With music that envisions new structures while breaking traditional boundaries, the festival programme in Queenstown culminates in a string quartet celebrated for its innovative structure and profound emotional depth.

• Eleanor Alberga Piano Quintet No.1 ‘Clouds’
• Igor Stravinsky Three Pieces for String Quartet
• John Psathas Sleeper  for solo piano
• Ludwig van Beethoven String Quartet in c-sharp minor op.131

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Performers

Michael Houstoun - Piano

Benjamin Baker, Jordan Brooks, Justine Cormack, Marike Kruup & Anthony Marwood - Violin

Yura Lee & Serenity Thurlow - Viola

James Bush & Andrew Joyce - Cello

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AWE+ | Young Musicians Session, 2:30 - 4:45pm

Our Young Musicians Session is an interactive opportunity for local young musicians to meet, hear, and play alongside Festival Artists, truly experiencing the fullness of AWE.

This event is presented in partnership with the local pioneers of grassroots music education, Queenstown’s Turn Up the Music Trust.

The session will take place prior to the AWE+ Emerging Artist Showcase at 5pm.

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AWE+ | Emerging Artist Showcase, 5pm

An AWE+ Free Performance showcasing our 2025 Emerging Artists performing a powerful selection of music from around the world.

The programme opens with Double Helix by Chicago composer Augusta Read-Thomas, exploring how individual voices intertwine and interact. British composer Benjamin Britten’s arrangement of the well-known folk song The Last Rose of Summer then leads us to the world premiere of a new work by AWE 2025 Emerging Composer Lauren Doherty, composed under the mentorship of John Psathas. The showcase concludes with Felix Mendelssohn’s dramatic Piano Quartet, written when he was just 13 years old.

Free entry.

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AWE+ | Fred van Brandenburg talks, 6pm

An AWE+ Free Talk with architect Fred van Brandenburg, who will be speaking about his work and its powerful relationship with nature.

This will take place prior to the evening’s Reverie performance at Te Atamira, Queenstown.

Free entry.