Anna studied languages and business at Waikato University and later, during years working and travelling in the UK, decided on a career in arts management. Following postgraduate studies in Arts Administration at London City University, she worked in touring theatre production in the north of England. On her return to New Zealand, Anna joined Taki Rua Productions as Business Manager, producing ground-breaking theatre from Maori playwrights including Witi Ihimaera, Toa Fraser and Briar Grace-Smith, and touring Maori language plays to schools and kohanga reo throughout New Zealand. Anna joined NZ Secondary Students’ Choir in 2009, working alongside Musical Director Andrew Withington for nine years, then current MD Sue Densem.

Brent Stewart is currently Orpheus Choir Wellington’s Music Director, Orchestra Wellington’s Principal Percussionist, and NZSSC’s Assistant Director. On the side, Brent also serves as NZSO’s director of filming. Brent was HoD Music at Wellington East Girls’ College from 2010-2019 and Music Director of the Hutt Valley Orchestra from 2007-2017. Coming up, Brent will be conducting Benee’s New Zealand tour with the NZSO and Auckland Philharmonia, plus the NZ Synthony tour with Christchurch Symphony Orchestra, Orchestra Wellington and APO. Brent is also conducting Red! with New Zealand Opera in August and preparing for a French programme with the St Matthew’s Chamber Orchestra in September. Also on the calendar to conduct this year is Szymanowski’s Stabat Mater and Bach’s B Minor Mass with            Orchestra Wellington and Orpheus Choir Wellington.

Susan is conductor, singer and multi-instrumentalist. She began her professional singing career in 1986 with Canterbury Opera and has performed with Queensland Opera and New Zealand Opera. Susan has sung as a soloist for many choral societies within New Zealand and Australia, touring extensively overseas with a number of ensembles.

After completing her music degree and teaching qualifications in Christchurch she studied voice at the Queensland Conservatorium of Music. In Queensland she worked with the Queensland Arts Council and Opera company performing opera in schools across the state.

Susan currently works as an Itinerant Teacher of Music at Burnside High School where she teaches voice and conducts two award winning choirs. She is a past Music Director of the Jubilate Singers and the University of Canterbury Chamber Choir (Consortia).

As a chorister Susan has sung in the Jubilate Singers, The Queensland University Chamber Singers, the New Zealand Youth Choir and is a current member of Voices New Zealand.

Diana Cable has 24 years’ experience in the arts sector. After 4 years as an Industrial Relations Officer in the State Services Commission, Diana turned to the arts in 1986. One year managing Wellington City Opera was followed by 10 years as a Music Producer at Radio New Zealand Concert. She then worked as an independent producer for 7 years and was appointed as Artistic Administrator of the New Zealand International Arts Festival in 2003, after working for the Festival on a contract basis from 1997.

Having managed the Lexus Song Quest (formerly Mobil) since 1990, Diana also has considerable experience working with young singers.

Diana is a member of the Board of Trustees of Choirs Aotearoa New Zealand and Chair of its Artistic Advisory Group, a member of the Wellington Creative Communities grants committee and a Past President of the New Zealand Opera Society.

Diana is an alumnus of the New Zealand Youth Choir.

Emma Billings has worked for Choirs Aotearoa NZ since April 2005, both in her current role as Operations Manager and previously as the Choir Administrator.

Emma came to the choirs after spending three years working for the Centre for Contemporary Arts (CCA) in Glasgow, Scotland, and previously for Arts Access Aotearoa and the Museum of Wellington City and Sea.

She has always been interested in arts management and completed a BA in Art History and BCA in Marketing at Victoria University of Wellington.

Arne Herrmann has worked for over 20 years in Arts and Festival Management in New Zealand.

He held senior management positions at New Zealand Festival, Auckland Arts Festival, Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra, UNITEC School of Performing and Screen Arts and the contemporary dance company The Human Garden. Arne was the Festival Director of the National Jazz Festival and Garden&ArtFest in Tauranga. His work also included the Lexus SongQuest, Michael Hill International Violin Competition, Wellington Jazz Festival and National Youth Jazz Competition.

As freelance consultant Arne’s clients included the New Zealand Opera, Indian Ink Theatre, Te Matatini Kapa Haka Festival and the Hamilton Gardens Arts Festival.

