KEITH LEWIS: SONG RECITAL
Mozart: Komm, liebe Zither, komm; An die freude; Abendempfindung an Laura; Schubert: Die Forelle; Sei mir gegrusst; Du bist die Ruh; An die Laute; Lied eines Schiffers; Nachtstuck; Litanei auf das Fest Allerseelen; Der Musensohn; Abendstern; Faure: Apres un reve; Autonne; La Lune blanche; De Falla: El pano moruno; Seguidilla murciana; Asturiana; Jota; Nana; Cancion; Polo; Prokofiev: Zelyonaya Roschitsa; Na Goreto Kalina; Trad. Irish: Last Rose of Summer; She moved thro' the fair.
Keith Lewis (tenor) with Michael Houstoun (piano)
MMT2006
(GB pounds 14.50)

The New Zealand pianist and Leeds competition finalist Michael Houstoun, accompanies the celebrated tenor Keith Lewis in a collection of songs, both popular and less well known.

TURNOVSKY TRIO
Brahms: Piano Trio No.2; Beethoven: Piano Trio No.3
Turnovsky Trio (Sam Konise - violin, Christopher Kane - cello, Eugene Albulescu - piano)
MMT2007
(GB pounds 14.50)

The debut recording by the fine young trio based in Wellington. Regular concert tours have included concerts in Europe and Australia

MICHAEL HOUSTOUN: FRANZ LISZT PIANO WORKS
Piano Sonata in B minor; Benediction de Dieu dans la solitude; Consolation No.3; Premiere Valse Oubliee; En Reve.
Michael Houstoun (piano)
MMT2008
(GB pounds 14.50)

New Zealand pianist, Michael Houstoun, supplements his Morrison Trust recordings of Beethoven sonatas with this fine Liszt recital. All of the works were used in a TV documentary "Icon in b minor" presented by Michael Houstoun in 1996. He was born in Timaru on the South Island of New Zealand in 1952 and has been a prize winner in the 1973 Van Cliburn and 1974 Leeds competitions.

MICHAEL HOUSTOUN: Elusive Dreams
Piano Music by New Zealand Composers
John Psathas: Waiting for the Aeroplane; Christopher Blake: Ancient journeys; Kenneth Young: Elusive Dreams; Douglas Lilburn: Piano Sonata (1956); Jack Body: Sarajevo; Gareth Farr: Sepuluh jari.
Michael Houstoun (piano)
MMT2010
(GB pounds 14.50)

Recorded live at the 1996 New Zealand International Festival of the Arts, Michael Houstoun (finalist in the 1974 Leeds Piano Competition) presents a programme of 20th Century music by New Zealand composers. Celebrated for his regular performances of the complete Piano Sonatas of Beethoven the music here ranges from an evocation of an airport to the Gamelan influence of Gareth Farr.

Christopher Ballantine in November 2000 International Record Review - "what gives this recording potential for international appeal is surely that it consists of little-known piano music by New Zealand composers. It's fresh, diverse, unpredictable; and like so much music from the world's peripheries, it troubles such received classifications, inviting us to rethink them...Michael Houstoun plays so splendidly. Totally in command of his brief, he gives these works the kind of performance that truly illuminates, playing everything with verve, passion and chiselled clarity."

PHILIP WALSH: TRANSPORTS DE JOIE
French Organ Music from Wellington Cathedral
Widor: Toccata from Symphony 5; Franck: Prelude, Fugue & Variations; Choral No.3; Messiaen: Transports de joie; Alain: Litanies; Vierne: Berceuse; Final from Symphony 1; Durufle: Prelude & Fugue sur nom d'Alain; Saint-Saens: Fantasie; Langlais: Prelude modal.
Philip Walsh (organ)
MMT2014
(GB pounds 14.50)

Director of Music at Wellington Anglican Cathedral, Philip Walsh plays the restored T C Lewis & Co organ. Born in Southampton, England, Philip Walsh has held the post since 1989 and is renowned for his performances of French repertoire.

Marc Rochester in November 1999 Gramophone - "To say that this is predictable fare is, to put it mildly, an understatement...But if I was to recommend a single disc presenting the most popular French organ works I would have no hesitation in choosing this above all others. Walsh's performances are powerful, intuitive and compelling, the Wellington Cathedral organ is of a kind of instrument one could happily listen to all day and the recording quality is excellent. A highly recommended disc in repertoire where the competition is fierce."

