SOUNZ Centre for New Zealand Music, Orchestra Wellington and Arohanui Strings – Sistema Hutt Valley are delighted to announce that Wellington-based composer Glen Downie has been selected for the 2022 SOUNZ Commission for Orchestra and Sistema Youth Orchestra. Glen will be working with Orchestra Wellington and Arohanui Strings – Sistema Hutt Valley on a new work and is looking forward to writing a ‘children-led’ piece, enhanced by the Orchestra Wellington musicians.
Diana Marsh, SOUNZ’s Executive Director, said, “We are delighted to be able to work again with Orchestra Wellington and Arohanui Strings on this highly collaborative project. At SOUNZ we want to offer the opportunity for everyone to enjoy New Zealand music and what better way to do this than by engaging one of our composers to write for the combined forces of an orchestra with these young musicians. We are looking forward to working with Glen on the 2022 commission.”
Glen said, “I'm pleased to be awarded the commission to write for Arohanui Strings and Orchestra Wellington. It gives me a chance to revisit the things that excited me about music when I was younger and it will be a lot of fun to explore whilst writing a new piece that will be fun, energetic and inspire the tamariki to keep playing and exploring music further.”
The project, which is now in its fifth year, is a collaboration between SOUNZ Centre for New Zealand Music, Orchestra Wellington and Arohanui Strings – Sistema Hutt Valley. Orchestra Wellington and Arohanui Strings will perform the new commission as part of a concert at the Michael Fowler Centre in October 2022.
Last year, the commission was awarded to Wellington composer Sarah Ballard for her work Subduing Kaliya. The piece, inspired by the adventurous pastimes and the personality of Krishna, was performed by Orchestra Wellington and Arohanui Strings during the 2021 season at the Walter Nash Centre in Lower Hutt.