In the Lair of the Cave Weta was commissioned for Epsom Girls Grammar School Orchestra in 2008, which sought a piece that was challenging, with specific parts for some wind and brass players and a section for solo string quartet. Since then it has literally been around the world, from multiple performances in Auckland and KBB festivals, Rhapsody Rotorua, Festival of Australian Schools Honours Orchestra, 4-yearly festival Honour Orchestra for PMSA Schools of Brisbane, and the Summa Cum Laude International Youth Music Festival at the Musikverein, Vienna, with Westlake Orchestra.
How did you find the experience of working with Westlake Symphony Orchestra on these pieces? Have you worked with them before?
Yes, in fact way back in the day during my time as itinerant Composer-in-Schools I worked at Westlake Girls High School for several years in the 1990s. The teams in both schools run excellent music programmes and their music activities hold a high priority in school life, which is always helpful. Conductor David Squire is also a tireless champion of New Zealand music both in vocal and instrumental formats. I first attended rehearsals for these two pieces at Westlake while they were preparing for performances in the year prior to this recording. I think having the composer present injects a bit of a buzz into the proceedings, heightens the atmosphere a bit and makes the whole thing more interesting (and potentially amusing) for the performers. When it came to the recording sessions for these two pieces I was hugely impressed with the professionalism, patience and good humour the students exhibited in what can be a long and repetitive process.
Anything else you’d like to tell us about the project?
Many teachers and conductors of school and community ensembles are keen to include New Zealand music in their repertoire, but are sometimes stuck, not so much in terms of where to find it, but more what it sounds like and how to know if it would be suitable for their group. By its nature, music written for community groups tends not to exist in recorded form. So this project is a fantastic initiative in beginning to build a database of suitable recordings that ensemble leaders can access. The commissioning of new works by teachers such as I’ve mentioned above has headed an upsurge of music being specifically written for community and school groups. As all this music becomes more accessible, including in recorded form, the results will become noticeable – already many students attending university to do a music degree have performed works by New Zealand composers and understand the commissioning process and the value of having our own musical traditions. These students will be our future performers and teachers.