As NZ Music Month drew to a close last week, Opera Singer Natasha Te Rupe Wilson (Te Arawa, Ngāpuhi) showed her support for classical singing in a free pop-up concert in the heart of Auckland.
Auckland Council curated a free opera concert that included pianist Francis Cowen, Jasmine Jessen, Katherine Winitana, Ridge Ponini and Taylor Wallbank.
Te Rupe Wilson paid tribute to her late father in song who passed a few years ago.
“And to be doing the things I love doing and the life I wanted to have at such a young age and I’m living it and to just be able to sing kind of a song that really resonates with me everyday really like help grounds me, that’s what I love to sing at the moment,” she said.
She said being able to sing all year round is worth the challenges.
“It’s really a dream come true to be able to do these things year round and do new things and to keep growing as an artist, it’s a real challenge but I love it.”
Auckland Council’s Arts and Culture programme lead Gene Rivers (Te Aupouri, Ngāi Takoto and Ngāpuhi) said it highlights the importance of diverse programming for the city center.
“And we’ve provided I feel a wonderful range of programming encompassing multiple genres including the opera tomorrow night that I’m really excited about.”
Joining Te Rupe-Wilson in this musical journey is Jack Bourke from the NZ Opera School.
He said there’s something special about the whenua and the land of this country.
“It’s an opportunity to elevate our youth through an archaic and beautiful art form of opera in 2024 in this majestic and amazing structure The Strand Arcade.
“Through the music we are going to take you through, four or five centuries of amazing music. Here interpreted in 2024 by some of our greatest talent but it isn’t opera without an audience.”