Taking a stand

University of Otago senior executant lecturer of cello Heleen Du Plessis plays Turangawaewae, which she commissioned former University of Otago student Corwin Newall to write.

The work will be played in the Arts Festival Dunedin multi-media concert Cellists Aotearoa,  featuring a cello ensemble, at the Glenroy Auditorium at 8pm tonight.

The title of the work translates to "home" and "a place to stand".

The work "claims a place for the arts" in a climate of neglect, disregard and discrimination of humanities, Du Plessis said.

Education in arts and languages was important for society to prosper, she said.

"Music and language are the main forms of human expression. It has the power to expose the truth ... music, art and literature cannot be silenced."