“I hope that reading these stories is like sitting down with Dotty at her kitchen table and having a cup of tea or glass of pinot gris together.” Lindsay Mitchell
Photo: Cuba Press
Dorothy Buchanan is a prolific, much loved and much awarded composer, who pioneered the composer-in-schools scheme and has been a force in music and music-making in Aotearoa for over half a century.
The Birds Began to Sing: A Memoir of a New Zealand Composer has recently been published by The Cuba Press.
Writer Lindsay Mitchell spent eight months interviewing Dorothy Buchanan for the memoir.
She spoke to Cynthia Morahan about how the project came about, and what the process involved.
The Birds Began to Sing: A Memoir of a New Zealand Composer is the Daybreak book of the month. To win a copy, answer the question below.
On which New Zealand island was Dorothy Buchanan born? North Island, South Island or Rakiura/Stewart Island?
Send your answer to daybreak@rnz.co.nz and tune into Daybreak with Cynthia Morahan on RNZ Concert, weekdays from 6-9am.
Music details
BUCHANAN: Century fanfare, Peace, excerpt - Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra/Miguel Harth-Bedoya (Atoll ACD 100)
BUCHANAN: Flute Song for the Birds, excerpt - Bridget Douglas (flute) (Trust MMT 2063-64)
BUCHANAN: Peace Song, excerpt - choirs from Lutheran Redeemer College, Australia
