Features

"Next to the Word of God", wrote German theologian Martin Luther, "the noble art of music is the greatest treasure in the world." Hymns in this week's programme include settings of Psalm 150, and a hymn by 20th century minister Fred Pratt Green: When in our music God is glorified. Audio

Composer Sophie Burbery is doing a PhD on AI creativity and feminism. Audio

Lorde's Auckland homecoming is a big 'screw you' to those who ever (wrongly) called the Kiwi a 'one hit wonder'.

Pianist and vocal coach Rosemary Barnes is the "official accompanist" at this year's Nicholas Tarling Aria Competition on at the Due Drop Events Centre in Manukau this Sunday.  Audio

Conductor Giordano Bellincampi has chosen the Auckland Philharmonia to play his first ever performance of a lush, late romantic tone poem. Audio

Gregory Camp put in plenty of field work while researching for his latest book on the music in Disney theme parks. Audio

Hong Xu is the Artistic Director of the New Zealand International Piano Festival. Audio

Puerto Rican superstar Bad Bunny turned the Super Bowl into a giant street party, delivering his hits on one of the world's biggest stages - and becoming the first-ever halftime show headliner to sing only in Spanish.

VIDEO: This all-ages concert is a journey into the wonders of the natural world and includes a musical retelling of the Māori creation story. We’ll find out about Aotearoa New Zealand’s seasonal signs of nature, and there’s a special song to sing along to with the orchestra, as well as other popular symphonic pieces.

LISTEN: musicians Ariana Tikao and Bob Bickerton perform Muriwai, which refers to a confluence of two rivers. Their music is a convergence of Māori and Celtic musical traditions, through voice, taonga pūroro, and Celtic harp. Audio

Composer Michael Norris talks about his latest work, SoundCathedral. Audio

UK composer, keyboard player and conductor Howard Moody is back to conduct his fourth Opera in a Days Bay garden. Audio

Jessica Kinney has moved to New Zealand from the UK to take up a brand new job managing artistic planning and outreach for ChoirsNZ. Video, Audio

Top New Zealand brass player Kyle Lawson is taking up a plum position in Wales, as principal cornet with the Cory Band.  Video, Audio

German cellist Daniel Müller-Schott joins the AP and Music Director Giordano Bellincampi to perform Robert Schumann’s Cello Concerto in A minor. The concert opens with Franz Schubert’s Rosamunde Overture, and concludes with selections from Ludwig van Beethoven’s The Creatures of Prometheus.

You can hear Shirley Murray’s hymn Give thanks to life in this week’s selection of listener requests. And Ludwig van Beethoven’s tune ‘Ode to Joy’ is set to a hymn by Henry van Dyke: Joyful, joyful we adore thee. Audio

Australian double bass player Phoebe Russell is one of the stars of this year's Adam International Chamber Music Festival in Nelson.  Audio

Two legends of the trade - punk godfather Iggy Pop and queen of rock Joan Jett - testified to the immortal power of a hard-out tune at Spark Arena Thursday night.

Violinist Amalia Hall and pianist Somi Kim are joined by cellist Matthias Balzat at the Auckland Town Hall Concert Chamber for a performance that spans from French Romantic elegance to contemporary New Zealand landscapes. 

John Psathas talks with RNZ Concert ahead of performances of his music at this year's Aotearoa New Zealand Festival of the Arts. He's also formed his own chamber music ensemble. Video, Audio

Experience a supernatural musical journey with the Auckland Philharmonia, led by French conductor Pierre Bleuse's New Zealand debut featuring Berlioz’s Symphonie Fantastique; with renowned Kiwi pianist Sylvia Jiang for Franz Liszt’s diabolical Totentanz.

Harvest hymns, hymns sung in school assembly, and a hymn that became particularly meaningful to a listener after the Christchurch earthquakes in 2010 and 2011 - all in this week's hymn request programme. Audio

Listen to an interview with Julia Bullock, who'll be performing in New Zealand in March as part of the Auckland Arts Festival. Audio

Listener requests in this week's programme include Take my gifts by New Zealand hymn writer Shirley Murray, What a friend we have in Jesus, and there's a gentle rendition of John Rutter's The Lord bless you and keep you by the Cambridge Singers. Audio