I had the pleasure of having Opetaia Foa’i and his wonderful group Te Vaka come by for lunch.
These beautiful souls from the South Pacific who entertain audiences around the world with their "South Pacific fusion" are now in the works of creating the music for Disney's new animated movie "Moana", plus preparing for their US/Canada tour. I also had the pleasure of seeing in action (and trying) the Polynesian percussion instrument “pate”. Ah, what a beautiful instrument. Have you played it?
I love that through this international language we call “music” we can truly celebrate different cultures. I love learning about cultures and their music, dance and art. And I love that Opetaia and Te Vaka are such fabulous ambassadors for their culture.
Te Vaka has previously represented the South Pacific at the London and Beijing Olympics, have toured the world (40 countries so far), and have won numerous awards for their contributions. Check out this video below with me and Opetaia Foa’i, hear his approach to writing songs, and meet Te Vaka.
Isn’t it beautiful when music not only entertains us, but enriches us culturally? Actually, how about listening to music that you might not normally listen to this week?
I really look forward to seeing Te Vaka in concert. Are you coming?
