Sat, September 20, 2025 at 7:00 PM
SHABAKA & HAND TO EARTH
feat. Daniel Wilfred, David Wilfred, Sunny Kim, Aviva Endean, Peter Knight
Pierre Boulez Saal
Hand to Earth’s latest project and album, Ŋurru Wäŋa, traces notions of home, belonging, and displacement. In the two parts of the title track, Sunny Kim intones the words of Korean poet Yoon Dong Ju’s poem Another Home, in counterpoint to Daniel Wilfred’s song, sung in the Wagliläk language. Ŋurru Wäŋa translates as “the scent of home,” and as we travel we long for that fragrance, passing the bee, guku, making the bush honey while the crow circles calling overhead.
This theme—this search for a sense of belonging—is at the heart of what drives Hand to Earth, a group of five people who come together from different backgrounds, different birthplaces, and different musical approaches to share our songs, and by doing that to create something new. The pieces on this album map our respective journeys into the now and express the relationships that have developed within Hand to Earth over the years we have traveled and played together.
For this special concert with Shabaka we deepen this dialogue around belonging, displacement, and connection to include his voice. It seems very natural to be exploring these themes with him as his music is restlessly creative and driven by a curiosity that seems very aligned with the creative conversation we pursue in Hand to Earth.
Tonight’s program includes material from Hand to Earth’s three previous albums and some new material developed collaboratively with Shabaka.
—Peter Knight
Artists
Flutes
Voice, Bilma (Clapsticks)
Yidaki (Didgeridoo), Voice, Dance
Voice, Electronics, Percussion, Dance
Clarinet, Overtone Flute, Electronics
Trumpet, Electronics, Synthesizer
EVENT TIMELINE
the artists
Daniel Wilfred is a Wagiläk songman from Ngukurr, Northern Territory, Australia. Born in Nhulunbuy, skin name Wamut, he is a ceremonial leader for the Wagiläk people, singing manikay (songs) and playing bilma at ceremonies in Ngukurr, Numbulwar, Groote Eylandt, and surrounding areas. He studied closely with his Elders, including songman Roy Ashley from Beswick, Northern Territory. He has been collaborating for almost 15 years with family members Benjamin Wilfred and David Wilfred, sharing songs and culture with people around the world. Daniel Wilfred was the recipient of the 2019 Arts Fellowship by the Northern Territory. Together with David, he was awarded the NT Luminary Award for cultural leadership and sustained creative contributions in Australia and beyond at the Australian Music Centre and APRA AMCO’s 2020 Art Music Awards.
David Yipininy Wilfred is a Ritharrŋu man and the traditional djunggayi (manager) of the manikay (songs) of the country of Nyilipidgi. He lives in Ngukurr, Northern Territory, and teaches song and dance to the children at the Ngukurr School. Together with his family members Benjamin Wilfred and Daniel Wilfred, he has been sharing his songs and culture with people around the world. Together with Daniel, he was awarded the NT Luminary Award for cultural leadership and sustained creative contributions in Australia and beyond during the 2020 Art Music Awards by APRA AMCOS and the Australian Music Centre.
Peter Knight is a composer, trumpeter, and curator whose practice thrives in the spaces between genres, categories, and cultures. His recent solo work extends the possibilities of his instrument with innovative approaches that interweave acoustic preparations and extended techniques with electroacoustic processing via vintage delays and tape machines. He is interested in the use of repetition, rhythmic overlapping, and slow harmonic evolution as well as subtle timbral evolutions to shift our perceptions of linear time. As Artistic Director of the Australian Art Orchestra (2013–23) Peter commissioned more than 100 works and collaborations with a diverse range of artists including Alvin Lucier, Senyawa, Nicole Lizée, Erik Griswold, Bae Il Dong, and Jules Reidy, and led performances by the company in over a dozen countries.
Aviva Endean is a clarinetist, composer, improviser, curator, sound artist, performance maker, and collaborator. She regularly works across a range of contexts including experimental and improvised music, new chamber music, creating theater works that are designed to be listened to, and working on cross-disciplinary collaborations. Her work seeks engagement beyond the boundaries of her art form, to reimagine the possibilities of a practice with sound. She is the recipient of numerous awards including the 2015 Freedman Music Fellowship.
Korean-born vocalist and composer Sunny Kim has performed and recorded with many internationally renowned musicians such as the Australian Art Orchestra, Ben Monder, Roswell Rudd, Dave Douglas, Trevor Dunn, and Pheeroan akLaff. She is the founder of Ensemble Ochaye, a collective of diasporic women artists, whose works has been presented at the Sydney Opera House and the festivals of Perth and Adelaide, among other venues. A dedicated educator and mentor, she is a music lecturer at the University of Melbourne and previously held various academic positions in Korea. She has released six albums as a leader, four of which were nominated for Best Jazz Album at the Korean Music Awards.
YOUR VISIT
How To Get There
Pierre Boulez Saal
Barenboim-Said Akademie
Französische Straße 33d
10117 Berlin
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Public Transport
U-Bahn U2 Hausvogteiplatz, U5 Museumsinsel, U6 Unter den Linden
S-Bahn S / U Friedrichstraße
Tram M1, 12 Mitte / Am Kupfergraben
Bus 147 Werderscher Markt; 100, 300, N5 Staatsoper
Bicycle
Bicycle racks are available on the street “Hinter der Katholischen Kirche.”
Car
Q-PARK parking garage Unter den Linden / Staatsoper
Bebelplatz 2
10117 Berlin
Theater rate (5.30 pm – 11.30 pm, paid in advance): €10
Please note there is a construction site across from the hall on Französische Straße. The street is narrowed, and cars or taxis are not allowed to stop in front of the Pierre Boulez Saal entrance.
Opening Hours
Box Office
Monday to Friday 2 pm to 6 pm
Closed on weekends and holidays
On performance days, the box office opens one hour prior to an event on weekdays and two hours on Saturdays, Sundays, and holidays.
Papagena Call Center
Ticket hotline +49 30 4799 7411
Monday to Saturday 9am to 8pm
Sunday and public holidays 2pm to 8pm
Food & Drinks
Casalot Catering welcomes Pierre Boulez Saal visitors before and after concerts, serving a variety of dishes of Arab cuisine.
On concert nights, the bar opens one hour before the start of an event and remains open after the performance. You may also place pre-orders for intermission right at the counter.
More informantion on our catering can be found here.
Coat Check
Small bags up to a maximum size of A4 (21x30 cm) and jackets may be taken into the concert hall. Luggage, helmets, large umbrellas, and other bulky items must be stored at the coat check.
The coat check is free and located behind the staircase in the foyer, on the left-hand side.
Accessibility
To book wheelchair-accessible seating, other seats for visitors with disabilities, or companion seats, please contact us directly.
+49 30 4799 7411
tickets@boulezsaal.de
All wheelchair seats are accessible by elevator. All visitors, including patrons using a wheelchair, will enter the Pierre Boulez Saal through the main entrance. Tickets will be checked at the hall doors.
In order to make access as easy as possible, we kindly ask that you inform us of your requirements when booking your tickets.
Restrooms for visitors with disabilities are located in the basement and on the balcony level and are accessible by elevator.
Four parking spaces for visitors with disabilities are available on the street Hinter der Katholischen Kirche.