Marc Rochester in January 2000 Gramophone Critic's Choice - "Not to be missed, either, is Philip Walsh's splendid disc of basic French music from Franck and Widor to Messiaen and Langlais. Walsh's performances stand out as unusually powerful, intuitive and compelling; the Wellington Cathedral organ is the kind of instrument one could happily listen to all day and the recording quality is excellent."

David Denton in May/June 2000 Fanfare - "A disc of French music from New Zealand on an instrument originally built in the UK and played by an English-born organist may not sound like a recipe for success, but it certainly is...As a performer he (Philip Walsh) is right in the top echelon of virtuoso organists, and even if you have every work on this disc, I urge you to hear Walsh. His is a most imaginative musical mind well attuned to the French idiom...Suffice it to say this one of the most outstanding organ recitals to have come my way in many years."

MICHAEL HOUSTOUN: BEETHOVEN - GREAT PIANO SONATAS
Beethoven: Piano Sonata No.14 in C sharp min., Op.27/2 "Moonlight"; Piano Sonata No.15 in D, Op.28 "Pastoral"; Piano Sonata No.23 in F min., Op.57 "Appassionata"
Michael Houstoun (piano)
MMT2015
(GB pounds 14.50)

New Zealand pianist, Michael Houstoun, regularly performs complete cycles of the Beethoven Piano Sonatas to great popular and critical acclaim, both in his own country and around the world. A Leeds Piano Competition finalist, Michael Houstoun's complete Beethoven Sonata recordings for Morrison Trust are also available. Here is a sample of three popular sonatas to whet the appetite.

NEW ZEALAND NATIONAL YOUTH CHOIR: WINDS THAT WHISPER
New Zealand Choral Music from the 20th Century
Sam Piper: Kyrie from Requiem; John Ritchie: Country Wine; Te Wehi Whanau: Hinemoa; Jenny McLeod: Childhood; arr. Puanaki: Ka Waiata; David Griffiths: Lie deep My Love (2 and 3); Douglas Mews: Lovesong of Rangipouri; David Hamilton: The moon is Silently Singing.
New Zealand National Youth Choir conducted by Karen Grylls
MMT2016
(GB pounds 14.50)

Well-deserving winners in July 1999 of the supreme "Choir of the World" competition at the International Eisteddfod Festival at Llangollen, the New Zealand National Youth Choir present a magnificent programme of approachable contemporary works by New Zealand composers; David Hamilton's work for two 5-part choirs and two horns being particularly evocative.

David Denton in May/June 2000 Fanfare - "...the youth choir from New Zealand gives a nicely balanced recital of 20th century music composed in its country....the general style of writing is customer-friendly modernism. The harmonies are interesting, the use of voices always skilful, and there is nothing here to cause concern for the most conservative ears. On this disc the 1998 choir has combined with the more mature voices of the choir members of 1993, creating a total of 73 singers...Throughout the singing is excellent, the tonal quality pleasing and well balanced. Diction is immaculate and you have that feeling that the singers are enjoying everything that they perform...The engineers have provided a nice bloom to the sound in a warm acoustic that has not blurred the words. Strongly recommended."

GARETH FARR: OWHIRO - Music for String Quartet
Farr: Owhiro (1993); Mondo Rondo (1997); Frenzy (1998)
New Zealand String Quartet (Helene Pohl and Douglas Beilman - violins, Gillian Ansell - viola, Rolf Gjelsten - cello)
MMT2019
(GB pounds 14.50)

Gareth Farr is New Zealand's leading living composer and this is the fourth release of his music by Morrison & Co Trust. These three string quartets exhibit his characteristic exotic tunes and rhythmic syncopations. Due to the relatively short playing time, a copy of the Morrison Trust CD single of Gareth Farr's Te Papa (MMT2026) is also included with this disc (see below).

John Kersey in July 2000 International Record Review - "One would expect a colourful and extrovert personality to be revealed in this music and we are not disappointed. Farr's music is not especially profound but it is splendidly alive, with a springy rhythmic sense and a driving use of ostinatos that suggest connections with jazz and pop styles. Probably the most striking quality of this music is its wit and intelligence... performances by the New Zealand Quartet are outstanding throughout."

