A musical journey through the unmatched beauty of the Queenstown Lakes, the third AWE Festival begins in Queenstown with Sono, introducing us to a world of exploration and identity. Travelling for the first time to Bannockburn, Hommàge looks back to inspire new innovations before we move to Cromwell’s Cloudy Bay Shed for this year’s highly sought-after music and wine pairing event, Muzikální. 

Returning to Queenstown, Immemorial offers an emotionally mesmerising programme, before the journey culminates in Wānaka’s stunning Rippon Winery for the final two programmes in our exploration of home, culture and identity, Homeland and Manifesto.

This year’s Festival Artists include some of NZ’s most admired musicians playing alongside international talents, such as ‘trailblazing artist’ Jordan Bak from the USA, the ‘musical Bear Grylls’ of British horn playing Ben Goldscheider, and ‘soulful, refined and poetic’ cellist Alice Neary.

In tandem with our Festival programme, AWE+ offers a series of free events exploring deeper the lives and music of our artists. We are also thrilled to showcase our Sei Solo: Violin & Dance performance, combining music and dance in a breathtaking new dimension.