After The Creation, the NZSO offers a Feast

Following its great triumphs with the full Beethoven Symphony cycle and Mahler’s Ninth symphony, the NZSO gave a heavenly performance of Haydn’s oratorio. The Creation is based on the Book of Genesis and poet John Milton’s work Paradise Lost, with the three-part oratorio telling the story of chaos giving way to a new world of light, plants, animals and humans.

In the NZSO’s recent concert the story of the creation was presented by three archangels; Gabriel (Madeleine Pierard), Uriel (Robin Tritschler) and Raphael (Jonathan Lemalu).

It is very much a religious work but in many respects it is also a secular work describing various aspects of the world, providing musical counterparts to each of the stages of evolution.

This is most clearly seen in the opening where Auckland Choral accompanied by the orchestra sang a grand version of And God said Let there be Light and there was Light, the explosion of sound being like a great dawning or vision of the sun bursting through the clouds on a dull day.

The chorus continued to provide stunning singing throughout the concert, its spectacular sound celebrating the different days of the creation.

Irish tenor Robin Tritschler was the outstanding performer on the night giving Uriel strong emotional qualities.

Jonathan Lemalu’s resonant bass helped convey the revelatory tone of many of the passages he sang but there was often a lack of articulation and in the final section singing as Adam he seemed reluctant to engage with Madeleine Pierard, who brought the character of Eve to life.

The NZSO’s next outing was its Symphonic Feast as part of Visa Wellington on a Plate.

This saw the orchestra perform at Palliser Estate Wines of Martinborough joining forces with Café Medici to create a unique event. The evening began with refreshments in the Palliser Estate winery.

The NZSO will then perform a brass fanfare to herald the guests through to the barrel hall to take their seats in this atmospheric and dramatic setting.

The orchestra performed four pieces between a four course menu designed by renowned Martinborough chef, Nick Arnold from Café Medici using locally sourced produce and matched with Palliser’s wines, including some treats from its cellar.

The four works were: R. Strauss' Festmusik der Stadt Wien, Handel's Music for the Royal Fireworks, Mozart's Symphony No 25 and Leopod Mozart's Toy Symphony.