Young, Gifted And Back: Rising Stars Perform With The NZSO
by NZ Symphony Orchestra · SCOOPSix of Aotearoa’s finest young musicians will perform with the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra in Wellington on 23 September.
The talented soloists, aged 15 to 17, will perform an assortment of music by classical giants Tchaikovsky, Grieg, Vaughan Williams, Brahms, Prokofiev and Shostakovich, accompanied by the national orchestra.
Emerging Artists also features 13 exceptional young musicians performing side-by-side with the orchestra throughout the concert. NZSO Principal Conductor-in-Residence Hamish McKeich leads the performance.
The performance, from 6.30pm at the Michael Fowler Centre, will also be free to watch via a livestream on NZSO+.
Many musicians who have taken part in the NZSO’s Emerging Artists programme have gone on to perform in other NZSO concerts, with the NZSO National Youth Orchestra and with orchestras around the country.
Elise Tan, 17, began learning the cello at age five and now studies with NZSO Section Principal Cello Andrew Joyce. She has performed with the NZSO and Christchurch Symphony Orchestra, reached five consecutive NZCT Chamber Music Contest national finals, won the competition in 2024, and performed internationally through competitions and masterclasses. She has also been accepted into the 2026 Aspen Music Festival and School.
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Elise performs the tense and sardonic first movement of Shostakovich’s Cello Concerto No. 1.
The other gifted soloists are Alex Wu (oboe), Catherine Harrison (violin), Jerry Wang (piano), Steven Song (piano) and William Ding (piano).
Alex, 16, will perform the third movement from Vaughan Williams’ haunting Oboe Concerto.
Alex has won multiple national oboe awards, including the 2025 New Zealand Double Reed Society Oboe Competition. He has performed with youth and community orchestras across New Zealand and held principal oboe roles with Auckland Youth Orchestra and Auckland Mandolinata Orchestra.
Catherine, from Lower Hutt, performs the third movement of Tchaikovsky’s deeply expressive Violin Concerto. The 16-year-old began violin at age three. She has performed with Wellington Youth Orchestra and the National Youth Orchestra, among others, and has achieved major recognition in chamber music, exams and competitions, including the Hutt Valley Performing Arts Concerto category.
Jerry, 15, began learning the piano at age eight and now studies with renowned New Zealand pianist Stephen De Pledge. He has won first prizes at the North Shore Performing Arts Society competitions and in the Institute of Registered Music Teachers of New Zealand scholarship and was a semi-finalist in the 2024 National Concerto Competition. He performs the dramatic first movement of Brahms’ First Piano Concerto.
Steven, 15, will perform the second and third movements from Prokofiev’s exuberant Piano Concerto No. 1. He began learning piano in 2021 and also studies with De Pledge. He has won prizes at regional competitions, received Best Performance of a New Zealand Work at the 2024 Lewis Eady National Piano Competition, and was a finalist in the 2025 NZCT Chamber Music Contest national final.
William, 16, is a Wellington-based pianist who began piano at age seven. He has earned regional and national recognition including First Prize in Wellington’s Sonata Celebration and a Grand Final placing in the 2023 Lewis Eady National Junior Piano Competition. He performs the passionate first movement of Grieg’s Piano Concerto.
The 13 young musicians playing side-by-side with the orchestra will perform Nic Brownlie’s Blind is the Gardener, by the young New Zealand composer, and the fourth movement of Schubert’s Second Symphony.
Tickets are available at nzso.co.nz.
Emerging Artists will also be livestreamed for free on NZSO+.
Notes:
COMING UP
Four Last Songs — Conductor Sir Donald Runnicles, soprano Madeliene Pierard. Wellington (2 Oct), Auckland (3 Oct)
Elegance — Conductor Tianyi Lu, pianist Isata Kanneh-Mason. Wellington (16 Oct), Christchurch (18 Oct)
Isata Kanneh-Mason in Recital — Auckland (17 Oct)
Emerging Artists
HAMISH MCKEICH Conductor
NIC BROWNLIE Blind is the Gardener
TCHAIKOVSKY Violin Concerto in D Major, Op. 35 — Mvt. 3
VAUGHAN WILLIAMS Oboe Concerto — Mvt. 3
SHOSTAKOVICH Cello Concerto No. 1, Op. 107 — Mvt. 1
GRIEG Piano Concerto in A Minor, Op. 16 — Mvt. 1
PROKOFIEV Piano Concerto No. 1 in D-flat Major — Mvt. 2-3
BRAHMS Piano Concerto No. 1 in D Minor, Op. 10 — Mvt. 1
SCHUBERT Symphony No. 2 in B-flat Major, D. 125 — Mvt. 4
TE WHANGANUI-A-TARA WELLINGTON | Michael Fowler Centre | Wednesday, 23 September | 6.30pm
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