Marie Blaschke
Jewish cellist Marie Blaschke sought refuge in New Zealand from persecution, arriving in 1939. Vandewart made a considerable impact as a concert artist and taught at the University of Auckland’s School of Music for 15 years from 1961.
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Kiri Jeanette Claire Te Kanawa
On 1 December 1971 the young Kiri Te Kanawa took the operatic world by storm when she made her debut as the Countess in Mozart’s Le nozze di Figaro at Covent Garden.
Gillian Weir
Gillian Weir became renowned as an interpreter of the works of French composer Olivier Messiaen and, after an international performing career of nearly 50 years, gave a farewell recital at Westminster Cathedral in December 2012.
Patricia Payne
Dunedin-born mezzo-soprano Patricia Payne had a brilliant career from the early 1970s, singing on many of the world’s great stages – Barcelona, Covent Garden, Bayreuth (including Patrice Chéreau’s Ring cycle alongside Donald McIntyre), San Francisco, Geneva, and La Scala in Milan.
Lili Kraus
Hungarian-born pianist Lili Kraus (1903–86) was another musician whose flight from the horrors of the Second World War enriched New Zealand’s musical life. She was imprisoned by Japanese forces in Indonesia in 1942. After the war she made New Zealand her home for some years and became a citizen. Kraus resumed her international touring career in 1948.
Heather Begg
As a 21-year-old mezzo-soprano, Nelson-born Heather Begg (1932–2009) auditioned to be part of the National Opera of Australia’s tour of New Zealand in 1954. She was offered three principal roles, including the demanding Azucena in Verdi’s Il trovatore.
Lillian Nordica
American soprano
Lucy Anderson
Mrs. Anderson was the first female pianist who appeared at the Philharmonic concerts, and the first to introduce into England many of the great works of Beethoven and other composers.
Lilli Lehmann
Distinguished German soprano
Tuini Ngāwai
Tuini left behind a rich legacy of songs and an unsurpassed standard of composition, work and community leadership.