The Los Angeles Percussion Quartet land in Christchurch

Percussion quartets are rare, and their list of instruments number in the hundreds, from marimbas to found scraps of metal and plastic. The Grammy-nominated Los Angeles Percussion Quartet is heading to New Zealand to play here for the first time, and in another first they'll be performing a specially commissioned piece created for them and the Christchurch Symphony Orchestra. A quarter of the quartet Justin DeHart moved to Christchurch for a Music Lecturer job at the University of Canterbury in 2017. But the tyranny of distance hasn't broken up the quartet and they'll have a week to practice before taking to the stage. James Gardner's written Gyre: Ghosts with Accents for the concert. Lynn Freeman talks with Justin and James, first asking Justin just how many instruments the LAPQ musicians can play. The Christchurch Symphony Orchestra and Los Angeles Percussion Quartet perform together on the 21st of September.