Founded in 1985, VIVA VOCE is an auditioned chamber choir that specialises in the innovative programming and attractive presentation of a huge variety of music, striving always for both excellence and entertainment. The choir has now given over 400 concerts throughout New Zealand and in 2018 was invited to sing in the China International Chorus Festival in Beijing. Viva Voce is often broadcast on Radio New Zealand and is regularly engaged for choral-orchestral collaborations, while its own semi-staged productions of Purcell’s Dido and Aeneas, Carissimi’s Jephte, Handel’s Solomon and Messiah and Talbot’s Path of Miracles have received critical acclaim.

JOHN ROSSER is the choir’s founder and Musical Director. He was also New Zealand Opera Chorus Master for 23 years and is Immediate Past Chair of the New Zealand Choral Federation, of which he was made a life member in 2018. National Director of both The Big Sing and Sing Aotearoa, John led the NZCF Anthems Project for the 2011 Rugby World Cup. He was Artistic Director of the World Symposium on Choral Music 2020 and will head up New Zealand’s hosting of the 2024 World Choir Games in Auckland.