Monday 25 January 2016

Sinfonia Student review: At Lunch Two

At Lunch Two: West Road Concert Hall, Tuesday 19 January
Stephen Wilkinson

Although this programme, the second in this season’s At Lunch concerts, was created as a celebration of texture, thanks to the musicians’ skill and sensitivity it became a showcase of artful balance and ensemble. The 250-year timespan of the pieces, stretching from Bach to a new composition by Anna Clyne, showcased similar techniques and sound worlds which formed parallels between temporally- and geographically-distanced composers’ works, which was hinted at by the title of Ligeti’s Continuum. The result was a varied programme, which attested to the richness and intertextuality of the Western classical tradition.

Despite the spacious dimensions of the 500-seat concert hall, the musicians created an intimate atmosphere from the very beginning of the programme, which began with the welcome addition of the sinfonia from Bach’s BWV21. The instrumental movement set the tone for the rest of the concert, drawing the audience into the fine textural world of J.S. Bach’s 1714 cantata in its stately pace, which was maintained by the whole ensemble, despite the absence of a conductor and with no perceptible intervention from Jacqueline Shave. At the outset of the concert, the ensemble’s disposition outlined a key element of the concert. The soprano, Julia Doyle, was seated by the harpsichord at the rear of the ensemble, allowing her colleagues to take centre stage. This was a programme in which no divide was felt between the vocalist and the instrumental group, instead promoting a sense of unity, which added to the overall impression of balance.  

Julia Doyle’s silvery soprano was a perfect fit for the ensemble from which her first soft sighs of ‘Seufer, Tränen, Kummer, Not’ seemed to issue in the aria from BWV21. Doyle’s expressive singing never compromised the intimacy created by the ensemble’s sparse accompaniment in this movement, establishing a mood which was carried on into ‘Chi m’addita, per pietà’, the first of two arias from Scarlatti’s Due arie notturne dal campo, arranged by Sciarrino in 2001. Whilst Doyle afforded a slightly more indulgent, warmer tone to this Italian aria, she once again appeared to work with the string players who, even in monophony, achieved a beautifully subtle balance, which supported the soprano perfectly.  Doyle’s repeat was adorned with understated decorations and never detracted from the searching, internalised mood that was shared by both the first Bach and Scarlatti arias.

Sciarrino’s layered string texture, particularly in the use of harmonics, found an interesting parallel in Pärt’s Fratres for string quartet (played today by Jacqueline Shave, Miranda Dale, Clare Finnimore and Caroline Dearnley). An example of Pärt’s ‘tintinnabuli’, a neologism of his own coinage, the success of this piece was testament to the instrumentalists’ superb grasp of balance. The four voices were so unified that the impression was of one instrumentalist rather than a quartet. The steady unfolding of Pärt’s ‘tintinnabular’ variations was effected so skilfully that the entire audience was completely motionless, including four rows of schoolchildren, as the piece’s sense of expansive timelessness stretched out, a notable achievement in a lunchtime programme of only one hour.

The ensemble found a new, more expansive, positive tone in the second Scarlatti arr. Sciarrino aria, ‘Non to curo, o libertà’. The imploring, internalised vocal tone Doyle had found up to this point was replaced with an enriched, confident warmth as the piece swung onwards. Doyle’s postural change here, opening up to the audience and allowing herself more movement, also marked this shift whilst her vocal performance always remained as restrained as the elegant strings. In the absence of oboist Marios Argiros, this all-female outfit was reunited in Bach’s soprano aria ‘Tief gebückt und voller Reue’ from Cantata BWV199, in which the pious timidity of his earlier work is replaced by a more self-assured tone. In response to this shift, the ensemble’s accompaniment was generous yet never overpowering. In return, Doyle’s attention to the soaring, more expansive soprano lines, although allowed to blossom from the instrumental texture, never detracted from her colleagues’ sensitive playing. Bach’s BWV187 aria ‘Gott versorget alles Leben’ saw the whole ensemble united in this warmer, fuller sound which accompanied Doyle’s more lavish tone in her declaration of ‘Weicht, ihr Sorgen’ (‘Worries, be gone!’), with the soprano and oboe lines joyfully interweaving above an accompaniment which glittered with harpsichordist Maggie Cole’s rich spread chords.

