Originally from Taupō, Fergus Byett moved to Hamilton in 2019 to study Classical Performance (Piano) at the University of Waikato. With the support of a Sir Edmund Hillary Scholarship, he completed his undergraduate studies under Katherine Austin, and in 2023 he completed his Masters under Dr. Rae de Lisle. In the same year, Fergus won the University of Waikato Concerto Competition, Bach Competition and Chamber Music Competition, as well as Recital and Concerto classes at the 2023 Hamilton Competitions. His compositions have won national awards, including in the ‘Compose Aotearoa!’ Composition Competition, and in 2024, he currently holds Composer-in-Residence roles with Choirs Aotearoa and the Auckland Youth Choir. He has also completed several commissions for community ensembles in the Waikato. He is a collaborative pianist at the University of Waikato, where he has also worked as a music theory and piano tutor, and he is a founding Artistic Director of the Waikato Youth Choir. Fergus is one of the organists at the Waikato Cathedral Church of St. Peter, where he has accompanied the Cathedral Singers since 2023. As a Summer Research Scholar, Fergus also worked on an article which has now been published in the British Journal of Music Education, and he is a fluent speaker of te reo Māori, having recently completed a Level 7 Diploma through Te Wānanga o Aotearoa.
CANZ seeks to protect and honour the national taonga of Te Ao Māori both when we perform with our national choirs and in our day to day operations.
We aim to:
– Increase our usage of Te Reo Māori in our daily operations, publications and concerts
– Publish an Interculturalism Policy
– Develop and enhance relationships with Māori composers
– Ensure all music that is attributable to, or derived from, Māori composers and lyricists is used with proper and appropriate permissions, payments, and attributions
We won’t always get it right and recognise there is a lot to do, so we welcome your ideas or feedback about how we can improve our approach.
Please contact us at ceo@choirsnz.co.nz or chair@choirsnz.co.nz, or feel free to have a chat with us when you’re at our next concert!
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Ka manaakitia, ka whakamānawatia hoki e CANZ te taonga o te ao Māori ina i ā mātou whakaaturanga me ā mātou mahi o ia rā.
Ka whāia e mātou:
– Te pikinga o te whakamahinga o te reo Māori i ā mātou mahi o ia rā, ā mātou whakaputanga, ā mātou whakaaturanga hoki.
– Tētahi kaupapahere whanaungatanga te tuhi.
– Te whanake me te whamana i ngā whanaungatanga ki ngā kaitito Māori.
– Ngā kaitito me ngā kaiwhakaari Māori te whakamana ki ngā whakaaetanga tika, ngā utu tika, ngā mihi tika hoki.
Kāhore mātou e tika ana i ngā wā katoa, ka mutu, e mōhio ana he nui ngā mahi kei mua i a tātou nō reira e pōhiritia ana ō whakaaro mō tō mātou whanaketanga.
Hena koa kia whakapā mai ki a mātou ki ceo@choirsnz.co.nz ki chair@choirsnz.co.nz rānei, e pai ana hoki kia kōrerorero ki a mātou i ā mātou whakaaturanga.