Arne Herrmann took up the role as Chief Executive of Choirs Aotearoa New Zealand in May 2016.

DMA, DipRAM, PGDip(Perf), BMus(Hons), LRAM

Dr Morag Atchison is one of New Zealand’s leading sopranos and pedagogues. She studied at the University of Auckland and Royal Academy of Music (London), and was a finalist in the Kathleen Ferrier and Royal Over-Seas League competitions. Her operatic roles include Helmwige, Die Walküre (NZSO); Lady-in-waiting, Macbeth; First Lady, Magic Flute (NBR NZ Opera); Fourth Maid, Elektra (APO); Blumenmädchen, Parsifal (NZSO), and Tosca (cover) for NZ Opera. Morag works regularly with all of New Zealand’s major orchestras and choral societies, and has performed as a soloist in Canada, the USA, Italy, The Netherlands, France, Kenya, Seychelles, and throughout the UK. Recent highlights include Britten War Requiem with the Christchurch Symphony Orchestra, Carmina Burana with the Christchurch City Choir, Verdi Requiem with Bach Musica, Pierrot Lunaire for the University of Auckland, and recitals for Chamber Music New Zealand with Catrin Johnsson and Rachel Fuller. Morag is also a member of the national chamber choir, Voices New Zealand.

Morag is a Lecturer in Voice at the University of Auckland, and is a vocal tutor for the highly acclaimed NZ Youth Choir, University of Auckland Chamber Choir, Choralation from Westlake Girls’ and Boys’ High Schools, and is on staff at the NZ Singing School. This year Morag will be presenting lectures at the World Choral Symposium in Barcelona (with Assoc Prof Karen Grylls), and at the International Congress of Voice Teachers in Stockholm.

MMus (Hons), PGDipMus, BMus, DipTchg
David Squire is one of New Zealand’s most prominent conductors, and Music Director of the New Zealand Youth Choir. Founding member and vice-chair of the New Zealand Association of Choral Directors, he is also a national conducting advisor and tutor, and a governance board member of the New Zealand Choral Federation.
David completed his undergraduate study at the University of Auckland, with an emphasis on conducting and composition, later graduating with a Master of Music degree with first class honours in choral conducting. He studied singing with Isabel Cunningham, Glenese Blake and Beatrice Webster, and conducting with Karen Grylls and Juan Matteucci. He has sung with many top choirs inNew Zealand, including the Auckland Dorian Choir,UniversityofAuckland Chamber Choirand the New Zealand Youth Choir. He was also a founding member of Voices New Zealand Chamber Choir and the V8 Vocal Ensemble.
David was appointed to the position of Music Director of the New Zealand Youth Choir in 2011, and is the first alumnus conductor of the choir. He has led the choir on two international tours, including the USA and Canada in 2013, which featured performances of the War Requiem by Britten in the Walk Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles, as well as concerts in Toronto, Ottawa, Montreal, Boston, New York and Washington DC. In 2016 the choir gave concerts in Singapore, the Czech Republic, France and the UK. Tour highlights included singing high mass at Notre-Dame in Paris, a lunchtime concert at Windsor Castle, and producing a live DVD recording of a well-received concert at St Johns Smith Square in London. The choir also participated in the Festival of Academic Choirs in Pardubice, Czech Republic, winning every category it entered, as well as the prize for outstanding vocal culture, and then going on to win the Grand Prix.
David has taught music in secondary schools for almost 30 years, directing choirs, orchestras and bands, including many groups that have won local, national and international awards. His mixed-voice chamber choir from Rangitoto College, The Fundamentals, won the platinum award at the 2008 NZCF Big Sing Finale in Wellington – the first time a mixed-voice choir achieved this. The Westlake Symphony Orchestra has won a gold award at every KBB Music Festival for more than fifteen years, and also won every award for the best orchestral performance of a New Zealand work for ten of the twelve years it has been presented. In July 2014 the orchestra won first equal prize at the Summa Cum Laude International Youth Music Festival in Vienna, Austria. His girls’ choir from Kristin School, Euphony, was placed third in the open female choir competition at the International Musical Eisteddfod in Llangollen, Wales, in July 2013, and then represented New Zealand at the ChoralFest convention in Brisbane in 2017. As a freelance music educator, David teaches in several secondary schools and also takes workshops and professional development courses throughout the country.
David has conducted several local ensembles, including the Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra and the St Matthews Chamber Orchestra. He was the assistant musical director of the New Zealand Secondary Students’ Choir, founding musical director of the Auckland Youth Big Band, chairman and administrator of the KBB Music Festival, and a live performance reviewer for Radio NZ Concert. He is often involved in session and recording work, particularly as a conductor, adjudicator, clinician and singer, including a tour with George Benson as backing vocalist in 2010. He was the choral adjudicator and clinician at the Rhapsody Rotorua festival for four consecutive years. He presented workshops at the 2009, 2013 and 2016 Sing Aotearoa Festivals and the 2010 International Summer School of Choral Conducting, where he was a mentor and tutor. In 2011 he directed training workshops for choirs singing the anthems at the Rugby World Cup, and then conducted anthem choirs at seven matches. In 2012 he was a mentor and workshop presenter at the inaugural ACD Choral Connect convention. In March 2017 he was guest conductor of the mixed honour choir at the AMIS festival in Abu Dhabi, UAE, and in July 2017 he directed the choir for Neil Finn’s critically acclaimed album Out of Silence. In February 2018 he was appointed chorusmaster and choral director for the International Schools Choral Music Society, having taken on this role at the annual festival held in Suzhou, China.
In March 2011 he was awarded a New Zealander of the Year Local Heroes Medal for services to music education.