Cole’s performance of Ligeti’s Continuum saw the harpsichord’s capabilities span from its role in Bach’s cantatas to a more modern setting. Ligeti’s piece is at once reminiscent of Bach’s keyboard works and of twentieth-century minimalist techniques. The piece’s gradual changes and sense of steady crescendo created a sense of Cole taking a Baroque invention in all its intricacy of form and demarcation of individual notes, and slowly melting it down until smaller elements are lost in a blurred and blended sound world in which only broad changes can be perceived. As the piece moved towards the higher registers of the instrument, the percussive sound of the plectrums falling back onto vibrating strings suggested other more recent realisations of the harpsichord’s capabilities with a hint of musique concrète. Cole’s flair and sensitive playing were rewarded with applause worthy of this accomplished performance.

The nocturnal theme from Scarlatti’s Due arie notturne dal campo was echoed in Anna Clyne’s new work, This Lunar Beauty, co-commissioned by Britten Sinfonia and  Wigmore Hall. As W.H. Auden (whose poem Clyne sets for soprano, oboe, string quartet and harpsichord) and Benjamin Britten were collaborators as well as close personal friends, there was a sense of reuniting the two as the Sinfonia that bears Britten’s name played Clyne’s setting of Auden’s poem. The piece neatly encapsulated many of the programme’s explorations, mixing suggestions of British folksong with a more modern, avant-garde sound world. The setting of the poem’s second stanza sees rising scalic melismatic patterns in the soprano, echoed in the instrumental lines, suggesting a raising of the eyes and voice to the lunar object of the persona’s meditation. These more expressive, confident voices then surrender to a once again personal, introspective mood.



This programme showcased the capability of a small group of musicians to work together in order to create a diversity of moods and to highlight unobvious intertextual and intertemporal links between a range of pieces. Given the amount that this programme achieved, it is surprising that it lasted only an hour. It is testament to the quality of the musicianship and the diligence of the programming that the lunchtime concert was not only intellectually appealing but also contained many moments in which a weekday’s inevitable busyness seemed to melt away. All of the musicians are to be congratulated for today’s subtle yet no less powerful, varied or transporting performance. 

Stephen Wilkinson (Sinfonia Student 2015-16)

Monday 18 January 2016

What inspires composers?

Ahead of the OPUS2016 open workshops taking place this week at the Barbican (Friday 22 & Saturday 23 January), we asked our ten shortlisted composers what inspires them...


Robert Peate:

Everything really... I still get very excited when I see/hear people playing instruments, and the idea of writing music is still an inspiring thing. Apart from music itself anything with a strong character or feeling to it can suggest ideas... it’s hard to say exactly where and when and what you’re inspired by most of the time, a lot is also subconscious I think. Nature is always a source of fascination, pleasure, truth and inspiration to me though, as are relationships between people.



Margaret Haley:

Visual sources. Abstract paintings, e.g. Paul Klee, Wassily Kandinsky. Poetry often shapes the outcome of my vocal music. Astronomical phenomena have a strong bearing on my music for traditional instrumentation. The rotational forces of the cosmos have certainly influenced my writing over the last decade.


Neil Smith:

My pieces can be the result of inspirations from almost any subject or area. They don’t always have to be extra-musical, as often I find particular musical ideas are inspiration enough to write a piece. Recent pieces have been based on Spanish poet Lorca, the nature of musical speeding up and slowing down, the phenomenon of discovering historic hoards, the science of animation and Arabic art. In the past five years I have found science in particular a fertile are for exploration. Scientific models can be represented in fascinating musical ways. This is something I want to explore more in the future.


Emma Wilde:

Everything but particularly other art forms, visual art, drama, dance, poetry and literature, all sorts of music, lately I think listening to electroacoustic music has changed the way I think about composing a lot. I listened to a lot of popular music growing up and still do and I think this has had a big effect on me too.



