Noma Sio-Faiumu is an event producer and arts manager[1] of Samoan descent based in Onehunga, New Zealand.[2] She has worked for over 30 years as an arts administrator within the New Zealand arts industry.[3][4] Her work is cross-cultural and spans a wide social spectrum facilitating multidisciplinary art projects independently and for leading arts organisations.[5] Within arts administration, Sio-Faiumu served as the lead facilitator for the APO (Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra) Remix the Orchestra for a decade.[3][6] The show received an International Music Council Musical Rights Award from the United Nations in 2013.[3] Within the New Zealand music industry she is a founding member of the Pacific Music Awards (2005).[3] She received a Special Recognition Award at Creative New Zealand's Pasifika Arts Awards for her contributions within the Pacific community (2017).[3][4]
Noma Sio-Faiumu | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1950s Upolu, Samoa |
| Nationality | Samoan |
| Occupation(s) | Arts Manager, Events Coordinator, Administrator, Community Leader |
| Notable work | APO (Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra) Remix the Orchestra (2013) & Co-Founder and Managing Director of 37hz Productions (2017 - Present) |
| Spouse | Matthew Sapalu-Faiumu (2012 - Present) |
| Children | 3 |
| Awards | Special Recognition Award at Creative New Zealand's Pasifika Arts Awards (2017) |
| Website | https://anonymouz.com/ |
Early life
editBorn in the 1950s in Upolu, Samoa to Samoan parents from the villages of Satupuala and Lotofaga, Sio-Faiumu is one of nine siblings.[7] Her family migrated to New Zealand in the late 1960s and settled in South Auckland. They settled after a journey from Samoa to Fiji on the Tofua boat, followed by a flight from Fiji to Auckland.[7] They first lived in Māngere, then Ōtāhuhu, before settling in Ōtara when Sio-Faiumu was six years old.[7]
Sio-Faiumu's earliest connection to the arts is her mother playing the piano around Christmas when she was young.[7][3] Raised in a deeply religious Mormon-Catholic family that valued tradition and Fa'asamoa,[2] she actively participated in church activities and sang in choirs.[7] As a child, Sio-Faiumu helped her parents with their cleaning jobs. Her and her family would clean hotels like the Criterion and the Star Hotels in Ōtāhuhu.[7][3]
Growing up in Ōtara, Sio-Faiumu's home became a pit stop for other families from her villages in Samoa who chose to migrate to New Zealand.[3] Her family would assist them in finding jobs, completing visa papers, securing housing and provided meals.[3] Despite facing dawn raids twice during her childhood, Sio-Faiumu was immersed in a diverse multicultural Pacific community. She learnt from community leaders like Terina Ricky and Tui Va Kolo.[7] These experiences taught her the significance of honouring tradition and ancient processes from an early age.[7]
She attended Mayfield Primary School, Beds Intermediate, and Sir Edmund Hillary College.[7] During her time at Sir Edmund Hillary College, Sio-Faiumu joined a band named Karma[8][unreliable source?] and began her lifelong relationship with Otara Music and Arts Centre through a youth development program.[8] Her itinerant teachers, Teina Bennioni and Peter Hoera, were local musicians respected in the Pasifika-South Auckland music scene.[7]
Biography
editUpon leaving high school Sio-Faiumu became a vocalist for various live bands in the late 80s to late 90s.[3] The bands would work a circuit that was both local and national which included places like Tamaki Tavern, the Tribesman pad, the Black Power pad, Duke Wellington and Cleos at the time.[3] Prior to her becoming an arts manager, Sio-Faiumu cites while on tour with South Auckland band, The Emeralds, watching their female drummer and manager in negotiations with venue holders.[3] During this time as an artist Sio-Faiumu had her first experience with arts management while on a national tour with a more prominent band. The first part of the band's tour was spent in their accommodation as their manager failed to inform venues that they would be performing.[3] During a two-week layover in Masterton Sio-Faiumu was nominated by her band members to become the manager for the remainder of the tour, from Masterton to Invercargill and back to Auckland.[3]
