2020 TE TIRA PUORO O AOTEAROA From Kerikeri to Invercargill, the NZSO ventures into the heart of New Zealand communities with concerts and other unique musical experiences. 2020 is the 250th anniversary of Beethoven’s birth and your national orchestra celebrates this beloved composer with performances of some of his greatest works. Highlights include the rarely performed Missa Solemnis and a special performance of Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony as part of Carnegie Hall’s international collaboration All Together: A Global Ode to Joy. The Podium Series continues to present contemporary works alongside the tried-and-true. Mozart, Haydn and JS Bach rub shoulders with Prokofiev, Bartók and Rachmaninov, with Kiwi composers delivering musical taonga of and for the people of Aotearoa New Zealand. Audiences will be treated to some of the biggest names in classical music with Marin Alsop, Donald Runnicles and Esther Yoo joining the NZSO for the first time. YouTube sensation Valentina Lisitsa, Alexander Shelley, Johannes Moser and Augustin Hadelich return in 2020. NZSO Experience offers something special for New Zealanders. Shed Series brings innovative and unique music to communities in relaxed environments, while the Baroque Series presents works from the extended Bach family. Beyond the concert hall, NZSO Engage is all about music and community. With a host of performance, education and community activities, Engage gets you closer to your Orchestra than ever before. NZSO’s new residency programme, Setting up Camp, takes the NZSO to locations across the North Island, performing concerts and taking up residence for several days to bring music to your town. The New Zealand Symphony Orchestra doesn’t just do concerts, it reaches beyond the stage to bring music to all New Zealanders. Enjoy. Podium Series 6 Mavericks 12 Devotion 14 Emperor 16 Provocateurs 18 Idyllic 20 Rebels 22 Spirit 24 Passion 26 Inspiration 28 Eroica 30 Monumental 32 Metamorphosis 34 Timeless 36 Spectacular 38 Ticketing 40 NZSO Experience 48 Shed Series 52 NZSO Setting up Camp 60 NYO Leningrad 62 Kia Kotahi 64 Baroque Series 66 Messiah 68 NZSO Engage 70 Elspeth Gray and Katherine Rowe, Second Violin It is my pleasure to introduce the 2020 season The New Zealand Symphony Orchestra’s 2019 of the NZSO, Aotearoa’s national Orchestra. Beethoven Festival was a resounding success. The exciting line-up of concerts reflects the For our 2020 Season, the 250th anniversary of depth and diversity of live symphonic music the Beethoven’s birth, we’re excited to present more Orchestra is bringing to our cities and towns. of his great music, along with works by other From North to South, the NZSO makes world- renowned composers and a superb array of soloists class orchestral music accessible to audiences and conductors. throughout our country. The Season includes Beethoven’s timeless In 2020 our Orchestra brings together Ninth Symphony – but in a way never before heard in past and present, combining Bach with newly New Zealand. The performances are part of a unique commissioned works. Connecting New Zealand international project All Together: A Global Ode to with the world, it brings together artists and works Joy, instigated by Carnegie Hall and led by acclaimed from around the globe. American conductor Marin Alsop. Kia Kotahi: He Toirangi Ā-Ao Kia Harikoa The international guests in 2020 are some of the concerts are a great example of this. Beethoven is most exceptional and talented in the world today. We given new life with a te reo Māori performance welcome back maestros Osmo Vänskä, Vasily Petrenko of the iconic Ninth Symphony Ode to Joy performed and Miguel Harth-Bedoya, and the NZSO debut of six- with school and youth choirs. In the spirit of the time Grammy Award winner Giancarlo Guerrero. Ninth, this concert also unites Aotearoa New Audiences were enthralled by cellist Johannes Zealand with the global community – with other Moser and violinist Augustin Hadelich in 2018. performances in local languages to be held in They’re back, along with star pianist Valentina Lisitsa Brazil, the United Kingdom, the United States, and the NZSO premiere of the extraordinary pianist Australia, Austria and South Africa. Alongside Yeol Eum Son. Beethoven, audiences will hear four new Maestro Edo de Waart, as our Conductor New Zealand works showcasing the musical talent Laureate, also returns, and with him the exceptional our country proudly fosters. singer, Erin Wall. I acknowledge the talent and dedication of Another highlight is the NZSO debut of New the musicians. I also extend a warm welcome to the Zealander Gemma New, hailed as a leader among international and guest artists joining the NZSO this a new generation of conductors. Our hit Shed Series, season, including