IUP Department of Music piano professor Henry Wong Doe received an arts grant from Creative New Zealand (Arts Council of New Zealand) of NZ$65,690 (approximately US$40,375) for his upcoming commissioning and recording project "Perspectives."

Henry Wong DoeFor his project "Perspectives," Wong Doe is commissioning six New Zealand composers to write a solo piano work that reflects each composer's life and experience over the last two years. The six works will be given their world premiere at IUP on April 28, 2023, and the New Zealand premiere will follow in June 2023 at the University of Auckland, New Zealand.

Wong Doe will record the works for Rattle Records in New Zealand, with a projected release date of August 1, 2023.

The six composers are based in New Zealand, the United States, and Germany. They are, in alphabetical order:

Leila Adu-Gilmore
Penelope Axtens
Leonie Holmes
Gemma Peacocke
Poulima Salima
Alex Taylor

162 applicants applied to Creative New Zealand's Arts Grants funding Round 6, where 39 were successful (approximately 24 percent acceptance rate). For the full press release and recipients, please visit the Creative New Zealand website.