DIOMIRA
featuring the music of Dinuk Wijeratne
Joseph Petric, accordion
Nick Halley, percussion
Dinuk Wijeratne, piano

Performing works composed by their JUNO-award winning founder Dinuk Wijeratne, Diomira‘s music explores Dinuk’s hugely diverse cultural influences: from the Persian poetry of Omar Khayyam and the fantastical prose of Jorge Luis Borges, to the sensuality of Flamenco and the intricate rhythms of the Indian Classical tradition.

September 10th 2019 | 6:30pm | Halifax Central Library - Paul O'Regan Hall

Sri Lankan-born Canadian Dinuk Wijeratne is a JUNO award-winning composer, conductor, and pianist who has been described by the Toronto Star as ‘an artist who reflects a positive vision of our cultural future’, and by the New York Times as ‘exuberantly creative’. His boundary-crossing work sees him equally at home in collaborations with symphony orchestras and string quartets, tabla players and DJs, and takes him to international venues as poles apart as the Berlin Philharmonie and the North Sea Jazz Festival.  

Dinuk made his Carnegie Hall debut in 2004 as a composer, conductor, and pianist, performing with Yo Yo Ma and the Silk Road Ensemble. A second Carnegie appearance followed in 2009, alongside tabla legend Zakir Hussain. Dinuk has also appeared at the Kennedy Center (Washington DC), Opera Bastille (Paris), Lincoln Center (New York), Teatro Colón (Buenos Aires), Sri Lanka, Japan, and across the Middle East. 

A passionate educator, Dinuk has lectured at the universities of Dalhousie, Acadia and Saskatchewan, and is in his twelfth season as Music Director of the Nova Scotia Youth Orchestra. He has conducted the orchestras of the National Arts Centre, Thunder Bay, PEI, Scotia Festival Orchestra, and appeared numerous times with Symphony Nova Scotia during his 3-year appointment as Conductor-in-Residence.  

Dinuk’s music and collaborative work embrace the great diversity of his international background and influences. Prismatic is thrilled to bring Dinuk back to Halifax to perform at the Festival. 

Featuring dynamic musicians from Cuba, Colombia, Mexico, and Canada, Son Latino puts a unique cross-cultural spin on Latin American music.

The band has rapidly become a favourite live ensemble for salsa dancers and Latin music aficionados in Halifax. Their repertoire is a mixture of traditional and contemporary tunes from all over Latin America, and includes compulsively danceable rhythms like salsa, merengue, bachata, cha cha, and more. With a sound reminiscent of the great Buena Vista Social Club, Son Latino makes it almost impossible for audiences to sit still.

Mauricio Duarte | keyboards

Yonelis Legra Noa | voice, percussion

Jorge Loza | bass

Maykel Nuñez | percussion, voice

Paul “Pablito” St-Amand | trumpet, flugelhorn, voice, percussion

Aryam Zubizarreta Perez | voice, guitar, percussion