Auckland Wind Orchestra: Phantom. Drama. Opera!

Media Release: Auckland Wind Orchestra
3 June 2008

In brief, for community diary listings

The Auckland Wind Orchestra will warm up your wintery afternoon with operatic delights when it presents “Opera Favourites” at the Holy Trinity Church in Devonport.

* The concert starts at 2pm on Sunday 15th June.

* Door sales are $15 or, for students and seniors, $10.

* Holy Trinity Church is located on 18 Church Street, Devonport.

In full

Auckland Wind Orchestra: Phantom. Drama. Opera!

‘Opera Favourites’ is the theme for the Auckland Wind Orchestra’s upcoming concert at the Holy Trinity Church in Devonport.

“This is quite a different programme for the AWO,” says conductor Ashley Hopkins.

“We’ve delved into the orchestral repertoire to give our audience a great selection of some of the world’s finest symphonic opera highlights."

Hopkins has chosen technically and musically demanding pieces that show off the various sections of the Auckland Wind Orchestra to their fullest extent. “The woodwinds certainly have their work cut out for them in this exciting genre of music,” says Hopkins.

“And I am pleased to say that the AWO has risen to the challenge admirably."

With the imminent return of Andrew Lloyd-Webber’s Phantom of the Opera to the Auckland stage, the Auckland Wind Orchestra will be performing Johann de Meij’s fabulous selection from this musical. It features the orchestra’s latest instrument addition, Cor Anglais, or English Horn, in The Music of the Night, played movingly by Vanessa Newton-Wade.

There will be something for everyone in this programme, including melodic tunes from Strauss’ The Gipsy Baron and Vilia from Lehar’s The Merry Widow. There is also a bon-bon in the form of a Euphonium solo: Recondita Armonia from Puccini’s Tosca played by Ewan Clarke.

This is Hopkins’ second time on the podium with the Auckland Wind Orchestra. In 2006, he lead the Orchestra to winning a Gold Award at the New Zealand Concert Bands Festival. “It is nice to see both new additions to the AWO and the loyal core of players that carry through to each new programme."

The Auckland Wind Orchestra will perform in the Holy Trinity Church in Devonport for the first time. The acoustics of the church will provide a warm ambience to the subtle wispy threads of Mascagni’s Intermezzo from Cavalleria Rusticana, while adding drama to the brass in Prelude to Act III of Lohengrin by Wagner. The stage is also set for the climax to Wagner’s Elsa’s Procession to the Cathedral, also from Lohengrin.

Other opera favourites on the offering include Prokofiev’s magical March from The Love for Three Oranges, Berlioz’s Rackoczy March from Damnation of Faust & Verdi’s Grand March from Aida.

Conductor Ashley Hopkins is an active clarinetist and tutor of clarinet and also teaches saxophone at the University of Auckland. No stranger to the band music scene, Ashley has been involved with many community ensembles and groups over the years.

‘Opera Favourites’ with the Auckland Wind Orchestra starts at 2pm on Sunday 15th June. Door sales are $15 or, for seniors and students, $10. The Holy Trinity Church is located on 18 Church Street in Devonport.

More information is available on the web: www.awo.co.nz

ENDS

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