RNCM Research Forum: Art Song of Aotearoa New…

Speakers Dr Morag Atchison University of Auckland About There is a long tradition of Western Art Music in Aotearoa New Zealand. Singers who travel from these islands in the South Pacific are frequently asked to perform ?traditional? music by M?ori composers. Yet the M?ori waiata (song) that classical singers often perform is largely Westernised and commonly referred to as ?folk? or ?traditional?. Many of these waiata have named composers and poets that are frequently forgotten about or not acknowledged. Are these Aotearoa New Zealand?s first art songs? How did composers from the growing colonial population reflect their new homeland in their writing, how has this art form developed in a bi-cultural society, and does it reflect New Zealand and New Zealanders in the twenty-first century? This lecture will be presented by soprano Morag Atchison, and she will be joined by current and former RNCM students from New Zealand. It will map the development of classical art song in Aotearoa New Zealand, from the songs by M?ori and colonial composers and songs depicting an idealised view of twentieth-century New Zealand to the young composers of today who use the M?ori language and the diverse nature of New Zealand as the inspiration for their writing. Featuring songs by Erima Maewa Kaihau (1897?1941), Douglas Lilburn (1915?2001), and David Hamilton (b.?1955) that use texts by New Zealand writers, this lecture recital will also include a new song written by young M?ori composer Takerei Komene (b.?1999), bringing a canon of art song that has largely been unexplored internationally to a new audience and promoting the diverse voice of the art song of Aotearoa New Zealand. Biography Dr Morag Atchison has firmly established herself as one of New Zealand?s leading sopranos and pedagogues. She studied at the University of Auckland and Royal Academy of Music (London) and was a finalist in the Kathleen Ferrier and Royal Over-Seas League Competitions. She has performed operatic roles for NZ Opera, Auckland Philharmonia, NZSO, English Touring Opera, and Aspen Festival Opera, and recent concert performances include the Britten War Requiem (Orchestra Wellington) and a recital in Tunisa with Maria-Neus Devesa. Her debut CD, The Distance: Songs of David Hamilton (Atoll), was released in 2022. Morag is a Senior Lecturer in Voice at the University of Auckland and vocal consultant for the award-winning New Zealand Youth Choir and Auckland Chamber Choir. In 2013 Morag was awarded a Doctorate in Musical Arts from the University of Auckland, the first DMA in vocal studies from a New Zealand University, and in 2019 she was elected as an Associate of the Royal Academy of Music (ARAM). ? Tickets Free admission, no ticket required This event will end at approximately 5.30pm. FREE Wednesday 25 March 2026, 4.15pm