Following her work as a vocalist, in 1997 Sio-Faiumu began working as a Centre Coordinator for the Otara Music and Arts Centre.[5] During this time she would have her first interaction and begin her friendship with her future husband and collaborator Matthew Salapu-Faiumu / Anonymouz.[2] She would then leave in 2001 and take a job as Creative Director of Wahine Malosi Charitable Trust until 2005.[5] Alongside other prominent people within the Pacific Music community Sio-Faiumu founded the annual Pacific Music Awards (2005).[3][4] She also began serving as the Director of Operations for her husband's sound design company Anonymouz in 2005 and would stay in this position until 2017[5] when the company would shift their branding and become 37hz Productions of which Sio-Faiumu is a Co-Founder and Managing Director to the present day.[4] In late 2005 she left the Wahine Malosi Charitable Trust and began a position as the Personal Assistant to the National Director of Te Wananga o Aotearoa - School of Performing Arts.[5]
Following her time at Te Wananga o Aotearoa Sio-Faiumu would begin her decade long involvement with the Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra.[3] While employed there from 2006 to 2016 she would hold various roles such as Personal Assistant to the CEO, Office Manager, Board Secretary and Pacific Island Community Liaison.[6] She was a lead facilitator for their annual youth music programme, APO: Remix the Orchestra, which ran for the course of her term there.[5] It was a highly successful programme for musically talented kids from South Auckland to engage with classical and contemporary music.[6][3] It produced many successful figures in Pacific New Zealand Music including, David Dallas, Dei Hamo, Frisko, Erhmen, Tyree and Anonymouz.[6] At the end of the programme, the children and mentors hold a large showcase performance.[6] In 2013 her show was one of three to receive a prestigious Musical Rights Award from the United Nation's International Music Council.[3]
Whilst working with Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra Sio-Faiumu was also working at RAN Events as an Events Producer which she began in 2006 and left in 2017.[3] She cites in 2012 a career highlight of hers was playing a role in the introduction of the Sistema Aotearoa Programme to her Otara Community.[3] It is a programme to help uplift the Otara community by introducing the children on the area to classical music and then training them in classical instruments.[9] This helped to create a young orchestra that was ready to compete on a national level.[3][6] The Sistema Aotearoa headquarters are within the Otara Music and Arts Centre.[9]
From 2016 to 2020 Sio-Faiumu became a contracted Project Coordinator for the annual Auckland Arts Festivals Whanui Programme.[10][4][1] The programme was a collaborative effort between the Auckland Arts Festival and Auckland communities, featuring five projects celebrating creative intergenerational conversations.[10] In 2018 as part of the Whanui Programme she produced the show 4 THA LUMANA'I which was a live performance exploring parallels between traditional Samoan customs and contemporary Hip Hop art forms.[11][10] Sio-Faiumu cites another career highlight when she was a part of the team who founded the Manukau Secondary Schools Performing Arts Awards which is now Stand up Stand out / SUSO showcase (2016).[3]
In 2019 Sio-Faiumu was hired as Co-Chair / Toihau Matarua of SOUNZ: Centre for New Zealand Music.[12][3] She is valuable connector between the musicians of Pacific communities and SOUNZ. She is still in this role to the present day.[3][4]
