Features

The New Zealand Secondary Students' Choir is currently preparing for another overseas tour. Catch them from a year or two ago singing a typically varied programme in Music Alive Matinée at 3pm.

Parents have a natural tendency to focus on a child’s weaknesses, but building on their strengths is a better way to help them reach their  potential, says psychologist Professor Lea Water. Audio

The kiwi's the national bird and the pavlova the national pudding, but what is the national fungus? RNZ's Anna Chinn reports from the fungal frontline. Audio

What is it like to run the country? Find out by catching up on RNZ’s landmark series The 9^th Floor - named Best Podcast and Best Documentary at the NZ Radio Awards.

Yvette Audain's orchestral piece Mangatangi was inspired by a trip to Waharau Regional Park where, she says, "I (briefly) lost my sense of direction somewhere near Mangatangi Road." #NZMM Audio

When Paula Stone Williams transitioned from male to female, she knew she would be treated differently. But what she didn't expect was the immediate assumption she was less intelligent. Audio

Politics, pop and priceless outfits will be on show at this year's Eurovision Song Contest in Lisbon on Saturday. Video, Audio, Gallery

Why do my children keep fighting? Katy Gosset looks at all the conflict, competition and general chaos that ensue when kids live under the same roof. Audio

Manu Berkeljon is guest violinist for this NZTrio concert including music by NZ composers Anthony Ritchie and Dorothy Ker.

Prine is 71 and has survived two bouts of cancer... There may be a few more black jokes and references to old folks’ homes, but life as he portrays it in his music is still wondrous and absurd. Audio

Janelle Monae holds The Declaration of Independence to account in a funky and forthright new album. Nick Bollinger discusses. Audio

Charlie Paterson built himself a house in remote Fiordland National Park where his closest neighbour was five hours walk away. But it was far from a romantic wilderness adventure. Audio, Gallery

Prine is 71 and has survived two bouts of cancer... There may be a few more black jokes and references to old folks’ homes, but the life he portrays in his new music is still wondrous and absurd. Audio

A significant boost in New Zealand's foreign aid budget has been heralded as part of a transformative shift in the country's relations with Pacific islands. Audio

Dan Slevin reviews Kiwi comedy The Breaker Upperers, Wes Anderson’s Isle of Dogs and Truth or Dare, and looks at the 13th Documentary Edge Film Festival. Video, Audio

William Dart takes a listen to two new albums - Revamp and Restoration - which "re-imagine" the songs of Elton John and Bernie Taupin, featuring artists as diverse as Lady Gaga, Mary J Blige, and Willie Nelson. Video, Audio

Concert organisations around the world are celebrating Bernstein's centenary with performances of his works. Here's an overview of the life and music of the American composer, conductor and educator. Audio

Chef Tony Tan joined Bryan Crump in the studio to talk about his latest book, Hong Kong Food City and takes us on a culinary journey of this vibrant, multi-cultural city. Audio

The imagery of TS Eliot's poem 'The Waste Land' is the starting point for this major work for orchestra by Christopher Blake. #NZMM Video, Audio

William Dart explores three performers linked by the use of satirical humour in their music: the incomparable Noël Coward, the impeccable Richard Rodney Bennett, and our own indefatigable Robbie Ellis. Video, Audio

Awa Puna, a transgender student from the Kapiti Coast, tells her story of beginning the transition from male to female and becoming her authentic self. Video, Audio

Wes Anderson’s latest film Isle of Dogs is packed full of incredible sounds. We find five interesting classical tunes that appear in Anderson's work.

Hunting, fishing, tree felling and ploughing over 700 years has changed the Otago Peninsula from land covered in rich, diverse forest to a grassy mosaic. Audio

Tonight's live broadcast from Auckland in Music Alive features Gustav Holst's most popular work 'The Planets'. Here Matthew Crawford explains the meanings and mysteries. Audio