Composer John Psathas. Photo: Supplied / John Psathas
John Psathas is a busy man, whether he wants to be or not.
The Kiwi-Greek composer dropped by RNZ Concert's Wellington studio ahead of performances of two of his works - "Voices at the end" and "Second hand time" - at this year's international arts festival in the capital city.
And after the interview he's off to his composing retreat at Waitarere Beach, two hours up the road.
"It's relentless," he says.
By that, he means the new music popping into his head that he just has to write down.
"Tomorrow morning I'll be at it. Six am," he tells RNZ Concert's Three to Seven host Bryan Crump.
His latest project: a duo for timpani and marimba.
There's a lot of music going on inside that head. Photo: Robert Cross
The good news for Psathas, as his fingers keep pace with his brain, is that demand for performances of his music is also pretty relentless - especially overseas.
Which is one of the reasons Psathas has formed his own chamber ensemble, The John Psathas Group.
Along with Psathas (Composer/Programming Director) the group also includes London-based pianist Dawn Hardwick, New York-based pianist Stephen Gosling, German percussionist Katarzyna Mycka, and Swiss percussionist Fabian Ziegler.
The multi-national group will be touring Aotearoa in August, with help from Chamber Music New Zealand, but the primary goal is to perform Psathas' music overseas.
