Over 90 aspiring New Zealand Symphony Orchestra musicians will present this grand concert celebrating Richard Strauss' 150th birthday, featuring:

Richard Strauss - Don Juan Composer-in-Residence Sarah Ballard - Synergos Richard Strauss - Also Sprach Zarathustra Alexander Shelley - conductor Strauss' iconic Also Sprach Zarathustra immediately evokes Stanley Kubrick’s 2001: A Space Odyssey. The shattering intensity with which the orchestra explodes makes it easy to hear why the film director was so entranced.

Strauss’s tone poem Don Juan takes the audience on another exhilarating journey, this time into the passionate love affairs of our scandalous hero. Composed when Strauss was only 24, the work is filled with youthful optimism.

Under the direction of Shakespeare in Music’s Alexander Shelley, and in celebration of the remarkable talents of our young musicians, NZSO also feature a new commission from their 2014 NZSO National Youth Orchestra Composer-in-Residence, Sarah Ballard.

No pre-concert talk. Concert duration: 1 hour 11 minutes.

Presented by New Zealand Symphony Orchestra. Principal Sponsors Adam Foundation and Crowne Plaza Hotels & Resorts.

If you book three or more NZSO concerts you will be entitled to all of the fantastic additional benefits available to NZSO Season Ticket Holders including free tickets to see this concert. Call 0800 479 674 for more details or visit nzso.co.nz/why-subscribe.