Welcome to Robyn Allen-Goudge, our new Musical Director.
Robyn Allen Goudge
Robyn Allen Goudge is an Auckland musician with a love for a wide variety of music. The daughter of a singing teacher and a clergyman, she has sung with choirs and musical theatre groups from childhood. In the 1980s she studied singing with the world acclaimed teacher, Dame Sister Mary Leo, while also completing degrees in science and theology, and singing in the ‘Auckland University Singers’ under Prof. Peter Godfrey. She was a founding member of Auckland’s ‘Viva Voce’choir under John Rosser.
Over the last 30 years her musical experience has including leading and conducting groups of singers of all ages from pre-schoolers to retirees, and has involved church and community groups in six North Island cities.
[In 1998 she recorded a CD of twelve original songs entitled ‘The Love I’m In’. She has often collaborated with her husband, Geoff Allen, in providing incidental music for his drama productions, and in 2008 they co-wrote a pantomime entitled ‘Fairytale - The Musical’. She was conductor for the ‘Leonessa’girls’ choir at Takapuna Grammar School, and wrote music for the poem ‘In Flanders Fields’ which was given an award winning performance in ‘The Big Sing’ Auckland championships in 2009. In 2013 she wrote and conducted a song for Girls’ Brigade New Zealand’s 85th anniversary celebration, ‘Give a Girl a Hope’. Two of her songs have been published in the New Zealand Hymn Book Trust’s ‘Hope is our Song’ (2009).]
In 2000, Robyn commissioned Wellington harp maker, Keith Harrison, to make her a celtic harp. Under the stage name ‘Robyn the Harper’, she sings and plays a wide repertoire of music at various church and community events, schools, rest homes, women’s groups and private functions.
We are honoured to have Robyn take over the job of leading our choir.
After 17 years with the choir, Norman Firth took his final bow on Sunday, 10th December 2017. He has presented programmes of great variety and interest and introduced high standards and famous choral works to the choir. We will certainly miss his enormous talent and patience.
