Join me and the rest of the incredible musicians of the Chineke! Orchestra at our launch concert as we embark on a musical journey bringing diversity and excellence to the music we all love.
"Chineke! is the brainchild of renowned bassist, educator and activist Chi-chi Nwanoku MBE, FRAM (Principal Double Bassist and co-founder of the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment, Professor of Double Bass Historical Studies at the Royal Academy of Music) and is backed by key cultural organisations such as the British Council, Conservatoires UK and Southbank Centre, as well as cultural leaders such as Sir Simon Rattle and Ed Vaizey MP."
Program
Samuel Coleridge-Taylor: Ballade for orchestra, Op.33
Philip Herbert: Elegy: In memoriam - Stephen Lawrence
Johannes Brahms: Variations on a theme by Haydn (St. Anthony)
Interval
Ludwig Van Beethoven: Symphony No.7
Africa Utopia hosts the historic launch of Chineke!
Chineke! – which means 'the spirit of creation' in Igbo – is the UK's first professional classical orchestra made up entirely of BME musicians.
The orchestra is the brainchild of leading double bassist Chi-chi Nwanoku, who aims to both celebrate the creative energy of musicians of colour and inspire new generations of instrumentalists.
The concert is conducted by Wayne Marshall, and includes Elegy: In Memoriam – Stephen Lawrence by black British composer Philip Herbert, as well as Beethoven's dramatic Symphony No.7.