Armand Diangienda

Armand Diangienda

Biography

The conductor of the “Orchestre Symphonique Kimbanguiste” isn’t actually a musician, but is in fact a pilot by trade, even though he also plays cello and composes in his spare time. His grandfather Armand Diangien persuaded him to start an orchestra. To begin with only a few dozen musicians came to play, who had to practise in shifts, as there weren’t enough instruments for everyone. Over time, Armand Diangienda managed to find 200 instrumentalists in Kinshasa, with whom he founded the first symphony orchestra in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Many of them are self-taught, but they work with real enthusiasm when the conductor rehearses European classics, such as Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony or “Carmina Burana” by Carl Orff. When the film “Kinshasa Symphony” had its world premiere at the Berlinale 2010, Armand Diangienda, who had flown in from Kinshasa, received a wonderful ovation from the impressed cinema audience for his dedicated work.

Filmography

Kinshasa Symphony (2010): Actor