The New Zealand Youth Choir is a mixed

choir A choir ( ; also known as a chorale or chorus) is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform. Choirs may perform music from the classical music repertoire, which ...

consisting of around 50 singers, auditioned nationally every 3 years from around New Zealand. The choir accepts members aged between 18 and 25 at the time of audition, and places will generally be offered for three years. The choir was formed in 1979 by

Guy Jansen Guy Elwyn Jansen (27 May 1935 – 27 May 2019) was a New Zealand music educator and choral musician. Early life and family Born in Carterton on 27 May 1935, Jansen was educated at Horowhenua College. In 1960, he married Judy Mary Rolls, and t ...

and has subsequently been conducted by Professor Peter Godfrey (1980 to 1988), Dr

Karen Grylls Karen Lesley Grylls (born 9 July 1951) is a New Zealand choral conductor. She is an associate professor in choral conducting at the University of Auckland and founder of Voices New Zealand Chamber Choir. Early life and education Grylls was ...

(1989 to 2010) and David Squire (since 2011). As at February 2015, Dr Grylls is an associate professor and head of choral studies at the

University of Auckland , mottoeng = By natural ability and hard work , established = 1883; years ago , endowment = NZD $293 million (31 December 2021) , budget = NZD $1.281 billion (31 December 2021) , chancellor = Cecilia Tarrant , vice_chancellor = Dawn F ...

. The choir is governed by the Choirs Aotearoa New Zealand Trust (which also governs Voices New Zealand Chamber Choir and the NZYC Alumni Choir). The Chief Executive of the Trust is Arne Herrmann, who has held this position since mid 2016.

International tours and awards

The choir has achieved considerable success both within New Zealand and internationally, including winning the ''

Let the Peoples Sing ''Let the Peoples Sing'' (known until 1964 as ''Let the People Sing'') is an international choral competition currently organised by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU). The final, encompassing three categories and around ten choirs, is offer ...

'' competition in 1992, the 'Choir of the World' title at the

Llangollen International Musical Eisteddfod The Llangollen International Musical Eisteddfod is a music festival which takes place every year during the second week of July in Llangollen, North Wales. It is one of several large annual Eisteddfodau in Wales. Singers and dancers from around ...

in 1999, and the 'Grand Prix Slovakia' in the same year. In 2010 the choir toured to Singapore, Seoul, Shanghai (where it performed as part of Expo 2010), Brisbane, Canberra, and Sydney. The final concert for the tour was broadcast live on ABC Classic FM and Radio New Zealand Concert. At the end of 2013 the choir toured to Los Angeles (where it participated in a performance of

Benjamin Britten Edward Benjamin Britten, Baron Britten (22 November 1913 – 4 December 1976, aged 63) was an English composer, conductor, and pianist. He was a central figure of 20th-century British music, with a range of works including opera, other ...

War Requiem The ''War Requiem'', Op. 66, is a large-scale setting of the Requiem composed by Benjamin Britten mostly in 1961 and completed in January 1962. The ''War Requiem'' was performed for the consecration of the new Coventry Cathedral, which was b ...

at the

Walt Disney Concert Hall The Walt Disney Concert Hall at 111 South Grand Avenue in downtown Los Angeles, California, is the fourth hall of the Los Angeles Music Center and was designed by Frank Gehry. It was opened on October 24, 2003. Bounded by Hope Street, Grand Ave ...

), Toronto, Ottawa, Montreal, Boston, New York and Washington DC. During its 2016 European Landmark Tour, NZYC won the GRAND PRIX at the 2016 IFAS in Pardubice Czech Republic and also all four categories it competed in. It also performed at Windsor Castle, Cambridge Summer Music Festival, Ely Cathedral, in Oxford, Notre Dame de Paris, and Le Quesnoy.

Alumni

Notable former members of the choir include: conductor Tecwyn Evans, soprano

Anna Leese Anna Leese (born 7 March 1981) is a New Zealand born soprano opera singer. Early life Leese was born in Napier, New Zealand. She sang in the New Zealand Secondary Schools Choir and the New Zealand Youth Choir. She attended the University of ...

, bass baritone

Jonathan Lemalu Jonathan Fa'afetai Lemalu (born 1976) is a New Zealand bass baritone opera singer. Born to Samoan parents who had emigrated to New Zealand, he was educated in Dunedin. His first singing teacher was Honor McKellar, who began teaching him while ...

, tenor

Simon O'Neill Simon John O'Neill (born 1971) is a New Zealand-born operatic tenor. In 1998, his image appeared on the New Zealand one-dollar performing arts postage stamp. Biography O'Neill was born in Ashburton, New Zealand, and received his musical tra ...

, soprano Madeleine Pierard, baritone

Teddy Tahu Rhodes Teddy Tahu Rhodes (born 30 August 1966) is a New Zealand operatic baritone. Early life Rhodes was born in Christchurch, New Zealand, on 30 August 1966, to a British mother, Joyce, and a New Zealand father, Terrence Tahu Gravenor Rhodes. The Mao ...

, bass Martin Snell, all three members of

Sol3 Mio SOL3 MIO (stylised as SOLΞ MIO) is a New Zealand musical trio consisting of Moses Mackay, Pene Pati and Amitai Pati. Of Samoan descent and classically trained, Moses is a baritone, and the Pati brothers are operatic tenors. Albums and tour ...

, baritone in the

King's Singers The King's Singers are a British a cappella vocal ensemble founded in 1968. They are named after King's College in Cambridge, England, where the group was formed by six choral scholars. In the United Kingdom, their popularity peaked in the 1 ...

Chris Bruerton, journalist

Hilary Barry Hilary Ann Barry (née Pankhurst, born 4 December 1969) is a New Zealand journalist and television personality who co-hosts '' Seven Sharp'' with Jeremy Wells on TVNZ 1. She was a newsreader on TV3 for many years and until 2016, presented the 6 ...

, and composers Igelese Ete, David Hamilton, Anthony Ritchie and Glenda Keam.

Discography

References

External links

New Zealand Youth Choir
– the official website {{authority control National choirs New Zealand choirs Youth choirs Musical groups established in 1979