NZCF - Governance Board election 2008

The NZCF is delighted to announce that the following were elected to the Governance Board at the AGM held on Sunday, 24 August in Wellington.
- Christine Argyle (Wellington)
- Karen Grylls (Auckland)
- Guy Jansen (Wellington)
- Di Lenihan (Invercargill)
- Michael Littlewood (Auckland)
They join the current chair John Rosser (Auckland) and Richard Madden (Dunedin) on the Board. Their first meeting will be on Sunday 12 October in Wellington.

THE BIG SING FINALE - CDs and DVDs available

Orders are currently being taken for live recordings of the Finale Concert.

The CD costs $25 and the DVD costs $30 (or $25 through a school) and can be ordered in two ways:

1. By mail to Big Sing Finale CD/DVD orders, P O Box 11562, Wellington. We need completed order forms and cheques for the correct amount made out to "Big Sing Finale".

2. By direct debit and emailed completed order forms: to ecrayford@xtra.co.nz – and including direct debit information.

Download the CD order form here and the DVD form here.

Miss out on attending the THE BIG SING FINALE?
Download the podcasts from the FINALE here

THE BIG SING FINALE AWARDS

Three adjudicators selected the top award winners at THE BIG SING National Finale Gala Concert on Saturday 23 August 2008 in the Wellington Town Hall. Nineteen choirs competed for the five special awards and several grades of overall performance awards during the three days of adjudicated recital sessions.

The awards were announced to a packed Town Hall with 630 excited students and their directors and supporters - and an enthusiastic audience, after the twenty-one choirs had performed their Gala Concert items.

The Finale adjudicators were guest adjudicator Debra Shearer-Dirié (from Australia), John Rosser and Peter de Blois (both from Auckland) and Mere Boynton of Wellington.

Gareth Farr presented the awards to the choirs and the ceremony was followed by the combined choirs singing an African/Reggae item, led by Julian Raphael.

BIG SING NATIONAL FINALE 2008 - AWARDS LIST

Platinum Award
The Fundamentals, Rangitoto College, Auckland

Gold Awards
Choralation, Westlake Boys and Girls High Schools
Craighead Chorale, Craighead Diocesan School, Timaru

Silver Awards
Aurora Voices, Burnside High School, Christchurch
Bella Voce, Marlborough Girls College, Blenheim
Con Brio, Villa Maria College, Christchurch
Euphony, Kristin School, Auckland
The OK Chorale, Palmerston North Boys High School
Saints Alive, St Cuthbert's College, Auckland
St Cecilia Singers, Auckland Diocesan School for Girls
The Sweet Sixteen, Aorere College, Auckland
Wellington College Chorale, Wellington

Bronze Awards
Belle A Cappella, Waimea College, Nelson
Christ's College Chapel Choir, Christchurch
King's College Chapel Choir, Auckland
Male Voice Chorus, Burnside High School, Christchurch
Queen Margaret Chorale, Queen Margaret College, Wellington
Seraphim, Chilton St James School, Wellington
Southern Hesperides, Otago Girls High School, Dunedin

Special Awards
Hutt City Trophy for Best Performance of a New Zealand composition
The Fundamentals, Rangitoto College, Auckland

BIG SING National Finale Performance Prize
The OK Chorale, Palmerston North Boys High School
Auahi Kore - Maori Performance Award
The Sweet Sixteen, Aorere College, Auckland

The Big Sing Youth Ambassadors Award
The OK Chorale, Palmerston North Boys High School

SOUNZ Student Choral Composition Award
Arna Shaw, Christchurch Girls High School (Laudate Dominum)

Guest Choirs
Coro Notabile, Karamu High School, Hastings
Femme, Southland Girls High School, Invercargill

THE NATIONAL CHORAL CLINICS:
SINGING & CONDUCTING OPPORTUNITIES

The New Zealand Choral Federation is providing special opportunities in August and September 2008 for singers and conductors, in a series of Choral Clinics in twelve weekend events from Invercargill to Whangarei. Four outstanding overseas guest conductors will be heading up a "New Zealand first," with up to 50 singers and 20 conductors taking part in each centre.

Tone Bianca Dahl from Norway, Rodney Eichenberger from Florida, Christopher Kiver from Pennsylvania and Debra Shearer-Dirié from Queensland will be introducing exciting new choral music to New Zealand over the next two months. Those who have already enrolled range from established conductors and choralists with good music singing skills, to senior secondary school music students and other beginning conductors along with less experienced singers.

The weekends begin in Wellington on 1 August with Dr Christopher Kiver, a double Grammy award winner in choral music who teaches at Penn State University. There are still places available in these National Choral Clinics. For further information, click here (will take you to the Choral clinic page)

Fact file
British research has indicated that 98% of choristers rated their quality of life as good or excellent. The benefits were not physical alone. Rather than singing in the shower it was only when singers were involved with others - being together in a choir - that a strong sense of connectedness and well-being was said to come.

Simon Carrington - Guest Conductor for Sing Aotearoa 2009

The NZCF is delighted to announce that Simon Carrington has accepted an invitation to be a guest conductor at Sing Aotearoa 2009. This will be held in Rotorua over Labour Weekend, 23rd to 26th October, 2009. Click here to visit our new Sing Aotearoa 2009 page.

CHRISTCHURCH CONDUCTOR APPOINTED AS MUSICAL DIRECTOR OF NEW ZEALAND SECONDARY SCHOOLS CHOIR

The Board of Trustees for the New Zealand Secondary Students’ Choir has much pleasure in announcing the appointment of Andrew Withington to the position of music director of the Choir. The choir has an impressive history of success in both national and international arenas and has recently completed a tour to Brazil and Argentina as the sole New Zealand representative choir in an international music festival.

Andrew, who is a resident of Christchurch, worked with the New Zealand Secondary Students’ choir from 2003 until 2006 as Deputy Musical Director and brings significant experience to the position. He began his career in choral conducting when he was appointed Music Director of the Christchurch Boys’ Choir in 1997, during which time he led a successful overseas tour to Japan. In 2000 Andrew completed a Bachelor of Music degree with First Class Honours in conducting children’s choirs, orchestration and analysis at the University of Canterbury and was awarded the prestigious Vernon Griffith’s Prize in Musical Leadership. After three years teaching, he returned to University and gained a Masters Degree in Music, majoring in choral conducting while studying with Dr Karen Grylls at Auckland University. During his Master’s programme, Andrew conducted secondary and tertiary choirs and participated in a masterclass at the World Choral Symposium in Japan.

In Christchurch, Andrew has had a long association with the Christchurch Schools’ Music Festival where he is the conductor of the Senior Representative Choir which comprises 100 Year 7 and 8 students auditioned from the Christchurch region. He is also Associated Conductor responsible for the 1000-voice Massed Choir combined with a 100-instrument orchestra. Currently Andrew teaches a Year 7 high ability class at Cobham Intermediate School in Christchurch where he is Head of Music. His singing experience includes his current membership of Voices New Zealand and past membership of the New Zealand National Youth Choir. As a choral adjudicator and clinician, Andrew has twice adjudicated regional festivals of the NZ Choral Federation THE BIG SING Secondary Schools choral competition and has been a tutor and participant at a number of New Zealand Summer School of Conducting courses.

Following his announcement as Musical Director of the New Zealand Secondary Students’ Choir during the National Finale of the Big Sing Festivals, Andrew urged young singers to apply for the 2009-2010 Choir, and outlined a programme of rehearsals, workshops, performances and activities designed to challenge and promote excellence in choral singing. Auditions for the new choir will be held nationwide during the October school holidays. Application forms are available through the choir’s website: www.nzsschoir.com