Gonçalo Gato:

I would say that what inspires me is indeed the mystery music still is, and how it makes me feel and think all sorts of things. I get inspiration from other people’s music because it transforms me, and because I can hardly picture myself living without it. Music is a kind of ‘speaking sound’, and in this sense I can hear the human voice in it. I am also an audiophile, very interested in Hi-Fi and acoustics. I take much pleasure from the ‘plastic’ aspect of sound and from sound reproduction fidelity.




James Hoyle:

Many things inspire me: recently these have included visual art, medieval music, architecture, food, political issues... It’s impossible to pin down any one point of inspiration because I enjoy the fact that many seemingly unrelated things can collide together as I work.




Andrew Thomas:

Anything from a novel, a line in a poem or an image to a noise, sound or smell from traveling and the real world. I gain constant inspiration from contemporaries and older composers and would cite particular influence from Nielsen, Sibelius, Purcell, Ligeti, Harvey, Grisey and Japanese music and aesthetics.


Andrew Baldwin:

My inspiration for pieces is often drawn from eclectic places – unless it is a commission with a specific theme. I have a big interest in orchestration and find that I spent a lot of time of this once my musical ideas are formed. I always find brilliant examples in the works of Ravel, Varese, and Takemitsu, as well as contemporaries Philip Hurel and Magnus Lindberg. My compositions often take a directive to effect the listener in a range of emotions.



Sohrab Uduman:

A difficult question since I cannot pin it down to one thing. The impulse, idea, can come from a number of sources; fine art (particularly important for me in recent times), literature, landscapes, environmental sounds, pieces I have heard, plain curiosity. Any piece I write usually takes up something that was present, to one degree or another, in a previous piece of mine.




Daniel Kidane:

Everything and anything. It could be a sound, or something visual or perhaps an idea I want to explore.






Click here to book your free place to attend one or both days of the OPUS2016 open workshops at the Barbican (22 & 23 January).

Thursday 14 January 2016

Meet Allison Bell



In February, soprano Allison Bell performs Louis Andriessen's ethereal Dances with Britten Sinfonia as part of the Barbican's celebration of Andriessen's life and work, M is for Man, Music and Mystery. The concert is part of a BBC Total Immersion day devoted to the music of Louis Andriessen, We caught up with Allison ahead of rehearsals to find out a bit about hat makes her tick...

... highlight of your career so far?
It would have to be a tie between my first Lulu Suite at Tchaikovsky Concert Hall with Vladimir Jurowski and the Russian State Academic Symphony Orchestra (Svetlanov) and singing guest vocals with the Violent Femmes at the Troxy in London as part of their reunion tour in 2014. They were one of my all time favourite bands as a kid and it was so unbelievable to be sharing the stage with not only them but also two more music heroes of mine, Steve Mackay from the Stooges (who sadly passed away recently) and Mick Harvey from the Bad Seeds. Both concerts were surreally within weeks of each other and both equally incredible, pinch-myself moments.

When are you happiest?
Long sunny days, deep in the wilds of Tasmania, with good friends and lots of cheese and wine.

What is your greatest fear?
I have a few. Religious fundamentalism. Xenophobia. Stupid people with guns.

Earliest musical memory?
My mum singing Split Enz 'Six months in a leaky boat', loudly, along with the car radio - I must have been 3 or so.

Which living person do you most admire, why?
My childhood music teacher in Tasmania, Rennie Herbert. She instilled in me not just a curiosity and love for music and culture but literally devoted her life to becoming effectively the surrogate mother to a great many kids, like myself, who came from very poor, dysfunctional backgrounds in rural Tasmania. Rennie gave us not just music but a sense of hope, self-worth and self-discipline. Through her we saw there was a bigger world out there to explore. And she's still there for me today, aged 90, whenever I need advice or moral support.

Embarrassing moment?
I think my embarrassment meter must be faulty, I very rarely get embarrassed. I probably should. I'm sure my friends can give you pages of material. Ok, I guess I did find it pretty uncomfortable having to warm up in my hotel room at the Hôtel de la Tremoille in Paris when I was singing around the corner at the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées, knowing Jack Nicholson was staying in the room next to me. And I knew he was in - we had come up in the lift together. I was singing Polly in Weill's Threepenny Opera, which involved an unconventional warm up to say the least. One where you have to make really ugly, brutal noises before you make the nice ones. For a huge cinephile and lifelong Jack Nicholson fan, yep, that was actually pretty bad.
 
