Celeste Oram: Works of Vera Wyse Munro

Celeste Oram is joined by violinists Keir GoGwilt and Alex Taylor (remotely, from New Zealand) for performances of the works of Vera Wyse Munro (1897-1966) — a pioneering New Zealand radio ham, improviser, and sonic / electronic experimenter.

Celeste Oram (b. 1990) is a New Zealand composer who was born in Manhattan, learned to walk and talk in London, grew up in Auckland, and is presently based in Southern California. Her scored works investigate new media and strategies for musical notation: namely, video and audio scores. These works have been performed, recorded, and presented at festivals. Another avenue of work is non-instrumental performance with audio and visual media. A third ongoing project is the renovation of histories of New Zealand music and sonic cultures. At present, this revolves around research into early 20th-century ham radio activity, and the persona of Vera Wyse Munro (1897-1966). Celeste is currently pursuing a Ph.D. in music composition at the University of California San Diego, where she completed an M.A. in 2016. She completed a B.Mus.B.A. with first-class Honours at the University of Auckland in 2012, studying with Eve de Castro-Robinson, John Elmsly, and Leonie Holmes.