Here are New Zealand's Top 30 favourite classical pieces - as voted in Settling the Score 2024 - and why people love them.
1. JENKINS: The Armed Man: A Mass for Peace
Welsh composer Karl Jenkins' anti-war work is New Zealand's favourite piece of classical music for 2024. It also topped the 2022 vote, and last year sat at number three.
The Armed Man was commissioned in 2000 by Leeds' Royal Armouries Museum, and draws on religious texts including the Catholic Mass, Islamic call to prayer, the Bible (Psalms and Revelation) and the Hindu Mahabharata. Words from writers including Rudyard Kipling, Alfred Lord Tennyson and Sankichi Toge, a Hiroshima survivor, appear in the lyrics.
The 3000th live performance of The Armed Man took place in March this year, under the direction of Karl Jenkins, and marked his 80th birthday.
People who chose this piece in Settling the Score said:
"I’m an atheist, yet play this on a quiet afternoon out here beyond the hubbub of modern society, with sunlight gently touching the totara and elms, and the hairs rise on my arms … suddenly I am not alone, I stand with all humanity." - Chris, Tararua
"In this piece Karl Jenkins gives voice to the longing for freedom from conflicts shared by everyone living in today's conflict-ridden world. His music is uniquely his own & comes across as inspired music & not an attempt to be modern & trendy. A piece one can listen to again & again & still find something new each time." - Antoinette, Dunedin
"I heard this piece for the first time only a couple of weeks ago on afternoon concert. It stopped me in my tracks with its sound, capturing emotion and peace desired for conflict and violence being experienced in the Middle East right then. The tune has prompted me and family to explore more of Jenkins's works." - Sandy, Bay of Plenty
"I have loved The Armed Man for years. I first heard it live at St-Martin-in-the-Fields in London, as part of the 2018 commemoration of the end of World War I. It was (predictably) beautiful and moving. Last June, I was in the massed choir when The Armed Man was the featured work in the Sydney Philharmonia's ChorusOz concert at the Opera House. In that setting, in these times, it was more than moving - it was confronting. I'm still not over it. It seems that we've learned nothing in the last hundred years. This profoundly anti-war work paints a vivid and disturbing picture of what war actually is." - Andrea, West Auckland
"We sang it on a few occasions at our church services and it never failed to send tingles up my spine. It is an awe-inspiring piece of wonderful music." - Liz, Otago
"I was privileged to hear this piece of music for the first time live, in Christchurch with the excellent CSO and it left an indelible mark upon me. It never fails to leave shivers down my spine." - Cris, Christchurch
"An amazing piece of music by Karl Jenkins; very moving, a wonderful tribute to peace. The Benedictus uplifts my spirits. I was at the performance by Orpheus Choir recently at MFC Wellington; wonderful!" - Eileen, Wellington
2. BEETHOVEN: Piano Concerto No. 5 in E-flat major, Op 73 (The Emperor Concerto)
Performed by Paul Lewis (piano), NZSO/Gemma New at the Auckland Town Hall, 14 August 2022
"It is simple but punchy, impactful, and beautiful." - Danyon, Christchurch
"It has everything that is needed for the ultimate classical experience. Excitement, complexity, melody, and wonderment how someone could possibly dream this up, write it and have it played by orchestras around the world for hundreds of years. A masterpiece of enjoyment!" - Anne, New Plymouth
"It is both intense and gentle. I always feel when I hear this work I am transported to another world and it makes me so happy." - Carol, Christchurch
"I hold this composition v. close to my heart, because it reminds me of my late father, a true revolutionary who loved classical music and gave me the opportunity to study music formally. Beethoven's Emperor Concerto was one of his favourites, which he usually belted from the record player at our family home. This piano concerto keeps him closest in memory on the days I miss him most. Thank you, Beethoven! Miss you Dad. I am my father's daughter." - Isadore, Wellington
"This piece is so beautiful to listen to, particularly the second movement which brings solace. There is heartache and tears for loss, but for me, Beethoven offers a lifeline that is balm for the soul." - Marie-Therese, Christchurch
3. VAUGHAN WILLIAMS: The Lark Ascending
Performed by Amalia Hall and the Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra conducted by Tobias Ringborg at their Great Classics series concert, Auckland Town Hall, 18 August 2022. Recorded by RNZ Concert.
