If you’re going to return for your first headline show in six years, you may as well do it in style.
Stan Walker today announced ‘Stan Walker — A Symphonic Experience’, presented by Fabrik and Mai FM, which will take over The Trusts Arena in Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland on Saturday, October 17th.
It will be his first headline show in Aotearoa New Zealand since before COVID.
According to a press release, the special show “pairs Walker’s storytelling prowess and his full live band with a 30+ piece orchestra. Every song will be reimagined, rearranged, and performed live in a way audiences have never experienced before.”
We caught up with Walker to celebrate the major announcement.
While this won’t be his first time performing with an orchestra, he says it’s his first time “performing a whole set and doing a whole show” with one.
“I’ve done shows with orchestras where I’ve done, like, max three songs, and I’ve just given them my songs and they’ve charted it and made it to that song,” he explains. “But we’re starting from scratch, from the beginning, and doing all new mixes, to songs I haven’t done for years, to brand-new songs, to my biggest songs.
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“We’re doing everything from scratch so it’s a lot of mahi, but yeah, I’ve never done a full show with an orchestra.”
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He thinks his songs “are going to be humungous” backed by both his full live band and a 30+piece orchestra.
“I’m going to tailor them in terms of my band and the orchestra to fit the feel of the song and what they’re about,” he says. “It will be a rollercoaster. It’ll be like sitting inside a movie, but it’s a concert, that’s what my hope is. We’re doing a lot of different things that will hopefully bring out different emotions and take people on a sensual journey.”
When pressed for a setlist teaser for fans, Walker was pleasingly forthcoming.
“I can definitely say ‘Black Box’, ‘Take It Easy’, ‘I Am’, ‘Māori Ki Te Ao’, ‘Aotearoa’, we’re even bringing back ‘Holding You’ and ‘Choose’. There’s going to be a lot of other old ones and a lot of new ones.
“That’s what I can say for now, that’s definitely going to be on the setlist.”
As for special guests, the only confirmed ones so far will be the most special guests of all: his children.
“I’m going to have my kids on stage with me. I’m going to start training them now so that they can be in tune. I feel like this show is going to go big or go home… [there will be] a lot of special guests that don’t even know that they’re going to be appearing, so I got to start messaging them!”
Tickets to ‘Stan Walker — A Symphonic Experience’, go on sale to the general public on Thursday, July 23rd at 7pm local time.
The pre-sale begins on Wednesday, July 22nd at 7pm local time, with pre-sale registration opening on Wednesday, July 15th at 5:30pm (sign up here).
Ticket information available here.
