This audio recording was made in Palmerston North in the 1960s by Josephine (Nina) and Mary (Meg) Newman, who were both living in the city at the time. Josephine was Nina's mother. Mary is her daughter whom we called Meg. The Newman family was a very musical one - Josephine’s mother Margot Hibbard was a singer in Auckland around 1910 and her sister Violet Sumerset tutored tenors at the Academy of Music in Melbourne. Music and singing were well ingrained into their upbringing.
Meg was studying piano at the time of this recording and Nina was also talented in singing they decided it would be great to record them singing and playing the piano together to send to their mother in Melbourne for Christmas. The date of this recording is not exact, but it would have been around 1960 as it was just before Meg left Palmerston North moving to Melbourne to teach and continue studying piano. Meg did so well at piano she became one of Australia’s acclaimed teachers. Meg is now retired.
This record consists of four tracks: Greetings, The Muses Gift, Arioso Primo Duet and Arise of Sun.
