Stephen Phillips, 54, and his two stepsons, 12 and 14 years old, died in yesterday's horror road crash in Huntly.
They were among a family who had just arrived in the country from Australia.
The family are believed to have been travelling in a rental car when they crashed.
The boys' mother Belinda Williams and her daughter, Tessa, were the survivors of the crash, according to the Times.
The family had left their home on Monday morning to spend two weeks visiting Williams' family in New Zealand.
"Stephen was a good gentleman, he was good at repairing pianos, a handyman kind of guy," he told the Times.
"Belinda was a great lady, she would drop other kids on the street to the bus stop."
Phillips had been with the orchestra since 1987 and Williams since 2002, the orchestra chairman Greg Wanchap told the Times.
They left their home in the hands of their neighbour, Azad, who told the Times the neighbours were shocked at the news of the crash.
"They were very good neighbours, I have got a 6-year-old and a 2-year-old and they would look after them when we had to go into town.
"It is horrific, it is hard to swallow."
He had heard Williams was out of surgery and "going well" and Tessa had been able to see her.
Azad described his neighbours as "kind-hearted" and "like family".
He told the Times the residents in the small Brisbane cul-de-sac learnt about the crash from police when they visited the family's home yesterday afternoon.
He said the neighbours were in shock as the mother, her partner and her three children were an integral part of the street.
"They were family to us all on the street," he told said. "Very kind hearted people - the street won't be the same.
Today a top Waikato cop reissued a plea to motorists to drive safely on the region's roads.
Strategic traffic manager Freda Grace said it meant driving within the speed limits and to the conditions.
"Drivers must be fit for the road, which means being well-rested and focused.
"Too often, a moment of fatigue or distraction has tragic consequences," she said.