For the New Zealand Festival of the Arts in 2021 Sio-Faiumu produced the work Resample Tatau by Anonymouz with their company 37hz Productions.[2]
Awards
edit- 2013 - APO (Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra) Remix the Orchestra received an International Music Council (IMC) Musical Rights Award from the UN[6][3]
- 2017 - Recipient of a Special Recognition Award at Creative New Zealand's Pasifika Arts Awards[1]
Career
edit| Year | Company | Role |
|---|---|---|
| 1997 - 2001 | Otara Music and Arts Centre (OMAC) | Centre Coordinator |
| 2002 - 2005 | Wahine Malosi Charitable Trust | Creative Director |
| 2005 | Pacific Music Awards (PMAC) | Founding member of the Pacific Music Awards |
| 2005 - 2006 | Te Wananga o Aotearoa - School of Performing Arts | Personal Assistant to the National Director |
| 2005 - 2017 | Anonymouz | Served as the Director of Operations at Anonymouz from 2005 to 2017 |
| 2006 - 2016 | Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra | Held various roles from 2006 to 2016, including Personal Assistant, Office Manager, and Pacific Island Community Liaison. |
| 2006 - 2016 | Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra - Remix the Orchestra | Lead facilitator of the Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra's award-winning programme, Remix the Orchestra |
| 2008 - 2017 | RAN Events | Events Producer |
| 2012 | Sistema Aotearoa Program | Played a role in supporting the introduction of the Sistema Aotearoa program into the Ōtara community,[3] helping build a nationally ready-to-compete orchestra.[13] |
| 2016 - 2020 | Auckland Arts Festival - Whanui Programme
(Contracted) |
Project Coordinator for the Whanui Programme |
| 2016 | Otara Music and Arts Centre | Being a part of the team who initiated the Manukau Secondary Schools Performing Arts Awards which is now Stand up Stand out (SUSO)[14] |
| 2017–Present | 37Hz Productions | Co-founded and currently serves as the Managing Director of 37 Hz Productions, a digital creative production company, since 2017 |
| 2018 | 4 THA LUMANA'I[15] | Producer of 4 THA LUMANA'I |
| 2019–Present | SOUNZ Centre for New Zealand Music | Co-Chair / Toihau Matarua of the Board of SOUNZ |
| 2021 | New Zealand Festival of the Arts - 37 Hz Productions: Resample Tatau[2] | Produced Resample Tatau with her co-founded production company 37hz Productions. |
References
edit- ^ a b c "Arts Pasifika Awards celebrate excellence and innovation in Pacific Art". creativenz.govt.nz. Retrieved 2024-02-24.
- ^ a b c d e "From workmates to wedded bliss: 'He turned up for his interview looking beaten up'". www.stuff.co.nz. 29 January 2022. Retrieved 24 February 2024.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z sounzdigital (2019-12-13). "Meet the Board | Noma Sio-Faiumu". SOUNZ. Retrieved 2024-02-24.
- ^ a b c d e f "Auckland.Scoop » Noma Sio-Faiumu joins Board of SOUNZ". Retrieved 2024-02-24.
- ^ a b c d e f g Sio-Faiumu, Noma (2006). "Tiumalu Noma Sio-Faiumu". Linked in.
- ^ a b c d e f g APO Remix the Orchestra | The Story So Far.., retrieved 2024-02-24
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j Noma Sio-Faiumu | We Are Ōtara Podcast | Ep17, retrieved 2024-02-24
- ^ a b OMAC 30/30 #10 - Noma Sio-Faiumu | Noma is a former OMAC facility co-ordinator / manager and describes herself as an OMAC baby. Noma reminisces here about the vibrant live music scene in... | By OMAC | Facebook, retrieved 2024-02-24
- ^ a b "About Us". Sistema Aotearoa. Retrieved 2024-02-24.
- ^ a b c Whānui – Auckland Arts Festival 2018, retrieved 2024-02-24
- ^ 4 Tha Lumana'i, retrieved 2024-01-28
- ^ "noma sio-faiumu Archives". NZ Musician. Retrieved 2024-02-24.
- ^ "Omac - Article | AudioCulture". www.audioculture.co.nz. Retrieved 2024-01-28.
- ^ "SUSO (Stand Up Stand Out)". Rockshop. Retrieved 2024-01-28.
- ^ "4 Tha Lumana'i — thecoconet.tv - The world's largest hub of Pacific Island content.uu". www.thecoconet.tv. Retrieved 2024-01-28.