Events at this location

We’re thrilled to present this year’s subscription series Dramatic Skies:

Stratus – April 18

Cumulus – September 5

Cirrus – December 12

As the name suggests, the series leads us through intense emotional contrasts, from sweetness and light to drama and darkness. The bookends – two Rachmaninoff piano trios, both named élégiaque – indicate the powerful emotional journey within the series.

Each concert presents works from overseas and, like the clouds in the title, some are bright and billowy like familiar shapes passing by while others are dark, brooding and portentous. These globe-drifters gather around the lofty peaks of Aotearoa’s musical landscape. There are two Kiwi works at the heart of each concert, a brand new commission and an older favourite.

BOOK SUBSCRIPTION SERIES HERE

Dramatic Skies 1: Stratus

Sunday, April 18th, 5pm

Auckland Town Hall, Concert Chamber (new more intimate configuration)

Tickets $50 Adult / $25 Student / $135 Subscription

BOOK STRATUS HERE

PROGRAMME:

Rachmaninoff: Trio élégiaque No. 1 in G minor

Haydn: Piano Trio in G Major, Hob XV:25

Suk: Elegie in D flat Major, Op. 23

Cowan: Ultra Violet

de Lautour: an auscultation of water (new commission)

Chausson: Trio in G minor, Op. 3

Stratus begins the series enveloped in a foggy blanket of sound, with the dark, sumptuous depths of Rachmaninoff’s Trio élégiaque and Suk’s yearning Elegie, sandwiched around the cosy, rustic nature of Haydn’s sunny G Major trio. Claire Cowan’s ultra violet shimmers through the spectrum with its millions of colours; in Reuben De Latour’s new commission an auscultation of water we sink into the undulations of an aquatic heart beat; and we ascend again, evaporating into the melancholy, linear architecture of the Chausson Trio, reminiscent of Aotearoa’s eponymous threads of clouds hugging the horizon.

Duration 1.5 hours, plus interval followed by complimentary refreshments in the lounge.

Wheelchair accessible