Big opportunity for locals at choir's winter concert

Elisha Fai-Hulton will be a highlight at Cantando Choir's Winter Warmer concert.

A musical selection that will warm body and soul and drive away the winter blues is the aim of Cantando Choir's next performances on August 8 and 9.

The concerts will be held in the warm and comfortable Concert Chamber at the University of Waikato's Gallagher Academy of Performing Arts.

A selection from the exhilarating and rhythmically exciting Carmina Burana by Carl Orff starts the concert off in splendid style.

"It will give audience members a little taste of the pleasures to come when Cantando performs the whole work with Trust Waikato Symphony Orchestra in November," said musical director Rupert D'Cruze.

As well as the 100-strong choir, local talented young singers have also been included as guest artists.

The warm-toned mezzo soprano voice of Elisha Fai-Hulton, a graduate of Auckland and Waikato universities will be a highlight. Elisha performs regularly throughout New Zealand and abroad, and has won many awards including being a semifinalist in the 2014 Lexus Song Quest and Winner of the Maori Song Aria Competition that year.

Jonathan Eyers, a Hillary Scholar at University of Waikato School of Music, has wowed audiences locally with his superb voice. He has become well known for solo performances, as well as opera and oratorio roles and is currently bass leader of the New Zealand Youth Choir and a member of the Chapman Tripp Opera Chorus.

Young Voices Plus, tutored by Sue Burchell, is a special feature of this concert. They delighted the audience this year with their enthusiastic performance of The Chorus of the Street Urchins from Carmen in the cold and wet conditions at Hamilton Gardens Festival's Sunset Symphony. Made up of students from Hamilton Community Centre of Music, St Joseph's School Morrinsville and the Cathedral Children's Choir, the group repeats the Urchin's Chorus, as well as singing Walking in The Air from The Snowman by Howard Blake, and joining the choir in choruses from Carmina Burana. Among other works included in the varied and interesting programme are the spirituals from Tippett's Child of Our Time, a selection from Bernstein's West Side Story and a medley of tunes from Gershwin's Porgy and Bess.

Cantando is pleased to introduce in this concert their newly appointed accompanist, Myles Hartley. Before moving to New Zealand from the UK in 2012, Myles, a Fellow of the Royal College of Music, had a distinguished career as an organist, recording artist and director of music at Oxford University's Harris Manchester College.

Another newcomer to make his debut with the choir is assistant conductor Michael Dawson.

The Winter Warmer concert is on August 8 at 7.30pm and August 9 at 2.30pm.

Ticket from choir members, Gallagher Academy of Performing Arts Box Office, i-SITE Garden Place or waikato.ac.nz/academy.

Adults $35, concession $30, student $10. Booking fees apply. Inquiries to carolynfrew@gmail.com or phone 022 109 1147.