Kirsten Zemke
Music with Kirsten Zemke: Flute infusion
Music commentator Kirsten Zemke joins Kathryn to talk about how the flute can be used to maximum effect within songs. Audio
Music with Kirsten Zemke: Song salad
Music commentator Kirsten Zemke asks the question - why do people write songs about food? It's a surprising phenomenon, and once you start looking you find so many Audio
Music: Songs that turn 40 in 2024
Music correspondent Kirsten Zemke joins Kathryn to share some songs that are having a big birthday this year - including some massive power ballads and songs that became an instant classic. Audio
Haere Ra, 2023 - Part 2
Wellington chamber choir Nota Bene sing Chrismas songs, and - Te Radar, Irene Pink, Kennedy Warne, Sam Ackerman and Kirsten Zemke bid farewell to 2024. Audio
Haere Ra, 2023 - Part 1
Wellington chamber choir Nota Bene sing Chrismas songs, and - Te Radar, Irene Pink, Kennedy Warne, Sam Ackerman and Kirsten Zemke bid farewell to 2024. Audio
Music with Kirsten Zemke: Hawaiian vocal styles
Music commentator Kirsten Zemke joins Kathryn to talk about Hawaiian music and how it emphasizes the voice. She'll talk about why many songs feature falsetto or leo ki'eki'e (high voice) and where the… Audio
Music: The popularity of the 11 o'clock song
Music correspondent Kirsten Zemke looks at the phenomenon of the "11 o'clock number" - the theatre term for a big, show-stopping song. Audio
Music with Kirsten Zemke: Songs from space
Music commentator Kirsten Zemke goes out of this world with some songs that are not only about space, but have been broadcast from there too. Audio
Music with Kirsten Zemke: Songs about nostalgia
Music commentator Kirsten Zemke looks at some real tear-jerker songs from Frank Sinatra to Bob Dylan, and includes Miley Cyrus' recent release that's triggered this theme. Kirsten Zemke is an… Audio
Music for a rainy day
Music commentator Kirsten Zemke shares some tunes that celebrate the rain, from Eddie Rabbitt's I Love a Rainy Night to Prince's Purple Rain. Kirsten Zemke is an ethnomusicologist at the University of… Audio
Music with Kirsten Zemke: Vintage vocal harmony
Music commentator Kirsten Zemke joins Kathryn to talk about the popularity of vocal harmony in the 50s and 60s. Audio
Music with Kirsten Zemke: ASMR sounds
Autonomous Sensory Meridian Response or ASMR is a perception phenomenon that generates a bioelectric current through auditory, visual, tactile, olfactory or perceptive stimuli. When it passes through… Audio
Music: K-Pop and the success of BTS
Music commentator Kirsten Zemke joins Kathryn to talk about what makes K-Pop so popular - and a $5 billion industry. She'll look at the phenomenal rise of the band BTS, known for its positive… Audio
Blaxploitation: A genre, film movement - and great music
Music commentator Kirsten Zemke joins Kathryn to rewind 50 years to a time when black action stars were all but non-existent to the public eye. But as the real life-heroes of the civil rights movement… Audio
Music: Kirsten Zemke's Italiano favourites
Music commentator Kirsten Zemke gives us a flavour of Italy with some classic songs by musicians from that country, including some that have been remixed into even bigger hits, covered by well-known… Audio
Music with Kirsten Zemke: The popularity of skiffle
Kirsten joins Kathryn to look at skiffle, a type of "folk music" performed with a mixture of manufactured and handmade instruments. Originating in the United States in the first half of the 20th… Audio
Music with Kirsten Zemke: Whistling songs!
Music commentator Kirsten Zemke joins Kathryn to talk about songs over the decades that have whistling at their heart. How do they make you feel? Kirsten Zemke is an ethnomusicologist at the… Audio
Playlists: Celebrating the highs and lows of life through music
Music commentator Kirsten Zemke joins Kathryn to talk about the ingredients to an "epic" playlist in an era where technology makes it easier than ever to compile options for you. What makes a song… Audio
Music with Kirsten Zemke: Dance craze songs
Music commentator Kirsten Zemke takes us through the ages with songs that have ended up become dance hits - from the 'Twist' and the 'Hustle' to the 'Macarena' and 'Jerusalema'. What turns a hit song… Audio