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Gary Daverne  

A Man With a Mission

Duration: 1h 20' 00" Year: 1991, r. 2011
an opera in two acts based on life of Missionary John Hobbs

  • Programme Note

    Synopsis

    It is a historic story of a young man who travels from England via Australia, in the early 1820s, to become an ordained minister and set up a Wesleyan Mission in the Hokianga, in Northland, New Zealand.

    The story portrays the relationships, frustrations, conflicts and troubled times with the early settlers, the native Maori people and their Chiefs, especially Chief Te Aara, Tamati Waka Nene and Patuone.

    There is his special love for his devoted wife Jane, their learning, teaching and preaching, their unjustified exile to Tonga, then his reinstatement two years later to the Weslyan Mission in the Hokianga, culminating in the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi at Horeke, in the Hokianga.

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Ashley Heenan  

A Maori Suite

Duration: 14' 00" Year: 1966
for soprano, mezzo, choir and orchestra

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John Ritchie  

Concertino for Clarinet and String Orchestra

Duration: 14' 00" Year: 1957

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David Hamilton  

Concertino For Percussion and Chamber Orchestra

Duration: 07' 55" Year: 2009
for percussion and chamber orchestra

Score Sample
  • Instrumentation
    for solo percussion: triangle (medium size), cow bell, three suspended cymbals (small, medium and large), four temple blocks, a pair of bongos, four roto-toms and xylophone (or marimba); 3120; tenor sax; 0221(opt.); strings
  • Programme Note

    This short work was written for the orchestra of Auckland Grammar School and a talented senior student percussionist. It is in a straight-forward tonal style, including a cadenza for the soloist.

    The work consists of three main ideas. Follow a short introduction the xylophone presents the main melodic material of the first idea. The 2nd main idea is chromatic chord that builds through the orchestra several times. Against this the percussion has more angular melodic material and more syncopated rhythmic ideas. The second section builds to a climax which immediately gives way to the 3rd section which is fugal. The melody from the 1st section re-appears, not as the fugue subject, but rather as the counter-subject of the fugue. This section mainly features the woodwind section of the orchestra interacting with the percussionist. The fugue winds down into a short cadenza for the soloist, and then material from the opening two sections is recapitulated in abbreviated form. The music builds to a final climax.

    The percussion part avoids exotic or unusual instruments, favouring basic equipment found in most school music departments with an active instrumental programme. The only tuned percussion instrument is a xylophone, with the remainder being a mix of wood, skin and metal instruments.

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David Farquhar  

Concertino for piano and strings

Duration: 15' 00" Year: 1960

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Edwin Carr  

Concerto for Oboe

 Year: 2003
piano reduction score for oboe and piano of the concerto arr. by Geoffrey Grey

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Tony Ryan  

Concerto for tuba and orchestra

Duration: 20' 00" Year: 1996

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Thomas Goss  

Concerto in b minor

Duration: 11' 35" Year: 2001
for cello and string orchestra

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  • Programme Note

    Using the baroque concerto as a model, this work is designed to feature a baritone voice, of which bassoon, baritone saxophone, and even bass clarinet would work effectively as soloists. The key of B minor was chosen for its ease of playing and dark yet resonant qualities in the string ensemble. The first movement is a deviation from the traditional form of theme-and-variations, in which the theme is expressed with ever-accelerating note values while maintaining the same steady tempo. First, a somber statement in quarter-note octaves arcs across the landscape of strings, from basses and cellos to the first violins and back, then picked up and transformed by the cello solo with an edge of longing. The icy second statement of the theme in eighth notes allows the cello to push against the ensemble a little in the contrast of the solo string tone, while the warm triplets of the third statement give the ensemble a chance to work out. The brief cadenza that follows pushes the theme from quarter notes to eighths to triplets, finally settling on the 16th notes that drive the theme to a bustling conclusion.

    The second movement relies on simplicity in its use of the ABA aria form. The cello’s gentle but indulgent melody floats over a cushion of pulsing chords. The strings introduce a countermelody in triplets that leads up to a solemn chordal statement, and then becomes a factor in the development of the original melody.

    The concluding rondo blends both the modern and baroque concepts of the “hook,” a catchy phrase that sticks in the mind because of some unusual note. In this case, the snag is a diminished 5th, more common to the blues than to the baroque concerto. Here it is explored using all of the opportunities that the freedom of the rondo form allows, boldly stated at the beginning, punctuating episodes of development, sneaking in at times where it is least expected, then bringing the movement to a close with a feeling of unsettled finality.

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Thomas Goss  

Concerto in F

Duration: 15' 00" Year: 2002
for violin and string orchestra

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  • Programme Note

    Violin Concerto in F takes its themes and forms from folk song and dance music of old Europe. The first movement is an extended recasting of the classic Scottish Ballad _Wild Mountain Thyme". After an extended introduction that states the melody of the ballad, the music accelerates and tightens into a jig. Throughout the piece, tension is maintained between the free-flowing natural melody and the choreographic energy of 6/8 time, even during the long cadenza. A brief episode from the ensemble brings the music back to the mood of the opening before finishing on a high, unexpected chord.

    The second movement, entitled Reverence, is a synthesis of Balkan choral rhythms and melodies, with shifting bars of 7/8, 3/8, and 5/8. The solo part teams up with principal first and second violin soloists in central episodes reminiscent of choral drone singing of Bulgaria and Macedonia. The title refers to the respect a ballet class shows to their pianist at the end of their time together, and in a greater way the honor we show to those who help to bring our lives meaning.

    Brawl, the title of the first movement, refers not to a fistfight but a round dance of the Renaissance that was popular in England and France in which participants play “follow the leader.” This dance may be the ancient ancestor of hoedown music, to which it bears a strong resemblance. The opening violin solo is derived from a tune of the great French lutenist Robert Ballard, and is answered by a raucous, offbeat countermelody in the strings. The scope of the rhythmic jousting touches on many disparate styles, including spy movie music and a trace of heavy metal before returning to the reel-and-drone of the beginning.

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Henry Shirley  

Concerto in F minor

 Year: 1944
for piano and orchestra

  • Programme Note

    The only piano concerto by Henry Shirley and possibly the first piano concerto written in New Zealand, was written in 1944 though it took over 14 years of trying before the composer was able to get an orchestra to perform it in 1958. It was performed by the NZBC Symphony Orchestra (the former New Zealand Symphony Orchestra) with Henry Shirley himself as the soloist, conducted by Oswald Cheesman. It was also performed by the Sydney Symphony Orchestra in the 1960s.

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