A successful 'Christmas High Tea' - times two!
What a magical afternoon of festive cheer! Our Christmas High Tea concert was an absolute triumph, welcoming over 170 wonderful audience members across two spectacular sessions. The music, the joy, and the warmth of the season truly came alive as we shared this special moment together.
A heartfelt thank you to all our incredible supporters and community who helped make this event so special. Your presence and support fill our hearts with gratitude and holiday spirit. We wish you and your loved ones a joyous, peaceful, and merry festive season filled with love, laughter, and beautiful moments.
From our musical family to yours - Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!
GOLD AWARD winners at World Choir Games 2024
The 2024 World Choir Games has been an unforgettable experience!
More than 11,000 singers from over 30 countries arrived in Auckland for what has been described as the largest choral competition and festival on the planet. Luminata Voices are beyond thrilled to have received GOLD at the World Choir Games Champions Competition in the Women’s Chamber Choir category!
Thank you so much to everyone who has supported us and especially to NZCF and Interkultur for organizing such an incredible event.
We are elated after the success of our recent concert, Stabat Mater!
With record numbers in attendance, we have received wonderful feedback from audience-goers.
Special thanks to our wonderful soloists Celia Aspey-Gordon (Soprano) and Jessica Wells (Alto), and for the incredible musicianship of the Auckland Chamber Music Collective and Emma Gavenda (Harpsichord).
”My husband and I thoroughly enjoyed this concert on 6 April at St Matthew's in the City. The setting was wonderful - very appropriate and welcoming - with excellent acoustics. The choir was spell-binding and the soloists were magnificent. The accompanying musicians were brilliant.
Congratulations all round ..... the choice of programme and the delivery could not be faulted and we look forward to future offerings!”
”Hi. The performance throughout was exquisite! And I utterly loved Stabat Mater. Moving and uplifting. Thank you”
“Loved this concert. Such exposed music for choral singers. Perfect intonation and synchronized vowel placement produced a beautiful clear early music choral sound. Really enjoyed this contrapuntal music, and especially the way the cello moved under the soaring voices. Excellent balance within the choral group. Thanks for an enjoyable early evening.”
”The sound of the choir was sublime and so beautifully blended across the whole chorus. I particularly enjoyed the Palestrina and Forrest pieces. The chamber collective was a beautiful accompaniment. Vanessa is obviously an incredibly talented director and conductor. I was fascinated watching her very controlled technique. Her obvious enjoyment was transmitted to the singers.”
“The only thing better than singing is more singing.” — Ella Fitzgerald
Curious about our sound? This recording is from our launch concert in May 2021. Singing in traditional Basque text, this is a live performance of Izar Ederrak by Josu Elberdin (https://www.elberdin.com/)
Live performance of Izar Ederrak
Josu Elberdin
Performed by Luminata Voices Women’s Chamber Choir
Vanessa Kay - Musical Director
Cathy Bennett - Collaborative Pianist
Recorded by David Kay, May 2021
Recorded at our Immerse and Indulge concert in 2022, here is our live performance of When October Goes (with Autumn Leaves), arranged by Paul Langford, featuring Cathy Bennett on piano and Rachel Wells on cello.
Live Performance of When October Goes (with Autumn Leaves)
Barry Manilow and Joseph Kosma arr. Paul Langford
Performed by Luminata Voices Women's Chamber Choir
Vanessa Kay - Musical Director
Cathy Bennett - Collaborative Pianist
Rachel Wells - Cello
Recorded by David Kay, May 2022
Luminata Voices is a high-calibre, auditioned chamber choir for women.
Based in Auckland, New Zealand, our singers are experienced and highly-trained choral musicians. We are also busy women with varied professional backgrounds and families. We bring to life a range of music written for treble voices.
We are led by Musical Director, Vanessa Kay
It goes without saying that a group of highly-trained musicians demand a high standard of leadership. Vanessa leads us on a journey filled with laughter and community, as well as excellence in music-making.
“Me aro ki te hā o Hine-ahu-one – Pay heed to the mana of women”
— whakataukī (traditional proverbial saying)