A Transtasman battle between jazz and classical music is on at an Arts Festival Dunedin performance tonight.
The chamber ensemble NZTrio of Auckland-based cellist Ashley Brown, violinist Justine Cormack and pianist Sarah Watkins will collaborate with Australian-based jazz musicians Mike Nock Trio at Glenroy Auditorium.
''It's a duel - we will be battling it out on stage,'' Brown said.
Although based in Australia, Mike Nock Trio features two New Zealanders - jazz pianist Mike Nock and bassist Brett Hirst. Drummer James Waples is the only Australian.
The two ensembles first collaborated at a festival in Christchurch in 2013 and tonight will be the fifth time they have performed the work Vicissitudes.
''It's a bit of a success so we keep playing it,'' Brown said.
The work reflects people's shared ability to overcome dire circumstances, Cormack said.
''It was written after the Christchurch earthquakes, so it's Mike's tribute to the people of Christchurch,'' Cormack said.
People should expect to leave the ''upbeat'' performance with an urge to ''woohoo'', Brown said.
''It starts as a total argument; there will be a set by the jazz trio and there will be a set by us and then for the finale - which is Mike Nock's piece - he really pits the two trios against each other. We play really square and they play really jazzy and we battle it out. It will be fun,'' Brown said.
The trios performed the work at the Darwin Festival last year and then in a Sydney studio. The recording was recently released.
NZTrio will play at St Paul's Cathedral tomorrow and a piano is being shifted from the auditorium for the performance.
''It's going to be pretty dynamic. It will be high-energy music,'' Watkins said.
''The acoustics are alive in a cathedral,'' Brown said.
Mike Nock Trio and NZTrio: Vicissitudes is on at the Glenroy Auditorium at 8pm tonight.
NZTrio: Unchained is on at St Paul's Cathedral at 1pm tomorrow.
