A group of 25 musicians from the Australian National Academy of Music (ANAM) have recently been part of something special in New Zealand.

26 March 2019

ANAM joined the Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra for a performance of Olivier Messiaen’s joyous Turangalila-Symphonie during the closing concert of the 2019 Auckland Arts Festival.

Under conductor Stefan Asbury, the Turangalila-Symphonie requires a massive orchestra of over 100 musicians and two soloists – piano (Joanna MacGregor) and an electronic instrument called the ondes martenot (Cynthia Millar).

Auckland Orchestra CEO Barbara Glaser dedicated the performance to those who lost their lives in Christchurch.

‘It’s our hope that in playing Messiaen’s Hymn to love for those in the Auckland Town Hall tonight, and across New Zealand and the world via our livestream, that you will feel the healing power of music,’ Barbara said.

‘In the words of Leonard Bernstein, “This will be our reply to violence: to make music more intensely, more beautifully, more devotedly, than ever before”. Salaam, Shalom, Peace, Aroha.’

The performance can be viewed through the Auckland Orchestra’s Facebook page.