Something old, something new

The internationally acclaimed NZ String Quartet made an impressive debut in Minneapolis, performing as part of the annual Music in the Part Series in St Paul. The Quartet’s program included the world premiere of NZ composer Gillian Whitehead’s Hin-pu-te-hue, a work celebrating the Maori goddess of peace. Star Tribune: “The sense of quietude that might have been expected from a work commemorating peace seemed oddly lacking as sophisticated contemporary sonorities interwove with the ancient sounds. But together they created an eerily haunting and compelling aural landscape.” The NZSQ comprises Helene Pohl, Douglas Beilman, Gillian Ansell and Rolf Gjelsten.