, $25 adults, $15 concession, $10 seniors.
Book at: www.nzsschoir.com/events. Door sales cash/cheque only.

Sun 8 October, 10am
Christchurch Transitional Cathedral

For more information, interviews or images, contact:
Rachel Healy, PUBLICIST. 027 5277732, rachel@rachelhealy.co.nz

Matthew went to St Bedes College in Christchurch then Canterbury University, where he gained a Bachelor of Music in Composition. An accomplished pianist, he also has an ATCL piano performance diploma from Trinity College London and has worked as both a conductor and composer. Matthew says, “After hearing NZSSC sing at choral connect in Auckland this year I can’t wait to conduct them myself!”

We asked him about his own musical aspirations so far.

Always loved music?
Of course! We always had a piano at home that I would tinker on.  I also remember the music from childhood movies, apparently Snow White was the first film score I fell in love with at age 3!

I’m certainly still ‘closest’ with the piano but orchestrally, I also have a secret admiration for cello and French horn

Other inspirations?
I love watching Leonard Bernstein’s incredible masterclasses in conducting and all things musical. Also Stephen Sondheim’s books on composition and writing.

You’re a composer as well as a performer and conductor. What do you love most?
The buzz you get from hearing your own work performed is pretty awesome, but then again so is conducting!

Tell us about your film and theatre work?
Theatre makes up a large part of my freelance career, most recently I conducted a season of Sister Act at the Isaac Theatre Royal in Christchurch. I’ve also worked at The Court Theatre, Showbiz Christchurch and NASDA as a music director, composer and pianist. I recently returned from the New York University summer film scoring workshop in central Manhattan composing and orchestrating my own short film score which was incredible. I got to work with composers Mark Snow (The X Files) and Michael Levine (The Hunger Games).

What’s on your playlist?
The film scores of Alexandre Desplat, Bernard Hermann and John Powell, not to mention jazz artists like Miles Davis and Keith Jarrett. I’m also a fan of the Spotify low key electronic vibes playlist, as well as minimalists like John Adams …. I really can’t make my mind up!

Any advice for school leavers with dreams of a career in music?
Never be afraid to follow a career in music and the arts, it’s a world of opportunity both in New Zealand and abroad. Study your passion and while doing so look for every opportunity to put your love for music into practice in the real world.  Never forget that it is numerous other people who make your music-making possible, so treat them well!

Image above: Wendy Riley (Showbiz Christchurch)