A multiple winner of Settling the Score over the 25 years we have run it, "The Lark" ascends to third place for 2024. Here's why:
"As the violinist spirals heart and mind up, up and away to the heavenlies, one is transported by the beauty of that gentle but compelling invitation to leave the stress and trauma of today's world and be free to soar with the lark." - Elizabeth, Thames
"Reminds me of a time in the Bay of Plenty, being completely mesmerised by the beauty of a lark's song and the surrounding landscape. It took my breath away and I moved to New Zealand four years later." - Paul, Wellington
"Haunting and reflective. Easy to listen to on a country walk where you can leave all your worries behind you and be transported into another time and place." - Daniel, Hastings
"I have heard this wonderful piece many times on the radio, or recorded, but recently was privileged to be at a concert by the Hawke's Bay Orchestra, and hear it played by an amazing soloist and the orchestra. The whole audience was spellbound - a truly memorable occasion! " - Rae, Hawke's Bay
4. BEETHOVEN: Symphony No 9 in D minor Op 125, Choral (Ode to Joy)
Performed by the Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra conducted by Giordano Bellincampi, Auckland Town Hall, 3 March 2023. Recorded by RNZ Concert.
"The combination of instruments and vocals in an epic amalgamation about bringing people together as one…we could use a bit of that." - Tim, Napier
"The variety of themes and emotions are amazing. Plus, it is just so experimental and crazy for the time! I like to think of people in the audience when it first came out, they must have been astonished. This isn't nice, safe Handel or Vivaldi. This is an explosion of experimental genius." - Stella, Malvern Hills
"The slow movement of this unparalleled music seems to come from a different world. But there is also such a melancholy, almost like a musical question about the meaning of our earthly life!" - Wolfram, Rodney
5. RACHMANINOV: Piano Concerto No 2 in C minor Op 18
Pianist Louis Lortie with the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra conducted by Asher Fisch, Michael Fowler Centre, Wellington 6 September 2019. Recorded by RNZ Concert.
"I adore this piece. I listen to it all the time and it’s just so beautiful. I love the agile, graceful piano work and the resonance of the orchestra. I’ve sung some of Rachmaninov’s stuff, but this piece is truly something special." - Maggie, Wellington
"I have always loved this piece, particularly as I saw the black and white movie about Rachmaninov feeling like a failure and how he used hypnosis to build his self-esteem, and this piece is what came out. The beginning of the self-help movement I believe." - Kalar, Ruby Bay
"Emotionally moving and constantly melodic. Plus, its inclusion in the movie Seven Year Itch with its spellbinding effect on Tom Ewell in his imagined role as a romantic lover provides a scene of extreme humour not contemplated by the composer!" - Barry, Auckland
6. VIVALDI: Four Seasons
Performed by NZ Barok and visiting violinist Ryo Terakado at St Luke's Church, Remuera, Auckland, 2 May 2021. Recorded by RNZ Concert.
"Very rarely is something captured so precisely, so accurately, and such clear imagery portrayed through music. You can actually 'hear' each season, feel the wind, the sun, see the leaves, smell the grass. Utter perfection, so effective and perfect it is universally known and adored." - Jim, Masterton
"I can't pick my favourite season; they all just make my heart swell with delight and joy. I first heard it before I was 10 and I'm now 78. Definitely a keeper." - Lorna, Fernside
"Don't even listen to classical on the regular. Really surprised when I encountered Max Richter's Spring. Made this grown man cry multiple times." - Neshko, Palmerston North
"I work with special needs children and they all love listening to this. It is an old favourite but always so evocative." - Liza, Lyttelton
7. ELGAR: Enigma Variations (including Nimrod & Lux Aeterna)
"This has been played at Anzac services I have attended, and it always raises the hair on the back of my neck." - Alistair, Auckland
"It is slow and melancholic and reminds me that music can take us to high places and low places and the lows are not something to fear." - John, Hamilton
"Always played on the school organ at the closing of the academic school year and the start of holidays. Always spine-chilling, full of emotion for endings and beginnings, remains a powerful musical expression for me." - Michael, Christchurch
8. VAUGHAN WILLIAMS: Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis
Performed by the Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra conducted by Vincent Hardaker, Auckland Town Hall, 24 August 2023. Recorded by RNZ Concert.
