NEWS

Meet Fergus – the 2024 Composer in Residence at Choirs Aotearoa New Zealand!

Originally from Taupō, Fergus Byett moved to Hamilton in 2019 to study Classical Performance (Piano) at the University of Waikato. With the support of a Sir Edmund Hillary Scholarship, he completed his undergraduate studies under Katherine Austin, and in 2023 he completed his Masters under Dr. Rae de Lisle. In the same year, Fergus won the University of Waikato Concerto Competition, Bach Competition and Chamber Music Competition, as well as Recital and Concerto classes at the 2023 Hamilton Competitions. His compositions have won national awards, including in the ‘Compose Aotearoa!’ Composition Competition, and in 2024, he currently holds Composer-in-Residence roles with Choirs Aotearoa and the Auckland Youth Choir. He has also completed several commissions for community ensembles in the Waikato. He is a collaborative pianist at the University of Waikato, where he has also worked as a music theory and piano tutor, and he is a founding Artistic Director of the Waikato Youth Choir. Fergus is one of the organists at the Waikato Cathedral Church of St. Peter, where he has accompanied the Cathedral Singers since 2023. As a Summer Research Scholar, Fergus also worked on an article which has now been published in the British Journal of Music Education, and he is a fluent speaker of te reo Māori, having recently completed a Level 7 Diploma through Te Wānanga o Aotearoa.