acclaimed young New Zealand initiated by NZSO Principal Conductor in Residence conductor Gemma New. To the Orchestra, and to the Hamish McKeich, will be even bigger in 2020 and many other people who make their performances includes our first concerts in Auckland. possible, I wish you a successful 2020 season. More communities around the country can also enjoy our popular Baroque Series with the Bach Hon Carmel Sepuloni Extended tour and as part of an innovative new ASSOCIATE MINISTER FOR ARTS, CULTURE residency programme, Setting up Camp. The NZSO AND HERITAGE will meet and perform to schools, youth and community groups during the day, as well as perform each evening. It’s a fresh new way for us to engage with all New Zealanders and we’re very excited to see where it takes us. As we tour from Kerikeri to Invercargill in 2020, we look forward to seeing you. Christopher Blake QSO TE KAIHAUTŪ O TE TIRA PŪORO O AOTEAROA NZSO CHIEF EXECUTIVE 6 TIm Watson Photo: 7 Podium Series Podium Series 2020 marks 250 years since Beethoven’s birth and the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra celebrates his legacy with performances of some of his greatest works. The much-loved Eroica, Fifth and Pastoral symphonies, the Emperor Piano Concerto and other seminal works will be heard in concert halls across the country. Though Beethoven remains the common thread throughout the season, the Podium Series offers something for all music lovers. Mozart’s Symphony No. 40, Haydn’s Tempora Mutantur, JS Bach’s Toccata and Fugue, Elgar’s Cello Concerto, Prokofiev’s Piano Concerto No. 3, Bartók’s The Miraculous Mandarin, Shostakovich and Tchaikovsky’s Fifth symphonies all feature in 2020. The NZSO brings some of the best classical artists to our shores. International conductors Alexander Shelley, Donald Runnicles, Giancarlo Guerrero, Marin Alsop and Osmo Vänskä feature alongside world-class musicians. Organist Cameron NEW Carpenter, violinists Augustin Hadelich and Esther Yoo, cellist Johannes Moser and pianists Valentina Lisitsa and Yeol Eum Son are just some of the musicians you’ll see in 2020. With subscription packages from just $48, why ZEALAND not subscribe for yet another year of outstanding music-making by your orchestra – the New Zealand SYMPHONY Symphony Orchestra. ORCHESTRA PODIUM SERIES 9 Jenaro Garita, Viola 2020 PODIUM SERIES Page AUCKLAND WELLINGTON CHRISTCHURCH DUNEDIN TAURANGA NAPIER HAMILTON TAUPO KERIKERI GISBORNE Mavericks 12 Fri, 20 Mar, Sat, 21 Mar, 7.30pm 7.30pm Devotion 14 Sat, 4 Apr, Fri, 3 Apr, 7.30pm 6.30pm Emperor 16 Fri, 22 May, Thu, 21 May, Wed, 22 Apr, Fri, 24 Apr, Thu, 23 Apr, 7.30pm 7.30pm 7.30pm 7.30pm 7.30pm Provocateurs 18 Sat, 27 Jun, Fri, 26 Jun, 7.30pm 6.30pm Idyllic 20 Thu, 2 Jul, Tue, 30 Jun, Fri, 3 Jul, Wed, 1 Jul, 7.30pm 7.30pm 7.30pm 7.30pm Rebels 22 Sat, 25 Jul, Fri, 24 Jul, 7.30pm 6.30pm Spirit 24 Fri, 7 Aug, Thu, 6 Aug, 7.30pm 7.30pm Passion 26 Sat, 5 Sep, Sat, 29 Aug, Wed, 2 Sep, Tue, 1 Sep, 7.30pm 7.30pm 7.30pm 7.30pm Inspiration 28 Fri, 25 Sep, Fri, 18 Sep, 7.30pm 6.30pm Eroica 30 Sat, 26 Sep, Thu, 24 Sep, 7.30pm 7.30pm Monumental 32 Sat, 10 Oct, Fri, 9 Oct, 7.30pm 6.30pm Metamorphosis 34 Wed, 14 Oct, Tue, 13 Oct, 7.30pm 7.30pm Timeless 36 Fri, 23 Oct, Sat, 24 Oct, Thu, 22 Oct, Tue, 20 Oct, Wed, 21 Oct, 7.30pm 7.30pm 7.30pm 7.30pm 7.30pm Spectacular 38 Sat, 21 Nov, Fri, 20 Nov, 7.30pm 6.30pm Book a Podium Series subscription package today and enjoy: “Being an NZSO subscriber • Up to 35% off ticket prices and flexible payment options isn’t just great value for money, • Preferential seating the personalised service from the warm and professional • Free programmes ticketing team keeps me • A complimentary ticket to introduce a friend to the magic of subscribing every year.” the NZSO Susi, NZSO subscriber, • A chance to win a holiday for two to Little Polynesian Resort, three years. Rarotonga All NZSO 2020 Season details are correct at time of printing. Dates, times, artists, repertoire, seating arrangements, venues and price reserves are subject to change or cancellation without notice. 12 13 2020 PODIUM SERIES Alexander Shelley Conductor Cameron Carpenter Organ JS Bach Toccata and Fugue in D Minor, BWV 565 Poulenc Organ Concerto Beethoven Symphony No. 5 Alexander Shelley returns to conduct this tribute to the mightiest of instruments – the organ. The only instrument to match the orchestra itself in scale and grandeur of sound, its limits will be thrillingly pushed under the hands of maverick organist Cameron Carpenter. Known for his dramatically individualistic takes on classic organ repertoire, Carpenter revolutionises one of Bach’s greatest organ works: the iconic Toccata and Fugue in D Minor. His prodigious talents will be further showcased in Francis Poulenc’s Organ Concerto in G Minor.