GARETH FARR (b. 1958) - CHAMBER MUSIC
Farr: Shadow of the Hawk; Kembang Suling; Sepuluh Jari; From Forgotten Forests; Cadenza.
Alexa Still (flute), Gareth Farr and Bruce McKinnon (percussion), Carolyn Mills (harp), Doug Bellman (violin), Andrew Uren (clarinet), Michael Houstoun, Katherine Austin and David Guerin (pianos), James Tennant (cello)
MMT2020
(GB pounds 14.50)

GARETH FARR (b. 1958): ORCHESTRAL MUSIC
Farr: rom the Depths Sound the Great Sea Gongs; Le Temps est à la Pluie; Waipoua; Tabuh Pacific; Queen of Demons.
New Zealand Symphony Orchestra conducted by Gareth Farr
MMT2021
(GB pounds 14.50)

These were the first two releases in the UK from the young New Zealand composer and percussionist, Gareth Farr. He performs regularly in New Zealand and in New York, both as a percussionist and, as his alter-ego, the drag artist Lilith. His gamelan influenced compositions have attracted a wide audience base in both countries. Gareth Farr is a graduate of Victoria and Auckland Universities and of the Eastman School in Rochester, NY. He has been composer in residence for Chamber Music New Zealand since 1993 and is currently undertaking a tour of the UK under sponsorship from the British Council.

Richard Whitehouse in October 1998 issue of Gramophone on MMT2021 - "Gareth Farr goes for maximum impact in his music...will appeal to fans of the more demonstrative side of John Adams...a meeting between standard and Balinese orchestras with the spirit of Colin McPhee never far away".

David Denton in May/June 2000 Fanfare on MMT2021 - "The five works included on this CD show a composer well equipped to explore the full color spectrum of a large orchestra. He bucks the trend of modern symphonic creativity by employing a distinctly approachable style of writing, rhythmically strong, and melodically fresh and imaginative....Farr conducts the orchestra in these dramatic, wide-dynamic, and virtuoso performances. The NZSO has made some fine recordings in the past, but nothing that comes close to the sheer red-blooded impact of these performances. The recorded sound is a key component, as brilliant as you will find, with the top end of the dynamic range sure to shake out the dust from your speakers."

Robert Kirzinger in September/October 2000 Fanfare on MMT2020 - "Farr's music, on the evidence of this disc, takes its influence from rock music, minimalism and gamelan as well as from the classical world. Overall this music is somewhat engaging if not too challenging to the listener...attractively infectious, an impression augmented by tight, driven performances throughout."

KEITH LEWIS: OPERA KINGS, GODS AND MORTALS
Handel: Waft her, angels (Jephtha); Where'er you walk (Semele); Care selve (Atalanta); Ombra mai fu (Serse); Gluck: O del mio dolce ardor (Paride ed Elena); Unis des la plus tendre enfance (Iphigenie en Tauride); Plus j'observe ces lieux (Armide); J'ai perdu mon Eurydice (Orphee et Eurydice); Mozart: Un' aura amorosa (Cosi fan tutte); Ich baue ganz (Die Entfuhrung); Non tener, amato bene; Fuor del mar (Idomeneo); Se all'impero (Clemenza di Tito); Dies Bildnis (Zauberflote).
Keith Lewis (tenor) with New Zealand Chamber
Orchestra conducted by Kenneth Young
MMT2022
(GB pounds 14.50)

The celebrated New Zealand tenor Keith Lewis, fresh from recent triumphs at the London opera houses in his first operatic recital disc. Splendid performances and recording from this New Zealand label.

James Camner in September/October 2000 Fanfare - "It's such a relief to hear a disc of this music by a male singer who is not one of that phoney breed known as countertenors that it would be churlish of me to be anything but enthusiastic. Fortunately, this is terrific singing by a tenor whom I've not heard previously...this may be the best tenor singing of the Classical repertoire to come along in quite a while and it is unhesitatingly recommended."

Orpheus Magazine (Berlin, Germany) 1998 - "Arias are sung here by an extremely rare voice with the virtuosity these composers demand, drawn together by a soft, yet not dry, but very erotic tenor, a very luxurious sounding voice that knows how to make a floating piano into an impressive means of expression...closes a CD which has captured one of the many facets of this exceptional voice in an admirable fashion."