If you were an animal what would you be?
A high-soaring bird like an eagle. A lyrebird would also be fun.

What is your most unappealing habit?
Impatience. Belligerent when hungry.

What is your favourite book?
There are too many to choose just one but my more recent favourites are Stoner by John Williams and The Heart is a Lonely Hunter by Carson McCullers. Both quietly but profoundly beautiful, moving.

What is your guiltiest pleasure?
I only have to get the faintest whiff of lactose to become a congested mess so I have to avoid dairy in order to sing. So it's got to be eating cheese. With an ice-cream chaser.

Who would you invite to your dream dinner party?
Giorgio Locatelli to cook, no question. My ideal dinner party involves getting tipsy and laughing raucously rather than cerebral, challenging conversations. Nothing too high brow. So with that in mind, and narrowing it down to the living, I'd invite Bill Murray, Larry David, Louis CK, Chris Lilley, Susie Essman, Amy Poehler and Amy Schumer.

How do you relax away from concert platform?
I want to say getting out in nature, on a remote coastline somewhere, reconnecting with the elements etc. But it's more likely that you'll find me in my pyjamas, binge-watching any number of TV series and films for days at a time. 

What do you consider your greatest achievement?
Being able to keep a roof over my head as a freelance musician. Also having such wise, loyal and supportive friends.

What is the most important lesson life has taught you?
Don't wait for that moment where you feel 100% ready or 100% secure in yourself and your abilities to go forth and do your thing. That moment never comes. Most of the people you admire are just as scared as you. It's a privilege to be out of your comfort zone most of the time - it sounds cheesy but that's where the magic happens.

In a nutshell, what is your philosophy?
Stay in the moment. Don't sweat the small stuff. Mind your own business.


Allison appears with Britten Sinfonia on Saturday 13 February at 3pm at London's Milton Court Concert Hall in Louis Andriessen's Dances. To find full concert details and to book tickets click here.

For full details of the Barbican's celebration of the life and works of Louis Andriessen, M is for Man, Music and Mystery click here.

Wednesday 13 January 2016

Discovering Steve Reich's The Desert Music



When looking through Britten Sinfonia’s advance schedule (which looks at least at five years into the future) there are often projects that appear that immediately put a smile on your face and you anticipate with excitement (in my case both personally and/or with my marketing hat on). A couple of years ago I was thrilled to spot plans on the schedule for a project including a performance of Steve Reich’s The Desert Music – a piece I have loved for a number of years.

I first discovered the music of Steve Reich whilst at university – I studied The Desert Music for one of my modules and was entranced by the sound-world created and compositional techniques and structure. I bought my own score and the Nonesuch recording (no mean feat for a poor music student) – and poured over these night after night. This very much annoyed my non-music studying housemates who were all into house and dance music. I tried explaining that what they were listening to and what I was listening to was similar in so many ways and perhaps they should give minimalist contemporary music a go but to no avail.

My passion for this piece has not ebbed (the opening vocal line Begin, my friend still sends a tingle down my spine). I’ve seen a number of live performances and it still remains one of my most played recordings. It led me to discover, firstly, other works by Reich including Electric Counterpoint, Different Trains and Three Tales (which I had the privilege of seeing the UK premiere of at the Barbican Theatre) and then on to other minimalist composers.

I do hope my enthusiasm for this piece will be shared by the audience on Tuesday 9 February when Britten Sinfonia and Britten Sinfonia Voices conducted by Clark Rundell perform Reich’s The Desert Music alongside works by Louis Andriessen and Steve Martland. Book tickets here.

Claire
Marketing Director

This concert forms part of the Barbican's celebration of Andriessen's music and life, M is for Man, Music and Mystery. Find out more about the series here.

You can listen to a Spotify playlist (including Steve Reich's The Desert Music) here.

