Orpheus Choir

Wellington

New Zealand’s premier symphonic choir

NZ’s premier symphonic choir

Thrilling audiences for seven decades

Tena Koe Welcome!

We’re often referred to as “the mighty Orpheus” because we bring the big choir experience — dramatic, spectacular, and emotionally charged performances of stunning choral music — to a wide variety of events. These include not just our own sell-out subscription series concerts but also festivals and pop concerts — think NZ’s biggest backing group. Our concerts are often recorded by Radio New Zealand.

Formed in 1947, our varied and sometimes surprising repertoire includes everything from the most loved works like Messiah and all the great Requiem Masses to forgotten or less known masterpieces such as Vaughan Williams spectacular Sea Symphony and James MacMillan’s emotionally devastating Seven Last Words from the Cross to Māori Waiata and Dave Dobbyn.

We are custodians of some of the greatest music ever written and we love to make it come alive for contemporary audiences of all ages and stages.

Upcoming events

29 April 2023: Bach Mass in B Minor

10 Sept 2022: Brahms A German Requiem

Guest appearances

Recalibrating again!

Self-presented concerts

The pandemic is still with us and so are the disruptions. As a choir, we’ve learnt to be agile, adaptive and resilient. We’ve now extended our Singet! German Season across 2022 and 2023. It’s going to be wunderbar!

Instead of performing Bach’s incredible Mass in B Minor in May 2022, we’ve shifted it out to May 2023. It’s just too massive to perform without a full in person rehearsal schedule. Other works in our calendar fit the hybrid rehearsal model — in person and live streamed for those who want to join from home.

Our first self presented concert in the season will be the beautiful and ever-popular A German Requiem by Brahms in September 2022. Featuring Orchestra Wellington, a stellar line up of soloists and conducted by Brent Stewart.

Both these concerts will be an experience not to be missed. For more information and to buy tickets for both concerts, go to Our Concerts Page.

Our ‘guest appearances’

Our partnership with Orchestra Wellington goes from strength to strength, with Orpheus featuring in three of their 2022 season concerts.

Our male voices joined Orchestra Wellington to perform the Brahms Rhapsody on Saturday 11 June (7.30pm) at the Michael Fowler Centre.

In August it’s the turn of our female voices joining the Orchestra to perform Felix Mendelssohn’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream also at Michale Fowler Centre — Saturday 20 August (7.30pm).

Then comes Orchestra Wellington’s season finale when the full choir joins the orchestra for a performance of Robert Schumann’s Scenes from Goethe’s “Faust” billed as one of the most astonishing works of the 19th century. It’s mammoth proportions are mirrored by the forces required for performance, including two choirs, and nine soloists!

Ihitai’avei’a Star Navigator

As if that weren’t enough, we round out the year joining NZ Opera and Orchestra Wellington for two performances of Tim Finn’s haunting opera on 9 and 11 December at Te Rauparaha Arena, Porirua.

Sounds exciting?

Then, why not sing with us?

A big thank you to our core funders, sponsors and the grant funders and trusts who make our performances possible.

What the critics say

Percussion-driven Carmina Burana with the Orpheus Choir a triumph — a feeling of being immersed in an oceanic surge from all concerned of total and utter commitment to the music.

…I thought the chorus work among the best I’d ever heard in a “live” Messiah performance

Peter Mechen, Middle C

A packed Cathedral was here treated to a concert of variety and solid achievement…. the choir sang beautifully, and the halo effect of the Cathedral’s acoustics suited it ideally.