PAUL WHELAN: ELEGY - 20th Century Songs from England & New Zealand
Frank Bridge: Adoration; Go not, happy day: Love went a-riding; John Ireland: Great Things; Sea Fever; When lights go rolling round the sky; C W Orr: Song cycle "A Shropshire Lad; Douglas Lilburn: Song cycle "Elegy"; Gerald Finzi: Song cycle "Let Us Garland Bring".
Paul Whelan (baritone) with David Harper (piano)
MMT2023
(GB pounds 14.50)

Winner of the Lieder Prize at the Cardiff 'Singer of the World' competition in 1993, New Zealand born baritone Paul Whelan has appeared at all of the world's major opera houses including the Royal Opera, New York Met. and Paris Bastille. Now resident in London, he recently appeared with the New Zealand National Youth Choir and gave a recital with David Harper at the Chatelet Theatre in Paris. His splendid voice is presented to wonderful effect in this enterprising mix of familiar and less well-known songs by English and New Zealand composers, recorded in St George's Hall Brandon Hill, Bristol.

John Steane in May 2000 Gramophone - "Fine songs for singing and (many of them) rare songs to hear. Much interest will attach to Paul Whelan's debut recital on record...his firm, sympathetic baritone records well, at its best in the quieter passages...he hasn't quite the way of making words live, but neither is he dull or inexpressive. David Harper, Whelan's fellow New Zealander, is an excellent accompanist, and the record has been well produced in all respects."

ANTHONY JENNINGS: J S BACH - ORIGINAL AND TRANSCRIBED
Bach: Toccata in E min. BWV914; Prelude in G maj. BWV902/1;
Preludes & Fugues - G maj. BWV902a, A min. BWV894, F maj. BWV901;
Sonata in D min. BWV964; Fugue after Reinken in B flat maj. BWV954;
Fugue after Erselius in B flat maj. BWV955.
Anthony Jennings (harpsichord)
MMT2024 (co-production with Atoll)
(GB pounds 14.50)

This release from the New Zealand harpsichordist, Anthony Jennings, who died tragically at the age of 50 in July 1995 is of keyboard works either written or transcribed by J S Bach. Jennings plays a reproduction by Alastair McAllister of a 1728 harpsichord of Christian Zell.

ANTHONY JENNINGS: FANTASTIC MUSIK FOR THE ITALIAN HARPSICHORD
Michelangelo Rossi: Toccata Settina; Johann-Jakob Froberger: Fantasia 1; Suite VI in C; John Bull: Canon 2 in 1; My Self; In Nomine IX; Georg Bohm: Capriccio in D; Partita; J S Bach: Toccata in G, BWV916.
Anthony Jennings (harpsichord)
MMT2025 (co-production with Atoll)
(GB pounds 14.50)

Anthony Jennings was born in Wellington, New Zealand, and died tragically at the age of 50 in July 1995. Well known throughout New Zealand as a baroque music specialist, organist, harpsichordist and conductor, on this, his last recording, he plays a modern copy of a Venetian harpsichord by Giovanni Trasuntino (1531).

GARETH FARR (b. 1968): TE PAPA
Farr: Te Papa; Te Papa (log drum'n'bass mix); Te Papa (urenui mix).
New Zealand Symphony Orchestra, Kenneth Young with Virginia-Marie Stack (mezzo) and Simon O'Neill (tenor)
MMT2026 (CD Single)
(GB pounds 6.50)

The third release from the young New Zealand composer and percussionist, Gareth Farr, and Morrison Trust's first CD single. His earlier percussion-based compositions have attracted a wide audience and the gamelan influence is never far away. Te Papa was first performed at the Museum of New Zealand in February 1998.

Andrew Achenbach in November 1999 Gramophone - "Composer and percussionist Gareth Farr (b.1868) is one of the brightest young innovators on the New Zealand musical scene. His giddily festive Te Papa (Maori for 'Our Place') for vocalist, mezzo-soprano, tenor and orchestra serves up an exuberantly varied cultural and stylistic brew, and we also get two further versions of the same piece, the final 'urenui mix' being strongly influenced by contemporary dance music (shades here of Bristolians Roni Size and Massive Attack)."

KENNETH YOUNG (b. 1955): ORCHESTRAL WORKS
Young: Symphony; Virgen de la Esperanza; Dance.
New Zealand Symphony Orchestra conducted by Kenneth Young with Patricia Wright (soprano)
MMT2027 (co-production with Atoll)
(GB pounds 14.50)

Kenneth Young was born in New Zealand in 1955 and was appointed composer-in-residence to the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra in 1993 where he also holds the position of principal tuba. Dance rhythms feature strongly in many of his compositions. The Symphony was completed in 1988 and Virgen followed a tour to Seville with the NZSO in 1992. Very approachable modern compositions.

