Opera singers bring something different to Pasifika

By RENEE KIRIONA

Opera may not be the favoured music among Pacific Islanders but two know their people are proud of their achievements in the field.

Tenor Benjamin Makisi and soprano Daphne Collins have been singing their way up the musical ladder of a genre in which the number of Pacific Island faces are few and far between.

Both live in Australia, but they are visiting Auckland to sing at this weekend's Pasifika Festival.

Mr Makisi, 33, a Samoan-Tongan, earned a name for himself by winning the McDonald's Operatic Aria contest in Sydney two years ago.

"It's very rare to see Polynesians in opera because it's not a world known to us," he says.

"Even though you don't see Polynesians lining up outside opera theatres I know they are intrigued by us and proud of us."

In October, the Wellingtonian, who holds a masters degree in performance from the Sydney Conservatory of Music, is going to Europe to audition for opera houses in Germany, Switzerland, London and Austria.

"I'm putting a lot of preparation into this, and what I'm hearing from others is that because I'm tall and quite big, I'm suited to playing the role of a king or someone noble. And that sounds great to me."

Besides his preparations for Europe, Mr Makisi is also in the early stages of incorporating folksongs from his two cultures into his repertoire.

"It will be similar to what Kiri Te Kanawa has done with Maori songs, but in Samoan and Tongan style."

At 185cm tall and with a build to match his height, Mr Makisi said he could have quite easily have been a league player.

"I was in the first fifteen and all that but I chose music. Our father instilled in us a passion for music, not only cultural music but classical.

"And today it shows, because most of us are musically involved.

"I was the show pony of the family. My grandfather used to take me everywhere with him so I could sing after he gave a speech, something customary in our culture."

But opera is not as romantic as many might think it to be, he says.

"In the opera world there are a lot of egos. It's the 'me and I disease'. As a Pacific Islander I find this difficult, and thankfully my family are always there to make sure I don't get like that."

Ms Collins, a Samoan, shot to popularity in 1998 after she featured in the Michael Parmenters dance opera Jerusalem, and in Classical Polynesia, created and directed by Iosefa Enari, a Pacific Island operatic baritone.

Benjamin Makisi and Daphne Collins will perform on Saturday at Western Springs Stadium, starting at 5.30pm.

Pasifika Festival 2004
Saturday March 13, 9.00am - 6.00pm
Western Springs Lakeside and Stadium
Great North Rd, Auckland


Herald Feature: Pasifika Festival

Auckland City Pasifika Festival webpage