PhD, MM (Choral Conducting), MMus Hons, LRSM, LTCL, Dip Teaching

Dr Karen Grylls CNZM founded Voices New Zealand Chamber Choir in 1998 and the choir has achieved great acclaim internationally in performance and recording. She is Associate Professor in Choral Conducting at the University of Auckland and is Artistic Director of the Choirs Aotearoa New Zealand Trust, the managing body for the NZ Youth Choir and Voices NZ. Dr Grylls was Conductor and Artistic Director of the New Zealand Youth Choir from 1989 to 2011, and Artistic Director of Toronto’s Exultate Chamber Choir from 2011 to 2013.
A graduate of both Otago and Auckland Universities, Karen studied post-graduate Conducting and Music Theory at the University of Washington, Seattle, for four years. In 1985 she returned to NZ to teach at the University of Auckland and take up the directorship of the Auckland Dorian Choir.

As a result of her musical directorship, the New Zealand Youth Choir has enjoyed notable international successes including: the Silver Rosebowl in the “Let the Peoples Sing” radio competition in 1992, “Choir of the World” at the 1999 International Eisteddfod in Llangollen and the “Grand Prix Slovakia” also in 1999.

With equal success Voices New Zealand won first and second placings in the mixed choir section of the Tolosa International Choral Competition in October 1998. With these choirs, she has won further prizes and accolades in Gorizia 2004, and Llangollen and Cantonigros, Spain in 2007.

In 1996 Auckland University honoured her with a Distinguished Teaching Award in Music and in 2023 she became an Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit (CNZM) for her services to choral music. She is also the recipient of the KBB Citation from the Composers’ Association of New Zealand and the Lilburn Trust Citation for services to New Zealand music. TOWER Voices CD Spirit of the Land took the 2006 Tui Award for Best Classical Album, and the CD Voice of the Soul was a finalist in the 2013 Vodafone NZ Music awards.

Karen is much in demand as an adjudicator for competitions worldwide, including the 48th International competition in Tolosa, the Marktoberdorf International Chamber Choir Competition, Bavaria, and The World Choir Games in Xiamen, China. She is sought internationally as a choral clinician and regularly conducts masterclasses and workshops in Wales, England, North America, Canada and Australia.

Latafale joined NZ Youth Choir in 2013. 

Latafale attended King’s College in 2010. She won the Vice-Chancellors Top Pacific Scholarship to Auckland, but opted to study a double degree in Law and Music at Otago University, on the Faculty of Law’s Prestigious 5 year Scholarship.

Latafale works as the Music Director for Student Soul in Dunedin and dances with the Otago Dancers.

David Hamilton joined Choirs Aotearoa NZ’s Board of Trustees in September 2012. David is an alumnus of NZ Youth Choir and is a teacher and widely performed composer with a particular interest in choral music.