NEW ZEALAND NATIONAL YOUTH CHOIR: CHOIR OF THE WORLD
Te Wehi Whanau: Haere mai hga iwi; Mendelssohn: Ehre sei Gott in der Höhe; Rossini: O salutaris hostia; Pachelbel: Magnificat; Poulenc: Petites Prières de St. Francois d'Assise; David MacIntyre: Ave Maria; Zdenêk Lukáš: Requiem aeternam; Ivan Hrušovsk : Rytmus; David Hamilton: Didn't it Rain; Christopher Marshall: Minoi, minoi; William Dawson: Ain'-a that good news; Vaughan Williams: Five Mystical Songs.
New Zealand National Youth Choir, conductor Karen Grylls with Paul Whelan (baritone) and Andrea Watson (organ)
MMT2029
(GB pounds 14.50)

Issued to celebrate their victory as Choir of the World at the 1999 Eisteddfod in Llangollen, these live recordings of the New Zealand National Youth Choir were made at Llangollen and at St John's Smith Square, London, during their 1999 European Tour.

Raymond Tuttle for Classical Net - "The music-making on this CD is extremely impressive. The members acquit themselves with professionalism and maturity which belie their years. Several of the works performed here are so difficult that they must have been composed as test-pieces. Rapid shifts in harmony, key, rhythm, and time signature challenge even the most seasoned choirs; they don't seem to ruffle the New Zealand Youth Choir very much. Here's something for New Zealand to feel proud of and for the rest of us to enjoy." Click here for the full review.

Henry Fogel in September/October 2000 Fanfare - "This disc merits attention largely because of its varied and interesting repertoire, from its fascinatingly engaging opening Maori song of welcome through its closing number, William Dawson's touching arrangement of a famous African American spiritual. The sound is nicely balanced...A pleasant, enjoyable, if not essential disc."

STRIKE: NEW ZEALAND PERCUSSION MUSIC
Gareth Farr: Volume Pig; Ross Harris: Ricochet; Miriam Young: Iron Tongues; Don McGlashan: Work Songs; David Downes: Painting with Breath; Murray Hickman: Cube; Trad. Arr. George Upu: Taku Manu E.
STRIKE (Jeremy Fitzsimmons, Alison Low Choy, Murray Hickman, Tim Whitta)
MMT2030
(GB pounds 14.50)

The New Zealand percussion group, Strike, is a high-energy drumming group whose flexible line-up is drawn from amongst the country's most outstanding percussionists. Founded in 1993, Strike is committed to developing the unique and diverse world of New Zealand percussion music. Many of the works on this disc were commissioned for Strike from New Zealand's leading composers.

Christopher Ballantine in November 2000 International Record Review - "Strike, a New Zealand drumming group with a core of four players, seem willing to work with almost any object that can be made to sound: to the panoply of more familiar percussion instruments they now add hubcaps, brake drums, metal plates, 44-gallon oil drums (plus lids), thin bamboo poles, wind ropes, wind drums, large sticks, steel water pipes, other junk instruments and various drums from the Cook Islands. The booklet notes are informative and the recording is clean and true. But warn your neighbours first: the disc must be played at high volume, or else the softest passages virtually disappear."

RUSSIAN ROMANTIC PIANO TRIOS
Arensky: Piano Trio in D minor, Op.32
Rachmaninov: Trio Élégaique in G minor, Op. posth.
Glinka: Piano Trio in D minor, Pathétique
The Turnovsky Trio (Sam Konise violin, Ashley Brown cello, Catherine McKay piano)
MMT2031
(GB pounds 14.50)

The Turnovsky Trio, in its current line-up, is New Zealand's first all New Zealand-born and educated full-time professional chamber music ensemble. Founded in 1991, the Trio immediately attracted critical acclamation for performances nationally and internationally. The Trio have performed throughout New Zealand and Europe and are resident at the University of Waikato. The Trio is named after the late Fred Turnovsky, a Wellington industrialist and most generous patron of the arts, especially of chamber music.

John Warrack in April 2001 International Record Review - "It's a tricky balance to bring off, both for players and recording engineers...Here, the idea is managed with real artistry...if a more varied programme is sought, the present recording, by this successful, young New Zealand group, has much to recommend it."

