A hundred years since the birth of Sir Edmund, the Hillary Centenary Steering Committee, with funding support from Creative New Zealand, commissioned Roar Of A Thousand Tigers for the Christchurch Symphony Orchestra. The work takes its name from Sherpa Tenzing Norgay's description to Sir Edmund Hillary of the violent, high altitude icy winds that buffet the uppermost slopes of Mount Everest, which they summited in 1953.
I was commissioned in 2017 by the Hillary Centenary Steering Committee and Clive Gilson to compose an orchestral work celebrating Sir Edmund Hillary's 100th birthday. Without a second thought, I accepted the commission to honour this incredible man.
The first two movements, Kumbu Ice Fall and Majesty, represent the awe, danger, and magnificence of Everest, with snatches of Tibetan music floating through the orchestral texture. Majesty is also a reference to the fact that both Hillary's conquest and Queen Elizabeth's coronation occurred in 1953, and are very much linked by Sir Ed's appointment to Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire only a few days after the climb. The third and fourth movements, Yearning for Adventure and Determination, are inspired by the intensity of will and spirit that got Sir Edmund Hillary to the summit of Everest. Hillary's quote, "We knocked the bastard off", was very much in my mind while writing Determination. The final movement, The Hero, is purely a celebration of New Zealand's most adored cultural icon.
