Despite its geographical isolation from the traditional centres of the operatic world, Aotearoa New Zealand has produced a remarkable number of exceptional opera singers in the twentieth and twenty-first centuries and this tradition shows every sign of continuing. Of all these outstanding ‘southern voices’, the most immediately and internationally recognisable is Dame Kiri te Kanawa, who celebrated her eightieth birthday on Wednesday 6 March 2024. You can access tributes to, and interviews with Kiri te Kanawa via Radio New Zealand, including Playing Favourites with Dame Kiri Te Kanawa, Happy Birthday, Dame Kiri, Dame Kiri at 80, and Dame Kiri’s 80th birthday, a day of celebration.

Wellington City Libraries hold in their collection many recordings, both on CD and DVD, of performances by Kiri Te Kanawa, including fully staged operas, and song recitals;  this blog will explore a handful of those recordings and other materials. Continue reading “Dame Kiri Te Kanawa at 80: recordings and tributes” →