FÊTE - FRENCH ORGAN MUSIC FROM
THE WELLINGTON CATHEDRAL OF ST PAUL
Bonnet: Variations de concert Op.1; Langlais: Fête;
Vierne: Scherzetto & Pastorale from Op.31; Carillon de Westminster;
Lefebure-Wely: Sortie in E flat; Andante in F; Franck: Choral No.1;
Dupre: Magnificat V from Vespers; Pierre Cogen: Offrande
Andrew Cantrill organ of the Wellington Cathedral of St Paul
MMT2032
(GB pounds 14.50)

Listen to an extract

Organist Andrew Cantrill was born in Hampshire and educated at Durham University. He was appointed Organist and Director of Music at the Wellington Cathedral of St Paul in New Zealand in 1999. He plays this wide-ranging selection of French organ music on the Cathedral's T C Lewis organ, originally built in 1877.

MICHAEL HOUSTOUN - PIANO CONCERTOS
Prokofiev: Piano Concerto No.3 in C, Op.26;
Beethoven: Piano Concerto No.5 in E-flat, Op.73 "Emperor"*
Michael Houstoun piano, New Zealand Symphony Orchestra
Conductors - James Judd; Janos Furst*
MMT2035
(GB pounds 14.50)

Michael Houstoun was born in Timaru, New Zealand in 1952 and here performs two major works of the piano concerto repertoire with the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra. The performances were recorded at concerts in Wellington in May 2000 and November 1995.

GARETH FARR: WARRIORS FROM PLUTU
Farr: Naga Baba; Te Parenga; Warriors from Pluto;
Nga Tai Hurihuri; Time and Tide
STRIKE; Deborah Wai Kapohe soprano; NZSO Chamber Orchestra, Marc Taddei
MMT2036
(GB pounds 14.50)

Listen to an extract

Gareth Farr’s music is by turns dynamic, lyrical, percussive and rhythmic, but above all, it is some of the most exciting and approachable contemporary music you’re likely to hear. This new recording features two startlingly dramatic works for chamber orchestra, (including Warriors from Pluto - virtually a concerto for the STRIKE percussion ensemble), sumptuous arrangements of music from the TV police drama Duggan and the incidental music to The End of the Golden Weather plus Nga Tai Hurihuri, a celebration of renewal for soprano, karanga and percussion.

Roger Thomas in International Record Review June 2002: "For Stockhausen, needless to say, space has always been the place, so while we're here we should perhaps fend off Garreth Farr's pesky Warriors from Pluto...This is essentially clattery, bad-boy stuff which fans of Steve Martland during his Factory Classics days will certainly appreciate... Farr is known to different audiences as a composer, a skilled percussionist and as a stunning drag artist."

LANDSCAPES - New Zealand Orchestral Music
Douglas Lilburn - Drysdale Overture; Lyell Creswell - Dancing on a Volcano;
Maria Grenfell - Stealing Tutunui; David Hamilton - Elysian Fields;
Martin Lodge - Hinterland; Ross Harris - ...of memory…;
Anthony Ritchie - Yet Another Poem of Spring
New Zealand Symphony Orchestra, Kenneth Young
MMT2037
(GB pounds 14.50)

Listen to an extract

This recording showcases works by seven of the foremost New Zealand composers of orchestral music. The programme is marked by a diversity of expression and mood, but united in that each work reflects to some degree the composer’s consciousness of the New Zealand landscape. Together, they make up a ‘snapshot’ of New Zealand composition at the end of the twentieth century. The booklet is complemented by beautiful reproductions of paintings of the New Zealand landscape by Leo Bensemann, Bill Hammond, Dick Frizzell and Toss Woollaston and Michael Illingworth.

Roger Thomas in International Record Review June 2002: "...this collection of twentieth-century orchestral works from New Zealand, performed by the NZSO under Kenneth Young, is a fine introductory package for anyone whose knowledge of this country's music doesn't extend beyond the works of Lyell Creswell, although he is represented here by a typically arresting piece, and quite rightly so."

CANCIONES ESPANOLAS
Montsalvatge: Cinco Canciones Negras;
Obradors: 6 songs from Canciones Clásicas Españolas;
Guridi: Seis Canciones Castellanas;
Rodrigo: Cuatro Canciones Sefardíes;
Granados: 5 songs from Tonadillas.
Deborah Wai Kapohe soprano with David Harper piano
MMT2038
(GB pounds 14.50)

Listen to an extract

Already recognised as an outstanding talent in New Zealand, the young soprano Deborah Wai Kapohe was born in Winton in Southland. Here, with pianist David Harper, she brings her exceptional vocal talents to a programme of classical Spanish songs. When Deborah Wai Kapohe and David Harper first began their artistic collaboration they discovered a common passion for the rich and colourful language of Spain and its vast repertoire of classical songs. It was natural, then, that for their first recording together they should chose to showcase the seemingly effortless fluency of Deborah's gorgeous soprano voice in a captivating programme of Spanish art songs.

