Profile

In 1980, 19 musicians of the Auckland Symphonia founded a new orchestra that has now achieved regional icon status as the Auckland Philharmonia. Resident in Auckland, New Zealand’s largest city, the orchestra performs more than 145 concerts a year, accompanies the national opera and ballet and international touring companies. The Auckland Philharmonia has performed with superstars like Placido Domingo, José Carreras and Luciano Pavarotti, Nigel Kennedy, Diana Krall, The Manhattan Transfer, Meat Loaf and Dame Kiri Te Kanawa, the orchestra’s Patron.

The orchestra has a strong commitment to New Zealand music and is dedicated to contribute to the development of music education. With school concerts aligned with the curriculum and designed for all age brackets, specialised mentoring programmes, composer, conductor and young musician workshops and summer schools, a comprehensive programme works at all educational levels.

A Composer-in Residence programme has been in operation since 1990 and 15 New Zealand composers have worked with the orchestra in producing new works and mentoring within the education programme. In 2006 a Young-Composer-in-Residence position was added.

The Auckland Philharmonia hosts the biennial Michael Hill International Violin Competition which includes a commission from a New Zealand composer of a work for solo violin to be used as a test piece.

• Commissions (57)