Australian Vocal Ensemble premiered at the Griffith Conservatorium. The performance started with a welcome to the country. Then we heard four voices in chamber mode by the singers, Fiona Campbell, Andrew O’Connor, Andrew Goodwin and Katie Noonan. (Unfortunately, David Greco has had to withdraw from the performance for personal reasons). AVE was thrilled that Andrew O’Connor was available to step in at the last minute to perform.
AVÉ is the first concert of a national first acapella quartet celebrating old and new Australian stories led by Katie Noonan. The songs were an unexpected combination of spiritual music from the late Renaissance and early Baroque, through to modern music. One song was sung in indigenous languages, with consultation from local First Nations people.
Ave is a Latin word, used by Romans as a salutation and greeting, meaning ‘heal’. It is the singular imperative form of the verb avere, which meant ‘to be well’. Thus, one could translate it literally as ‘be well’.
The program was created and developed by Katie Noonan. “I believe it is vital to use the human voice to tell the stories of our time and place, and to encourage our audience to use their voice”, she said.
The highlight of the evening was hearing David Malouf recite one of his poems on stage. He was a muse for this performance.
The program included the premiere of the lovely ‘Peace I Leave’ with You by Andrew Goodwin. It was a beautiful way to end the evening.
About Australian Vocal Ensemble
Australian Vocal Ensemble The human voice is used to tell the stories of our time and place, and Australian Vocal Ensemble seek to make their mark on the national and international stage by telling our unique stories and celebrate our identity and place through song.
For more information, head to the Australian Vocal Ensemble website: https://www.australianvocalensemble.com/
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