As the days get colder and darker faster, music complements this by warming and illuminating. It brings us together at Amare or the Nieuwe Kerk. On Nov. 3, we played the Diwali-concert, a special concert with music as the connecting factor.   

Diwali, also known as the Festival of Lights, is a Hindu festival. The Residentie Orkest is proud to be part of theDiwali-concert at the Nieuwe Kerk. On November 3, the evening began with the lighting of the slide, the holy light, atAmare. This was followed by a light procession with students from the Shri Vishnu elementary school in The Hague. A beautiful parade that coincidentally crossed with the Hague Bicycle Light Parade, making it an overwhelming display of light around the Binnenhof. 

Grandly celebrated
The Diwali celebration is celebrated grandly in The Hague. After all, The Hague is the Hindustani capital of the country and on such a holiday, music cannot be missing. General and artistic director Sven Arne Tepl: "The Hindustani community in The Hague is the largest on the continent.It is special that they have contacted us to work together. This is really about connection, meaning something to each other. Beautiful arrangements have been written for this evening. This is how music brings us even closer together. The Residentie Orkest has already participated several times in the The Hague Diwali concert.  

More than music
Double bassist Jos Tieman played in theDiwali-concert for the third time. 'It is a very special evening. Everyone is beautifully dressed and there is a palpable spiritual layer to the concert. For this audience, what we play is more than music.'
He also praises the arrangements. 'This is an idiom that, as a Western musician, I am not familiar with at all. It is like having to write a foreign language. The arrangements literally and figuratively bring two worlds together. That's very cleverly done.' 

Imagine
The end of the Diwali-concert was memorable because of a special transition. Here the ensemble from the Residentie Orkest played a Hindustani song along with Denise Jannah, a Dutch jazz singer of Surinamese descent. This passed imperceptibly into Imagine by John Lennon. Which brought the meaning of Imagine back into the light in a new way. 

Jos sees more opportunities for this kind of programming in The Hague. 'It is nice that we are in contact with the Hindustani community in this way. Maybe in this way we can also contribute to the celebration of the Sugar Festival.' 

Wondering what theDiwali-concert looks and sounds like? Last year the Diwali-concert took place without an audience because of the corona pandemic. The concert was then recorded and you can watch it below.