WAIKATO YOUTH CHOIR

Harmony in diversity: uniting voices, igniting dreams with the Waikato Youth Choir

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INAUGURAL CONCERT

28 SEP 2024 @ 3PM

St Peter’s Cathedral, 51 Victoria Street, Hamilton

Introducing the Waikato Youth Choir

We are thrilled to announce the launch of the Waikato Youth Choir, a dynamic ensemble dedicated to celebrating the joy of music and fostering the talent of our vibrant community.

Our Visions

• To generate a love of singing in a choir
• To provide the opportunity for singers to be taught the art of choral singing
• To produce choral music of a high standard
  

Whether you're a seasoned singer or just starting to explore your musical potential, there's a place for you in our choir. Join us for rehearsals filled with laughter, learning, and the joy of making music together.

Kolitha Jayatunge

Kolitha Jayatunge established his singing roots with the Orpheus Choir of ​Wellington and the New Zealand Opera Chorus. In 2013, he moved to the ​Waikato and continued to sing with other locals choirs, notably Hamilton ​Civic Choir. He is currently the Music Director of Cantando Choir. In 2016, ​under the tutelage of Dame Malvina Major, Kolitha completed a Post-​Graduate Diploma in Music with Distinction at the University of Waikato. ​He is a regular soloist with Hamilton Civic Choir and at the St Peter’s ​Cathedral Cantata Vespers, and for the Baroque Chamber Group Vox ​Baroque under director Dr Rachael Griffiths-Hughes. His repertoire ​includes Handel’s Gloria and Chandos Anthems, and collections of ​cantatas by Bach, Graupner, Telemann, Stoelzul and Schutz. In 2023, ​Kolitha completed the inaugural choral conducting workshop for NZ ​Children’s Choral Academy where he gained valuable conducting ​experience under the tutelage of Dr Karen Grylls and Music Director Elise ​Bradley. Kolitha recently established the new Waikato Youth Choir and is ​also their new Music Director.

ARTISTIC TEAM

Jonathan Dunlop

Jonathan Dunlop has just completed Doctoral studies at the ​University of Waikato with Katherine Austin and Dr Rachael ​Griffiths-Hughes. His research focusses on the pianist journey ​through a wide range of repertoire to find creative pedaling ​solutions in keyboard music from CPE Bach through to the ​late Romantic composers such as Chopin, Rachmaninoff and ​Debussy. To compliment his studies in this field, he plays a ​wide variety of historic keyboards which include the ​harpsichord, clavichord, organ and fortepiano. Jonathan is an ​alumna of the New Zealand Opera School, and most recently ​he has joined The Aotearoa New Zealand Opera Studio ​(TANZOS) team as a Performance Fellow at the University of ​Waikato. Jonathan also works at St Paul’s Collegiate School in ​Hamilton as organist and choir coach for the school’s choirs, ​drawing on years of experience in this discipline having ​directed choirs in South Auckland and Thames.

Fergus Byett

Originally hailing from the shores of Lake Taupō, Fergus Byett moved to Hamilton in ​2019 to study Classical Performance (piano) at the University of Waikato. With the ​support of a Sir Edmund Hillary Scholarship, he studied with Katherine Austin (2019-​2022) and Dr. Rae de Lisle (2023). In 2023, he won all three of the University's ​performance competitions: the Bach Competition (Postgraduate); Concerto ​Competition; and Chamber Music Competition. He also won the Recital and Concerto ​classes at the Hamilton Competitions. His choral and instrumental compositions ​have won national awards, including the OCT Composition Competition and the ​Under-25 Category of the ‘Compose Aotearoa!’ Competition. He has completed ​commissions for Cantando Choir, Southwell School, the Taupō Concert Band, and ​more recently, the New Zealand Male Choir. In 2022, Fergus scored a short film, ​'Pumpkin Eater', directed by Jasper Marshall. Fergus teaches piano in Hamilton, he ​sings with the St. Peter’s Cathedral Choir, and he plays the organ for the St. Peter's ​Cathedral Singers. Fergus was a member of the Hamilton Civic Choir Artist ​Development Programme in 2023, developing his skills as a choral conductor. As a ​Summer Research Scholar Fergus also worked on an article which has now been ​published in the British Journal of Music Education. He is a fluent speaker of te reo ​Māori, and he has a Level 7 Diploma through Te Wānanga o Aotearoa. His choral ​compositions, whether sacred or secular, often make use of New Zealand's ​indigenous language, and Fergus is a passionate advocate for the use of te reo Māori. ​Fergus is excited to be involved with the Waikato Youth Choir in 2024, and sharing a ​love of singing and choral music with the wider Waikato community.

What is expected of Youth Choir members:

• Must commit to all rehearsals every Wednesdays 6:30pm - 8pm, at St Paul’s Collegiate, Hukanui Road, Hamilton.
• Work together in a team for a choir of excellence.
• Pay a fee of $30 per term.
• Have parental permission to attend if under 18 years old.

What are you waiting for!

Come be a part of something special – join the Waikato Youth Choir today! 🎶✨

#WaikatoYouthChoir #MusicIsLife

#CommunityHarmony #JoinUsNow

WAIKATO YOUTH CHOIR