Life

Helen Fisher grew up in Mapua

Mapua, New Zealand

Mapua is a small town in the South Island of New Zealand.It is to the west of Nelson on State Highway 60 and on the coastline of Tasman Bay. The 2006 census gave a population of 1878, up 16.1 percent since the 2001 Census.:...

, Nelson

Nelson, New Zealand

Nelson is a city on the eastern shores of Tasman Bay, and is the economic and cultural centre of the Nelson-Tasman region. Established in 1841, it is the second oldest settled city in New Zealand and the oldest in the South Island....

, and attended secondary school in Wellington

Wellington

Wellington is the capital city and third most populous urban area of New Zealand, although it is likely to have surpassed Christchurch due to the exodus following the Canterbury Earthquake. It is at the southwestern tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Rimutaka Range...

, New Zealand

New Zealand

New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...

. She graduated from Canterbury University in 1964 with a degree in English and taught English, music and French in New Zealand and Canadian

Canada

Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

 secondary schools. She married and raised three daughters, but continued her studies in music at Victoria University

Victoria University

Victoria University may refer to:* Victoria University, Australia, Melbourne, Australia* Victoria University of Bangladesh, Dhaka, Bangladesh* University of Victoria, British Columbia, Canada...

 with Ross Harris

Ross Harris

Richard R. Harris , better known by his nickname, Rossie Harris is an American actor, artist, and musician.-Acting career:...

, David Farquhar and Jack Body

Jack Body

Jack Body is a New Zealand composer, photographer, artist and ethnomusicologist.He studied at Auckland University from 1963–67. With a QEII Arts Council grant he attended the Ferien Kurse fur Neue Musik, Cologne and Institute of Sonology, Utrecht, Netherlands...

. In 1987 she won first prize in the Victoria University’s Composers’ Competition with Woodwind Trio and in 1989 won second prize for Pounamu.

She graduated in composition in 1991 and began working as a composer. Her compositions have been performed internationally. In 1990 and 1991, Fisher held the Arts Council residency of Composer-in-Schools in the Wellington area. In 1993, she co-founded the first New Zealand Composing Women’s Festival.

Works

Fisher's compositions often blend Maori and European traditions. She composes for vocal and instrumental ensembles and also for dance theatre. Selected works include:

• Te Tangi A Te Matui (1986)
• Woodwind trio (1987)
• Pounamu (1989) for SSAATB choir, alto soloist and koauau
• Taku Wana (1998) for two mezzo sopranos, Kai-karanga, taonga puoro (traditional Maori instruments), flute/piccolo, bodhran, string quartet
• Tete Kura (2000)
• Otari (2005) for solo harp
• Bone of Contention, dance work for mezzo-soprano and ensemble
• Ko Wharepapa Te Maunga for brass octet
• Matairangi-1 for cello and piano
• Matairangi-2 for flute, viola and harp
• Muriranga-whenua for two flutes
• Nga Taniwha bicultural work for dance and school instrumentalists
• Nga Tapuwae o Kupe (The Footprints of Kupe) for school choir, instruments and dance
• String Quartet

Her music has been recorded and issued on CD, including:

• Matairangi – Helen Fisher Chamber Music
• Taku Wana – The Enduring Spirit, Atoll