Gemma New a Highlight of 2021 Classical Calendar

The year in classical music was marked by challenge and determination as the pandemic continued its cultural stranglehold for much of 2021. But for the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra (ASO), which Wellington-born Gemma New conducted in January, the year marked what promises to be a vibrant new beginning.

In a selection of classical highlights, The Atlanta-Journal Constitution, includes New’s performance.

The Constitution’s Jordan Owen writes:

“Hearing New conduct the ASO in late January was a truly transcendent event. Her conducting is something akin to a performative dance-animated and hypnotic, seeming to work off of some deep-seated internal logic that defies immediate understanding but still manages to instil in the orchestra a newfound vigour.”

New, 35, next conducts the ASO on 20 and 22 January, and then the Hamilton Philharmonic Orchestra in Ontario on 29 January. She returns to New Zealand in February to conduct the NZSO.

Original article by Jordan Owen, The Atlanta-Journal Constitution, January 4, 2022.