Chineke! Orchestra Celebrates a Decade.

Chineke! Orchestra Celebrates a Decade.

Linton Stephens introduces works commissioned by the ensemble in the last ten years in a tenth-anniversary concert at London's Queen Elizabeth Hall.

The concert opens with a brand new piece by Liverpool-born composer Nneka Cummins celebrating the ensemble in all its glory. Then comes music by the sensation that is Ayanna Witter-Johnson in Blush. A long-time collaborator and incredible performer in her own right, she takes the traditions of classical music and seamlessly blends them with a wealth of influences, including R&B and reggae. And to complete the first half, handpan player extraordinaire Rosie Bergonzi introduces her instrument before playing Cassie Kinoshi’s Handpan Concerto (to the hibiscus), a work which blends the mellow sounds of this rare but wonderful instrument with the orchestral textures of Chineke! Orchestra’s string section. Then, after the interval, Stewart Goodyear talks movingly to Linton about his Life, Life, Life, a work which echoes the essence of his Trinidadian heritage and which is dedicated to his mother, who would often say the phrase whether she was feeling happy, exhausted or exasperated. And this tenth-anniversary concert ends with Remnants by composer James B Wilson and poet Yomi Ṣode, inspired by an image which went viral in 2020 and which depicts Patrick Hutchinson carrying a counter-protestor to safety during that summer’s Black Lives Matter protests.

Nneka Cummins: New work (World premiere)

Ayanna Witter-Johnson: Blush

Cassie Kinoshi: Handpan Concerto (to the hibiscus)

Interval

Hannah Kendall: The spark catchers

Stewart Goodyear: Life, Life, Life

James B Wilson: Remnants

Rosie Bergonzi (handpan)
Yomi Sode (narrator)
Chineke! Orchestra
Kalena Bovell conductor