‘Munro’ for orchestra - composer. Commissioned by Auckland Philharmonia, recorded by New Zealand Symphony Orchestra
Burt Munro, what a bloody good kiwi. And what a bloody good character to write a piece about. So I did. As part of my APO Communities Composer position I put together MUNRO for the 2019 APO Discovery Concert.
[The APO Discovery concert is a showcase of orchestral music for about 2,000 lucky secondary school students]
Burt was a typical kiwi guy expressing exorbitant amounts of ingenuity, determination and optimism.
Thanks firstly to APO Connecting for commissioning this work, and to Tianyi Lu and the musicians for giving such a committed performance. Then thanks to the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra and SOUNZ for the recording opportunity as part of the NZ Composer Sessions.
“Herbert James Munro (25 March 1899 – 6 January 1978) was a motorcycle racer from New Zealand, famous for setting a motorcycle speed record in the 1000cc Streamliner Modified Fuel category, at Bonneville, on 26 August 1967. This record still stands as of May 2026; Munro was 68 and was riding a 47-year-old machine when he set his last record.
Working from his home in Invercargill, he spent 20 years highly modifying the 1920 Indian Scout that he had bought that year. Munro set his first New Zealand speed record in 1938, and later set seven more. He travelled to compete at the Bonneville Salt Flats, attempting to set world speed records. During his ten visits to the salt flats, he set three speed records in the American Motorcyclist Association’s National Records, one of which still stands as of May 2026.
His efforts, and success, are the basis of the film The World’s Fastest Indian (2005), starring Anthony Hopkins, and an earlier 1971 short documentary film Burt Munro: Offerings to the God of Speed, both directed by Roger Donaldson.”
Programme Note
“Musically, there is a relentless energy and a mechanical drive, with short rhythmic ideas constantly recurring, often interrupted by a strong jolt, but always returning. Metallic percussion plays a steady role as ideas establish but then often surprisingly move in different directions, as if Burt had the thought ‘Ah bugger, scrap that idea, I’ve got a better one’. As the piece draws to a close, there is finally a sense of cohesion, satisfaction and accomplishment.”
I can’t get away without posting the trailer for Burt’s movie, ‘The World’s Fastest Indian’, featuring Anthony Hopkins…