Nau mai haere mai and welcome to our 2025 concert series!
Prepare to be enchanted by works from the unearthly to the ebullient, thoughtful to sparkling in Magnifique. Schubert’s ethereal Notturno in E-flat major spins us in glistening threads of sound, and the introspective landscapes of Vasks‘ Episodi e canto perpetuo traverse hectic energy and bell-like chorales. Be among the first to experience a captivating new work by NZ composer Linda Dallimore, who often draws inspiration from the environment and social issues. Saint-Saëns‘ Piano Trio No. 2 in E minor brings the concert to a magnificent finale of French elegance, with splashes of playful exuberance.
THE PROGRAMME
Franz Schubert | Notturno in E-flat major D.897
Peteris Vasks | Episodi e canto perpetuo
Linda Dallimore (NZ) | new work
Camille Saint-Saëns | Piano Trio No. 2 in E minor
This programme will be performed with guest cellist, Matthias Balzat.
ON TOUR IN MAY
2 May 7.30pm
St Andrew’s on the Terrace
Wellington
3 May 5pm
ANZAC Hall
Featherston
4 May 2.30pm
St Peter’s Anglican Church
Palmerston North
11 May 5pm
Concert Chamber
Auckland Town Hall
AUCKLAND SUBSCRIPTIONS
If you’re booking for the Auckland Town Hall Concert Chamber, you’ll be able book for all three concerts and receive a 10% saving on individual ticket prices. Single tickets for the Auckland Town Hall Concert Chamber are also on sale.
ANNOUNCING OUR NEW CELLIST
NZTrio He Taonga Wairere are thrilled to announce the appointment of new permanent cellist, Matthias Balzat.
Matthias, an award-winning performer, brings a wealth of local and international performing experience to the trio’s next chapter.
A lavish tapestry of styles and emotions is explored in Fantastique, a programme of contrasts. Turina’s Circulo depicts a single day through dawn, midday and dusk, while brooding disquiet meets stark intensity in Shostakovich’s Piano Trio No.1 in C minor. Chen Yi’s Tibetan Tunes creates a fusion of traditional Tibetan melodies referencing Buddhist god Du Mu, before the premiere of Angelus, a new commission by one of Aotearoa’s most acclaimed composers, John Psathas. Finally, Franck’s youthful Piano Trio No. 1 in F sharp minor is as charming and intimate as it is powerful and explosive.
THE PROGRAMME
Lyell Cresswell (NZ) | Moto perpetuo
Pascal Le Boeuf | Obliquely Wrecked
Gabriel Fauré | Piano Trio in D minor, Op. 120
Elena Kats-Chernin | Calliope Dreaming
Arnold Schönberg | Verklärte Nacht arr. for piano trio
This programme will be performed with guest cellist Callum Hall
DATES AND VENUES
Hypnotique presents a diverse array of works that challenges expectations of traditional chamber music. A whirlwind of motion typifies NZ composer Lyell Cresswell’s virtuosic Moto Perpetuo, ahead of the percussive and electronic influences in Le Boeuf’s jazz-adjacent Obliquely Wrecked. Fauré’s Piano Trio in D minor exhibits lyrical elegance, with transportative, lush harmonic textures, and Australian composer Elena Kats-Chernin pays homage to Haydn, blending classical and contemporary styles in Calliope Dreaming. Then finally, the full Romantic immersion of Schönberg’s Verklärte Nacht is structured around the five stanzas of a poem; deeply transcendent and utterly beautiful.
THE PROGRAMME
Lyell Cresswell (NZ) | Moto perpetuo
Pascal Le Boeuf | Obliquely Wrecked
Gabriel Fauré | Piano Trio in D minor, Op. 120
Elena Kats-Chernin | Calliope Dreaming
Arnold Schönberg | Verklärte Nacht arr. for piano trio
DATES AND VENUES
Visit our events page to see when we’ll be near you.
NZTrio is recognised as a ‘national treasure’ and ‘New Zealand’s most indispensable ensemble’ (NZ Herald).
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MERGE
Featuring superb compositions by Christos Hatzis, Salina Fisher, Josef Suk and Erich Korngold, Merge is an amalgamation of NZTrio’s individual musical personalities both on and off the stage, expressed through our shared love of chamber music. “We feel very lucky to be sharing our joyful, creative and collaborative experience of recording this album with you during this particularly bewildering time. As we all navigate this ever-changing world, constantly looking to the future and the past, we hope this music gives you a chance to appreciate some beauty in the present moment.”
© Copyright 2025 NZTrio
