A Taste of Sound

Name: A Taste of Sound
Start: 2026-01-31T09:30:00+13:00
End: 2026-01-31T11:30:00+13:00
Location: Nelson Centre of Musical Arts

Schedule

Sat Jan 31 2026 at 09:30 am to 11:30 am

UTC+13:00

Location

Nelson Centre of Musical Arts | Nelson, NE

We’ve invited Nelson’s own Hogarth Chocolate Makers to delight your tastebuds and elevate your listening experience.
Kevin Lau – A Drop of Light – New Zealand String Quartet with guest cellist Lavinnia Rae, Phoebe Russell (double bass), James Campbell (clarinet), Shadley van Wyck (horn), Todd Gibson-Cornish (bassoon)
Chocolate pairing: Buttered Toast & Sea Salt – savoury and salty. Like the music, it wakes you up.
James Rolfe – Six Songs – Colin Ainsworth (tenor), Sarah Watkins (piano), New Zealand String Quartet
Chocolate pairing: Hazelnut Coffee Caramel – perfect for this song cycle which has some sweet and smooth songs, along with some intense and nutty ones as well. Sweet, frenetic, tempestuous, heartfelt.
César Franck – Piano Quintet – New Zealand String Quartet, Jeremy Denk (piano)
Chocolate pairing: 72% Dark – the brooding Romantic fervour of the quintet is matched by the chocolate’s dark intensity. Piquant, luscious.
Three distinctive works, three unique flavours – both musical and edible – come together in this richly textured and emotionally vivid programme.
We celebrate our Canadian artists, James Campbell and Colin Ainsworth, by showcasing two composers from their home country. The concert begins with Kevin Lau’s A Drop of Light, a luminous and rhythmically charged piece for mixed ensemble. Like its chocolate match – Buttered Toast & Sea Salt – the music is savoury, surprising, and full of bite. With its bold instrumentation and kinetic energy, this piece is sure to sharpen the senses.
Next, we turn to James Rolfe’s Six Songs, set to poems from Walt Whitman’s collection, Leaves of Grass, which explore facets of desire, whether quiet, turbulent, or defiant. The accompanying flavour, Hazelnut Coffee Caramel, reflects the work’s vibrant contrasts – sweet, bold, nutty, and richly layered.
Finally, we are swept into the turbulent depths of César Franck’s Piano Quintet, a Romantic tour de force brimming with raw longing and intensity, depicting Franck’s feelings for his beautiful composition student, Augusta Holmès. We pair it with 72% Dark, as rich and intense as the music itself.
Duration: Approx 120 minutes, no interval
Proudly supported by Bonni Ross & Matthew Eades