Grace Wellik, Auckland Philharmonia's Young Composer-in-Residence for 2025 Photo: Thomas Hamill
Sometimes a school assignment can change a life.
Grace Wellik hadn't given much thought to writing music, until a Wellington Girls' College composing assignment came around.
Her teacher thought the result so good, she suggested Wellik write some more.
Before long she'd had her music performed by the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra, and now she is the Auckland Philharmonia's 2025 Young Composer-in-Residence.
That's already led to one new piece, "Meditations on the Waitemata Harbour", with two further works scheduled for performance later in the year.
The Meditations got its world premiere earlier this month at the end of the Auckland Philharmonia’s Orchestral Summer School.
Wellik told RNZ Concert host Bryan Crump the piece was inspired by her ferry commute into Auckland University (where she is studying composing) from the city's North Shore.
A great place to meditate. Photo: 123RF
Wellik's second piece for the Auckland Philharmonia will be part of its Discovery Concert for schools in May, and later in the year she'll be writing a chamber piece for members of the orchestra.
Evie Dwyer-Leech, the Auckland Philharmonia's Tertiary Projects Executive from its Learning & Participation team, says as the Young Composer-in-Residence, Wellik not only gets the opportunity to write for a full orchestra, but receives mentoring from established composers including Ryan Youens, and the UK-based New Zealander, Lucy Mulgan.
Wellik says she's about halfway through completing her second piece for the orchestra. It hasn't got a title yet, but she's loving the experience of writing for an orchestral canvas.
Turns out she's always had big tunes playing in her head, it just didn't occur to her that she could write them down so others could hear them too - until that high school assignment.