SYRINX - FRENCH MUSIC FOR FLUTE & PIANO
Debussy (arr Lenski): Bilitis; Syrinx; Gaubert: Divertissement Grec;
Jacques Charpentier: Pour Syrinx; Ravel (arr. Samazeuilh): Menuet Antique;
Jules Mouquet: Sonata ‘La Flûte de Pan’; Roussel: Joueurs de Flute.
Bridget Douglas flute and Rachel Thomson piano
MMT2039
(GB pounds 14.50)

Listen to an extract

The flute in its various forms is one of the oldest instruments known to mankind, and this recital of early 20th century French music by two of New Zealand’s foremost young chamber musicians features works inspired by subjects from Greek, Roman and Indian mythology.

AQUARIUS: Music by John Ritchie
John Ritchie: Concertino for Clarinet & Strings; Suite No.1 for Strings;
Aquarius - Suite No.2 for Strings; Papanui Road
Marina Sturm clarinet, NZSO Chamber Orchestra, Donald Armstrong and Marc Taddei
MMT2040

(GB pounds 14.50)

In commemoration of the composer's 80th birthday, Morrison Trust Records presents a programme of John Ritchie's delightfully attractive works for both string orchestra and full orchestra.

DEIDRE IRONS: Piano Recital
Schumann: Papillons Op.2; Mozart: Piano Sonata K283;
Gershwin: Three Preludes; Ravel: Sonatina;
Chopin: Nocturnes Op.27/1 & 2, Scherzo op.31
Deidre Irons piano
MMT2041

(GB pounds 14.50)

A studio recording of music by Mozart, Schumann, Ravel, Chopin and Gershwin, made prior to Diedre Irons' warmly-received New Zealand-wide concert tour in 2002.

VERDI - SIMON BOCCANEGRA
(Opera in three acts)
New Zealand Festival Production 2000
Nuccia Focile soprano, Paul Charles Clarke tenor, Gordon Hawkins baritone,
Martin Snell baritone, Vladimir Vaneev bass, Yaron Windmüller bass,
Chapman Tripp Opera Chorus, New Zealand Symphony Orchestra, Marco Guidarini
MMT2045/46
(2 discs - GB pounds 29.00)

Listen to an extract

Verdi's sombre and powerful operatic masterpiece, with its themes of love, hate, treachery and reconciliation, is brought to life in this production from the 2000 New Zealand Festival. This live recording captures all the excitement and drama of Simon Boccanegra. The international cast includes American baritone Gordon Hawkins in the title role, soprano Nuccia Focile as Amelia, bass Vladimir Vaneev as Fiesco and British tenor Paul Charles Clarke as Gabriele.

JOHN PSATHAS - FRAGMENTS
John Psathas: Fragment (percussion version & piano duet version);
Happy Tachyons; Piano Quintet; Jettatura; Matre’s Dance.
Stephen Gosling piano, New Zealand String Quartet;
Jeremy Fitzsimons percussion
MMT2047
(GB pounds 14.50)

Like an injection of adrenalin direct to the heart of New Zealand classical music comes a new album of chamber music by John Psathas, one of New Zealand's leading contemporary composers, featuring Jeremy Fitzsimons, Stephen Gosling and the New Zealand String Quartet.

BRASS AOTEAROA
Philip Sparke: The Land of the Long White Cloud Aotearoa;
Gareth Farr: Waipiro; Tawhirimatea; George Hespe: The Three Musketeers;
Ross Harris: Bremner Aria; Dwayne Bloomfield: Behold the Narrows From the Hill.
National Youth Brass Band of New Zealand, Nigel Weeks
MMT2049
(GB pounds 14.50)

The National Youth Brass Band is a group of some of New Zealand’s finest young brass and percussion players. The traditional brass band is the musical backbone of New Zealand and has been established for more than 150 years. In this recital the National Youth Brass Band play works especially commissioned for their 'ANZAC' Tour to the UK.