Upbeat Podcast Options

9:35 AM.Calling Home this week is Dunedin-born tenor Nicholas Madden. He's a Lay Clerk at St George's Chapel, Windsor Castle, and lives in the castle grounds. Read more Audio

5:53 AM.That beautiful Christmas tune - Prokofiev's Troika - and others will be played live this weekend and next by the Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra in their interactive family concert series APO 4 Kids… Read more Audio

9:35 AM.In March 2021, Ihitai'Avei'a – Star Navigator premiered to sell-out crowds in South Auckland, then Covid-19 closed the curtains. Composer Tim Finn and writer Célestine Hitiura Vaite talk about its… Read more Video, Audio

12:48 PM.Sound artist and composer Jesse Austin-Stewart has created an album of music vibration compositions, designed to be felt rather than heard. By holding a PlayStation Dualsense controller, the music can… Read more Video, Audio

11:30 AM.Auckland-based composer Victoria Kelly's latest work Requiem takes inspiration from the work of New Zealand poets and photography - drawing on the words of Bill Manhire, Sam Hunt, Chloe Honum, Ian… Read more Video, Audio

9:30 PM.Music Director of the National Band of New Zealand, David Bremner joins the show with a wonderful mix of brass music to mark the coming Christmas season. Read more Video, Audio

1:37 PM.The Mosgiel Brass Band celebrated their 150th Anniversary over the weekend. Front and centre was Barbara Cooper, who's been playing in brass bands for 70 years. Barbara speaks to Jesse. Read more Audio

4:00 PM.This weeks guest on the Mixtape is choreographer and dancer Neil Leremia. Read more Audio

9:07 PM.Georgia Steel started playing viola at the relatively ripe age of 17 and now, just 10 years later, she is a highly-sought after viola, violin and piano teacher. Read more Audio

12:31 PM.When immigrants arrived in New Zealand in the Nineteenth Century, they brought with them some enthusiastic musician / composers. Their success rate was a bit hit or miss, according to composer and… Read more Audio

1:30 PM.Wellington based, Filipino-born bassist and composer Seth Boy often combines the musical influences of his home country and of jazz greats like Duke Ellington, and John Coltrane in his work. Seth has… Read more Video, Audio

12:46 PM.Winning this year's $50,000 Dame Malvina Major Award is allowing Christchurch tenor Oliver Sewell to live the dream and forge an international career. Oliver's currently in Europe after recently… Read more Audio

10:05 AM.Lalah Hathaway has been dubbed "first daughter of soul", a fitting tribute to her late father - the celebrated soul singer and musician Donny Hathaway. The singer had been battling mental ill health… Read more Audio

11:50 AM.Performing arts reviewer Michael Hooper joins Kathryn to talk about New Zealand Opera's current tour of MacBeth. It's a new production by Netia Jones, conducted by Brad Cohen and features Phillip… Read more Audio

9:50 AM.Grounded in the Celtic musical traditions, multi-instrumentalist Rennie Pearson is about to head around the North Island as he releases his new solo album filled with traditional music of Ireland… Read more Audio

8:50 AM.Te Whare Wananga o Waitaha University of Canterbury Librarian Lisa Davies (Kai Tahu) is determined to make te reo more accessible. She's also a jazz musician, so she's brought both together. She's… Read more Audio

1:46 PM.NZ Barok - New Zealand's Baroque instrument orchestra is about to reunite after a lengthy hiatus, putting their own spin on famous and lesser-known examples of Baroque - classical music of the… Read more Audio

11:05 AM.After 17 years hosting Nights, RNZ presenter Bryan Crump heads over to our fine music network RNZ Concert this month. He joins Kim Hill to play some favourite songs and chat about his career. Read more Video, Audio, Gallery

11:30 AM.Lynn speaks to the Grammy award-winning composer and conductor, Eric Whitacre. Usually based in Los Angeles, he's currently in New Zealand touring one of his most recent compositions 'The Sacred… Read more Audio

7:20 AM.Opera singer Dame Kiri Te Kanawa and New Zealand Cross recipient Jacinda Amey say they feel honoured to be invited to attend the Queen's funeral. As part of New Zealand's delegation for the event they… Read more Audio

1:31 PM.Verdi's opera Macbeth is very true to Shakespeare's tale of a well-regarded military leader corrupted by his conviction he's destined to become King. Playing the lead role in NZ Opera's new… Read more Audio

9:05 AM.A new production of Verdi's Macbeth from NZ Opera moves away from the "Scottishness" of the source material and leans into the psychological and emotional content of the piece as an exploration of… Read more Audio

12:15 PM.Shortly, the next generation of elite New Zealand opera singers won't have to win a scholarship, find tens of thousands of dollars, or be separated from their families to train overseas for an… Read more Audio

7:35 PM.Shahram Aryan is back once again to introduce us to more of the music of Persia. Tonight we listen to some Akram Banaee. Read more Audio