Walking through the Alexandra Gardens towards the Sidney Myer Music Bowl the air was warm and heavy with the fragrance of summer. Large drops of rain had been falling intermittently from the overcast skies, and while refreshing at first, it had now become necessary to unfold the umbrella as the large drops became a steady stream. It was 6pm, and the helpful pre-concert information had said the gates would open at 5pm for the 7pm concert. No food or drink was to be taken into the Bowl, but you could bring a picnic rug and purchase dinner from the variety of food trucks.
Armed with tickets for the undercover seating, I didn’t bring the picnic blanket – just an umbrella, a water bottle, my ticket and the credit card. The water bottle had to be emptied at the security gates – no, it wasn’t vodka! Audience members continued to flood in, many in large groups, and many wearing colourful traditional Pacific Islander prints, the women with flowers in their hair, but almost all those sitting on the very wet hill were sheltering under their plastic ponchos.
Already there were hundreds of people in queues for the food trucks, and it was a damp wait for food, so I was looking forward to my undercover seat. The seat was near the back of the Bowl structure, and rain was blowing in, but the atmosphere was one of excitement with a strong sense of the Pacific Islander community coming together.
Stagehands mopped the floors while the orchestra members made their way to the stage. And then a few minutes after 7pm, our “host”, Tofiga Fepilea’i, walked to the microphone and the audience erupted in cheers and joyful shouting. This Wellington-born Samoan actor, stand-up comedian and musician directed the proceedings, managing to elicit laughs and shouts before the punchlines of jokes that were clearly familiar to most of the audience, but unfortunately missed by those of us without that background.
The respect for First Nations people was very clear with full attention given to the customary Melbourne Symphony Orchestra Acknowledgement of Country Long Time Living Here, followed by a Pastor from the Pacific Islander community leading a prayer in celebration of culture and community, which resonated as a call for respect for the vastness of seas and skies, for peace and harmony.
The choir of more than 90 singers, colourfully dressed in colourful Pacific Island prints, entered the risers behind the orchestra. Mana Moana (Spirit of the Ocean) was to take us on a journey celebrating Pasifika culture in song and story from the Cook Islands, Niue, Samoa, Tokelau and Tonga across the Pacific.
Having searched for an online program before the concert, I had a good idea of what was ahead. The Signature Choir has performed these works in Mana Moana events in New Zealand and Sydney, with their Symphony Orchestras, and the works are available in online recordings. I had listened to some beforehand, and decided I’d like to hear and see the concert rather than follow the words on my phone. If you were relying on the compere for information about the works and performers, it would have been very difficult, as unfamiliarity with the sounds of the range of the Pacific Islands languages, and the abundant enthusiasm in the audience combined with outdoor acoustics that rendered the announcements almost incomprehensible.
The MSO, conducted by Carlo Antonioli, performed with enthusiasm that complemented the celebratory nature of the event. Orchestral arrangements by Thomas Goss supported the choir, with the trombones, tuba and double basses often strongly underscoring the bass notes of the chords, some atmospheric woodwind and strings passages, effective instrumental solos, and lots of exciting percussion.
The Signature Choir (some living in Australia and some from New Zealand) under the direction of Fepulea’i Helen Tupai, Asi Tana Tupai and Jadrah Tupai, sang the whole program from memory, moved effectively while standing in their rows, and their joy in performing gave their vocal qualities (whether loud and energetic, or more gentle) authenticity. Interestingly, the choir was conducted separately by their conductor/s behind the orchestra, while Antonioli conducted the orchestra.
The music itself is very chordally based, with texts clear as the voice parts sing syllabically. Lots of unison passages and call and response, harmonies at the 3rd or 6th, the occasional vocal effect or chant, and upward modulations create contrast, and Signature Choir handled all these aspects very effectively.
I would love to have commented more about the soloists, but for the most part, their clear popularity with the audience resulted in cheering that often drowned out their singing. It was an experience being in this audience, which felt sometimes like a football match, as various Pacific Island flags were waved enthusiastically, or wrapped around men running through the audience, or like a rock concert when people rose on their seats to dance.
As interval approached, I decided that I had experienced enough. Water continued to blow into the seats, but without a poncho, and unable to raise the umbrella “inside”, I was by now saturated. And the seats themselves are only average size, and barely adequate for my sizeable rump. When a whole row of such builds is seated, the space becomes uncomfortably squeezy!
This celebration of Pasifika music clearly had a most enthusiastic and appreciative audience. They were there because they already knew and loved the music and the performers. Those out on the hill in their ponchos didn’t mind the weather at all. The prospect of a 30-minute interval was too much for me though, after over an hour of music already. And I was not alone in departing, with several others sharing their joy at having participated in the experience, but perhaps feeling they would appreciate it more now in recordings.
Photo supplied.
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Margaret Arnold reviewed “Mana Moana”, presented by the Signature Choir and the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra at the Sidney Myer Music Bowl on Saturday January 31, 2026.
