Behind the Scenes

2009/2010 Emerging Artists

• 2009/2010 Emerging Artists
• 2009/2010 Young Artist
• 2009/2010 Resident Artists
• Artist in Profile
• Past Interns

Brigitte Heuser
_{mezzo soprano}

Born in Wellington, Brigitte's early music experience included violin studies and singing with the Wellington Opera children's chorus.  Recently selected as a PwC Dame Malvina Major Emerging Artist, Brigitte gained a Bachelor of Arts (majoring in Film and Media Studies) from Otago University in 2005. In 2006 she completed her Bachelor of Music with Honours (1st class) from the New Zealand School of Music, majoring in Vocal performance. In 2007 Brigitte studied at the Australian Opera Studio (Perth), and graduated in 2008 with Merit.  Brigitte's operatic repertoire includes Hänsel, Hänsel und Gretel (Humperdinck), Annio, La Clemenza di Tito; Idamante, Idomeneo (Mozart); The Mother, Mavra (Stravinsky); Aloes, L'Etoile (Chabrier); Jenny Diver, Threepenny Opera (Weill) and Susan, The Genteel Pigeons (Drummond). Brigitte's concert repertoire includes the Alto solos in Bruckner's Te Deum, Mozart's Requiem and Vivaldi's Magnificat and Gloria.  In 2008 Brigitte performed to a sold out audience in Tokyo for the International Foundation of Arts and Culture.  Competition success includes PACANZ National Vocal performer of the year 2006, the Moyra Todd and Les and Sonia Andrews cultural foundation scholarships.

Polly Ott
_soprano

Polly has a Bachelor of Music degree from the University of Canterbury majoring in performance voice under the tuition of Dame Malvina Major and completes an honours degree in 2009. She performed in the chorus of Carmen in 2007 and Il Trovatore in 2008 with Southern Opera as well performances with the Solid Energy Southern Opera Ensemble in provincial towns throughout the South Island. Her most recent highlight was selection as a finalist for this year's Lexus Song Quest, performing with the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra.  Previously Polly was a member of the Tower NZ Youth Choir which successfully toured Canada and Europe in 2007. She was also a member of the NZ Secondary Students' Choir from 2003 to 2006, which toured Canada and the USA in August 2004 winning international competitions, including the Choir of World competition in China in 2006. Polly has performed for the Dame Malvina Major Foundation, and as a Wedding Singer for Watabe Weddings, Christchurch.  Polly is a 2009/2010 PwC Dame Malvina Major Emerging Artist with The NBR New Zealand Opera.

Andrew Grenon
_tenor

Current PwC Dame Malvina Major Emerging Artist and born and raised in Christchurch, Andrew has been singing since childhood. A high school music teacher encouraged him to take singing more seriously and he studied voice at the University of Canterbury under Vernon Midgley.  He recently graduated with a Bachelor of Music with Honours.  Andrew has sung a wide variety of choral, concert and opera repertoire. His work includes the role of 'Jimmy Sullivan' in the 2006 Platform Arts Festival production of Anthony Ritchie's God Boy, Karl Jenkins' The Armed Man and Rachmaninoff Vespers for the Christchurch City Choir, and Pilate in Arvo Pärt's Passio with youth choral group, Cantores. He toured with the Christchurch Cathedral Choir to England during July and August of 2008.

Alexandra Ioan
_soprano

Newly appointed PwC Dame Malvina Major Emerging Artist, Alexandra is currently completing her Masters in Music (Voice Performance) at the University of Auckland. Originally from Romania, Alexandra studied piano, alongside choir, music theory and Romanian folk dancing.  She has a Bachelor of Music (Honours) and a Bachelor of Commerce majoring in Accounting. Scholarships include the Reardon Postgraduate and Kathleen Mary Reardon Travelling scholarship, the Evelyn M. Harrison and the Pears-Britten scholarship.  Alexandra recently won both the Becroft Aria, North Shore competitions, and the Napier Computer Systems Aria and last year was a finalist in the New Zealand Aria in Rotorua. She has been a member of Opera Factory for four years and in 2008 successfully auditioned for the Chapman Tripp Opera chorus. Her most recent opera roles are Olympia, Prima Donna (Arthur Benjamin); Miss Wordsworth, Albert Herring (Britten) and Isobel, A Factory Opera (David Griffiths). Highlights include singing Pie Jesu alongside Dame Kiri Te Kanawa at the Nelson Sealord Opera in the Park in 2008 and performing with the APO in the New Zealand Aria final.