Octavius Choir: Songs of Earth, Sky & Story
- Date: 17/05/2026 14:30
- Location: Waiapu Cathedral, Browning Street, Napier
- Tickets: Entry by koha/donation
On Sunday 17 May, Napier’s Octavius Choir will present a slightly different concert in Waiapu Cathedral – a programme of part songs. The songs in this concert will trace the evolution of the part song from its roots in folk songs through the richness of Renaissance and Romantic styles to the diverse soundscapes of contemporary music.
Part-songs first appeared in Great Britain in the 1800s. They grew out of an older type of song called a glee – a song that uses words about everyday life or non-religious topics written for multiple voice parts and usually sung unaccompanied. The rise in popularity of part-songs during the 1900s was connected to the enormous growth of choral societies in Britain.
The programme is presented in several sections. First, folk songs and playful nursery tales like ‘Bobby Shaftoe’, ‘Sing a Song of Sixpence’ and ‘The Owl and the Pussy Cat’ are sung in clever new arrangements. Then songs of the Renaissance era express the universal emotions of love and loss in Pearsall’s ‘Lay a Garland’, Edward Elgar’s ‘My Love Dwelt in a Northern Land’ and a beautiful arrangement of Christina Rossetti’s poem ‘Remember’. Reflections on nature, light and the human spirit are universal themes in the arts and the choir has chosen wonderful songs by Eric Whittaker, Morten Lauridsen, Frank Ticheli and Charles Villier Stanford to illustrate these themes.
Contemporary compositions by New Zealand musicians David Hamilton and Stephen Lange complete the concert, before the choir ends with what has become its theme song, Gerald Finzi’s ‘My Spirit Sang All Day’. Singing is what the members of Octavius love to do whenever they can; they all sing in other Hawke’s Bay choirs, and some work as professional musicians or music teachers.
Octavius was established by Anthony Tattersall in 2017 as a small choir of twelve voices, named after the similar chamber choir which he led for many years in England before moving to New Zealand. The group sings music of all styles and genres, from sacred to secular, classical to contemporary, performing concerts in Hawke’s Bay throughout the year.
Website for more information: https://www.facebook.com/octaviusnzchoir