"Music so beautiful that it took two composers over 300 years to compose it." - Graham, Hamilton
"It is a very poignant and emotive music. A lot of classical music scores can easily blend into each other, but this composition does not. It speaks directly to the soul in a haunting manner that leaves the listener feeling challenged and rewarded." - Jim, Masterton
"It moves my soul like no other piece of music does. Every time I hear it, it fills a longing for the sublime that I have forgotten I have." - Lynn, Far North
9. DVORAK: Symphony No 9, From the New World (including Largo, 'Goin' Home')
Performed by the Dunedin Symphony Orchestra conducted by Simon Over, Dunedin Town Hall, 23 September 2023. Recorded by RNZ Concert.
"A go-to for calm optimism when times seem tough or I just need friendly, encouraging company while doing the housework." - Wilma, Ōtātara
"I discovered this piece in an anime named One Piece. It fit the climactic scene so perfectly and became my gateway into the world of classical music." - Te Awhiroa, Ōtautahi/Christchurch
"“From the New World” is an enduring piece. There is a sense of triumph in the almost military use of brass, contrasted by the flow of strings between these loud hails. Dvořák's piece carries a sense of optimism, reflecting the United States of America's rising status as a world power, ultimately hailing the frontier which had closed in 1890, and moving the 'New World' to look outwards." - ATM, Titirangi
10. BACH: Cello Suite (s)
Performed by Jaemin Han for the Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra, Auckland Town Hall, 20 April 2023. Recorded by RNZ Concert.
"Clean and crisp, rich and wholesome." - Matt, Flagstaff
"It calms me and lifts my spirit at the same time. The rich notes of the cello reach right to my centre. Listening to an entire Suite with eyes closed takes you on a wonderful journey." - Kim, Auckland
"For eight years when I travelled on the 6am train to Wellington from Waikanae, I listened to these every morning. (It was a Colin Carr recording, who I had heard live in an amazing performance in the Nelson Cathedral at an Adam Chamber Music Festival.) Then when the Christchurch Town Hall reopened after the earthquake, I heard Yo-Yo Ma perform these in a magical performance which I will always remember. Being in the ChCh Town Hall again after so many years and the artistry and humanity of Yo-Yo Ma made for an electrifying performance and the audience responded wonderfully!" - Alison, Wellington
11. HANDEL: Messiah (including the Hallelujah Chorus and many, many more)
12. MOZART: Clarinet Concerto in A K622
13. FAURE: Requiem Op 48
14. BACH: Concerto for 2 violins in D minor BWV 1043
15. DEBUSSY: Clair de Lune, from Suite Bergamasque
16. ALLEGRI: Miserere mei, Deus
17.= BACH: Brandenburg Concerto (s)
17.= ELGAR: Cello Concerto in E minor Op 85
18. BRUCH: Violin Concerto No 1 in G minor Op 26
19. GERSHWIN: Rhapsody in Blue
20. STRAUSS, RICHARD: Four Last Songs
21. MOZART: Requiem in D minor K626 (including the Lacrimosa and Dies Irae)
22. BACH: St Matthew Passion
23. BARBER: Adagio for Strings (or choral version 'Agnus Dei')
24. HOLST: The Planets (including Jupiter, Mars, Venus)
25.= BIZET: Au Fond du Temple Saint, from The Pearl Fishers
25.= KELLY, V: Requiem - II Requiem by Sam Hunt.
"Deeply emotional. Makes me hold my breath, sway, shed a tear. And fills my heart with pride for our Kiwi composers and poets." - Ashley, Auckland
"It is so serene, pensive, humane and unearthly. An instant NZ classic." - Joanna, Pōneke/Wellington
"This is a beautiful, heart-rending piece with the music perfect for the words and Simon O'Neill sings it with such tenderness and clarity." - Anne, Kapiti
"The piece is very simply written but the use of the falsetto range of the tenor voice brings a gentle tension and pathos. I also love the version in te reo Māori, sung by Anika Moa. The music supports the poem well, letting the words speak." - Deborah, Kapiti
26. BEETHOVEN: Piano Sonata No 14 in C# minor, Moonlight
27. RODRIGO: Concierto de Aranjuez
28. BEETHOVEN: Symphony No 7 in A Op 92
29. RACHMANINOV: Piano Concerto No 3 in D minor Op 30
30. BEETHOVEN: Symphony No 6 in F Op 68, Pastoral
