Exotic orchestra mixes ancient and modern

Over 100 instruments will come together when an Argentinean orchestra combining indigenous instruments and digital technology plays in Wellington this Saturday.

The Orchestra of Indigenous Instruments and New Technologies is a group of 17 musicians and composers which incorporate instruments from the past and the present, as well as ritual theatre, masks and dance.

The orchestra arrives in New Zealand on the back of rave reviews from overseas, including Radio France Culture which described the performance as "a total art for the body and the spirit".

The orchestra's visit is hosted by the New Zealand School of Music (NZSM), a joint venture between Victoria and Massey universities. It will play at the Adam Concert Room at Victoria’s Kelburn Campus.

"All members of the ensemble are former students of the conductor/director, composer Alejandro Iglesias Rossi, who founded the orchestra in 2000. A core aim of the orchestra is to combine the strengths of native instruments of the Americas with European instruments and modern digital technology," says Jack Body from the NZSM.

All the musicians have built their musical instruments after researching their histories. In many cases, the instruments are built based on models of those recovered from archaeological sites.

The group plays a repertoire of traditional folk music as well as new compositions designed to explore the unique sounds that come from combining these instruments.



Orchestra of Indigenous Instruments and New Technologies

Saturday 16th March, 6pm

Adam Concert Room, Victoria University (Kelburn Campus)