Flamenco guitar legend Paco Peña originally put together his Requiem for the Earth in 2004 as a call for us as a species to care for our planet. Since then, our climate crisis has only become even more terrifying, and this Requiem’s message even more timely.

Paco Peña. Photo © Toni Blanco

Casting an eye over the lyrics (in Spanish and Latin) might make it seem like an unfailingly dark work:

My soul grieves

My hope in Mankind fades away

The Earth, wronged and sorrowful, despairs …

On the contrary, this was an incredibly vibrant performance that the audience responded to with roaring approval, and multiple rounds of standing ovations. Consisting of Peña’s flamenco ensemble (percussionist, three guitarists including Peña himself, and four singers – two male, two female) as well as Voices of Birralee adult and children’s choirs, the piece was an absolute triumph.

There was no program for this performance, and while I would love to report on each performer’s star moments, I can’t, despite spending an age sleuthing online. Other recent performances of the same piece in Europe have involved some of the same players (also unnamed), but not all.

The Requiem...