NZSO | Beyond Words (Christchurch)

Valerie Coleman Umoja | Anthem of Unity
Traditional arr. Hamish Oliver | Hasbi Rabbi / Molla Mamad Jan
OUM arr. Tom McLeod | Daba
Reza Vali | Funèbre for Solo Violin and String Orchestra
Kyriakos Tapakis arr. Tom McLeod | Mantilatos
Arvo Pärt | Silouan's Song
John Psathas | Ahlan wa Sahlan (World Premiere)

Haere mai and ahlan wa sahlan to a very special concert to kick off the NZSO 2024 Season. To mark the 5th anniversary of the Christchurch Mosque attacks, we present a unique collaboration promoting unity and peace through music.

The music of acclaimed New Zealand composer John Psathas ONZM is deeply rooted in the Greek traditions of his whakapapa and has been heard everywhere, from award-winning albums, film, e-books, Paris’s Grand Mosque and the 2004 Athens Olympics. Recently, he’s taken to collaborating far and wide, with this concert showcasing the depth and breadth of such collaboration.

Conducted by Fawzi Haimor, featuring powerful Moroccan vocalist OUM and oud virtuoso Kyriakos Tapakis, the NZSO performs works from Valerie Coleman, Reza Val, Arvo Pärt and the world premiere of a new work from Psathas.

Psathas’s Ahlan wa Sahlan, composed in collaboration with OUM and Tapakis, uses the Arabic welcome greeting to let people know they are in a place where they belong. This work has been created with guidance from The Central Iqra Trust and Muslim communities from across Aotearoa New Zealand.

The Orchestra also plays the NZ premiere of a work by Reza Vali, whose artistry combines Western orchestration with Persian style, as well as African-American composer Valerie Coleman’s work Umoja, the Swahili word for ‘unity’.

Silouan’s Song is one of Arvo Pärt’s instrumental works based on a religious text in Russian.

Beyond Words is a symphonic expression of solidarity and peace performed as a prelude to Unity Week – let the NZSO take you on this journey beyond borders, beyond words.

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Additional performances:

Wellington (9 March)
Auckland (10 March)

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