Thomas is a fourth-year undergraduate student at the University of Auckland, completing a Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Music conjoint majoring in Classical Trumpet and History. He began singing during primary school and took part in the auditioned choirs during primary and secondary school. In early 2017 he was selected for the 2017-19 cycle of NZYC, including the end-of-cycle cruise tour around the Pacific in 2019. Thomas currently lives in Auckland. He has a major passion for all things music and enjoys everything historical. He also loves to compete in pub quizzes and trivia!

Benjamin Madden is a proudly born-and-bred Dunedin tenor trained by Pat Scally-Richardson and Judy Bellingham. Since finishing a Bachelor of Music in Classical Music Performance (Voice) and a Bachelor of Arts in Philosophy at the University of Otago in 2014, Benjamin has been working as a choral director and private singing teacher in Dunedin. Benjamin is an alumni of the New Zealand Secondary Students’ Choir, the New Zealand Youth Choir, and a current member of Voices New Zealand Chamber Choir. Benjamin attended the 2016 New Zealand Opera School and the 2017 IFAC Handa New Zealand Singing School. Benjamin currently directs choirs for Otago Boys’ High School and Otago Girls’ High School, and teaches instruments (guitar, drums, keyboard, ukulele and singing) at Abbotsford Primary School and Mornington Primary School. Benjamin works with the New Zealand Choral Federation as a mentor for primary school singing leaders as part of their Singing Matters programme, and is Assistant Music Director and Vocal Consultant for the New Zealand Secondary Students’ Choir.

Benjamin has played a number of operatic roles with Opera Otago. Basilio in Le Nozze di Figaro, Monostatos in The Magic Flute, Dr. Ivor Chale in Dearest Maurice (John Drummond), Bob Cratchitt in A Christmas Carol (Phillip Norman, Don Ottavio in Don Giovanni) and most recently as Jo in The Woman at the Store by Dorothy Buchanan. He has appeared with the Freemasons NZ Opera Chorus in La Boheme and Madama Butterfly.

Benjamin’s concert performances as a soloist include Ich freue mich in dir (Bach), Evangelist, St John Passion (Bach), Mass in B minor (Bach), Mass in C Major (Beethoven), Messiah (Handel), Mass in C minor (Mozart), Misa Criolla (Ramirez), The Crucifixion (Stainer) .

Outside of singing and teaching music, Benjamin is a big fan of Formula 1, an avid rock climber and a keen runner, enjoying running distances up to and beyond the marathon.

Catrin Johnsson, mezzo soprano, was born in Sweden and trained at the Royal College of Music, Stockholm and at the Royal Academy of Music, London. In 2018 she was awarded an ARAM. Other awards include the prestigious Christina Nilsson Award. She has worked as a principal artist for companies such as English National Opera and Opera Holland Park and in 2016 Catrin made her debut for NZ Opera in their production of the The Magic Flute as Second Lady. In concert she has performed at the Queen Elizabeth Hall, Purcell Room and St John’s, Smith Square in London. Catrin is a Performance Teacher in Voice and Stagecraft at the University of Auckland, is language and vocal coach for Voices NZ Chamber Choir and the Auckland Chamber Choir and is Principal of Faculty and Curriculum for the New Zealand Singing School. In 2017, Catrin was National Adjudicator for the IFAC Handa Australian Singing Competition. Catrin is also an accomplished organist who began her professional career at the age of 15 years.

As a student at Ashburton College, the now internationally acclaimed tenor joined the NZSSC in 1988. See our feature on this champion of the NZSSC.

Tahlia is a composer from Te Whanganui ā Tara Wellington. She holds a Bachelor of Music in instrumental/vocal composition, and a Master of Fine Arts in Creative Practice, where she specialised in film scoring. Tahlia has worked on local projects such as BBC’s The Luminaries, Blue Moon, Loading Docs He Hekenga Tuhura and Haka Haha, and the TVNZ short series Little Apocalypse. Tahlia joined CANZ in 2023 as Assistant Producer to all four choirs. In her spare time, she writes her own music and sings in choirs within Wellington

Natasha Te Rupe Wilson (Te Arawa, Ngā Puhi), soprano, has a Bachelor of Music, (Honours,
first-class), majoring in classical vocal performance, from the University of Auckland. From
2018 – 2019, Natasha was based in San Francisco, where she completed her Post-Graduate
Diploma in Vocal Studies, at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, under the tutelage of
César Ulloa.
Natasha made her professional debut with New Zealand Opera, and was a Dame Malvina
Major Emerging Artist with the company in 2018. Natasha was a member of the Kiri Te
Kanawa Foundation’s mentoring programme in 2016, and has been supported by the
foundation ever since.
Natasha was recently based in Pittsburgh, PA, as a 2019/20 Resident Artist with Pittsburgh
Opera. Natasha made her United States, mainstage debut, with Pittsburgh Opera, as Rosalba,
in their 2019 production of Catan’s, Florencia en el Amazonas. Natasha also played the role
of Morgana, in the company’s 2020 production of Handel’s, Alcina.
Throughout 2021, Natasha has been performing throughout New Zealand, performing the
role of Lisa, for Days Bay Opera’s La Sonnambula, and Purea, in the world premiere of Tim
Finn’s, Ihitai ‘Avei’a – Star Navigator, with New Zealand Opera. Most recently, Natasha
performed the role of Zerlina, in Wellington Opera’s production of Mozart’s, Don Giovanni,
as well as the role of Marzelline, in the Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra’s concert
performance of Beethoven’s, Fidelio.

See our feature on Clinton’s time with NZSSC and career development since then.