Tuesday 12 January 2016

OPUS2016 shortlisted composer - Daniel Kidane


Full Name: Daniel Kidane
Age: 29


Where are you from? Where do you live now? Do you think this is relevant to understanding your music? 

I was born in London and I currently live in London. Some of my pieces do reflect my heritage and upbringing. But I’d say my music speaks for itself.


How will you approach writing your OPUS2016 for Britten Sinfonia? 

I would like to explore the resonant features of the piano trio.


Who have you worked with previously? What ensembles/orchestras/organisations? 

London Philharmonic Orchestra, Manchester Camerata, Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra’s Ensemble 10/10 and many other great groups.


What’s your earliest musical memory? 

As a kid I remember going to a lot of concerts involving solo violinists. I was fortunate to see many of the old school greats.


When did you first start to write music? 

My first compositional endeavours began whilst I was a student at the Royal College of Music Junior Department.


Describe your growth as a composer to this point. What were the pivotal points? 

Settling on a musical language, making the most of each opportunity that came my way and meeting some great performers and ensembles along the way.


How do you start a new work/what is your composing method? 

Piano, pencil, computer (that order).


What’s your musical guilty pleasure? 

ABBA


What instrument do you play? 

I was a violinist and now I dabble at the piano when I compose.


How do you feel about the opportunities that are available to composers? 

There are some great opportunities out there; however I do think more could be done especially when it comes to developing sustained partnerships.


What would be your advice to other young composers today? 

It’s a tough road but rewarding at the same time.


What does the future hold for you? What are your next steps going to be as a composer? 

Currently working on a piece for the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra for the Shakespeare 400th anniversary year. Looking forward to working on many more exciting and interesting projects.


You can join Daniel and the other OPUS2016 shortlisted composers on 22 & 23 January 2016 for two days of workshops at the Barbican in London, with discussions and performances of the pieces these composers have been working on. Find out more and how to reserve your place here.

Friday 8 January 2016

OPUS2016 shortlisted composer - Sohrab Uduman

(c) Jon Barraclough

Full Name: Sohrab Uduman
Age: 53


Where are you from? Where do you live now? Do you think this is relevant to understanding your music?

I was born in Ceylon (Sri Lanka) and now live in Cheshire, around the corner from where I work at Keele University. I grew up in South East Essex where, thanks in part to the then-enlightened practices of local government, entrepreneurs and the regional arts board, there was a rich musical life not only in Art Music but also jazz and rock; notably, in the last case, the Canvey Island R&B of Dr Feelgood, Lew Lewis and others. A healthy local circuit of recital spaces, civic halls, venues, pubs and clubs kept all this accessible, alive (and live). l doubt, however, whether any of this expresses itself on the surface of my music.


How will you approach writing your OPUS2016 composition for Britten Sinfonia?

With relish. This is an ensemble whose work I admire and I’ve had in mind for some time to write a piece for piano and strings.


Who have you worked with previously? What ensembles/orchestras/organisations?

I had a very enjoyable period at IRCAM some years ago working on a commission from them for the Ardittis; it was great fun. Recently, and following on from the work at IRCAM, I’ve worked with musicians such as Jane Chapman, Susanna Borsch, Sarah Watts and Antony Clare on projects incorporating live electronics and the kind of musical ideas I’m interested in looking at. I also worked with Jon Barraclough, the visual artist, on a number of projects involving music and moving images including exploring ways of integrating live drawing with performance and computer transformation.


What’s your earliest musical memory?

The music around our home in Colombo; my mother playing Beethoven’s Pathetique Sonata on the upright in the front room, an LP of Nat King Cole singing, amongst other things, Perfidia, Kandyan drumming in the street processions and my father (plus his friends) gathered around the piano at the end of the day for what you could call a spirited rendition of Foggy Foggy Dew.


Describe your growth as a composer to this point. What were the pivotal points?

Another tough one since these pivotal points acquire significance after the event but the important ones relate to my composition teachers, George Mowat-Brown, Jonty Harrison and Vic Hoyland who, as well as imparting technique, attention to detail and openness to the irrational, have the knack of presenting complex ideas in simple terms. Apart from that, my formative experiences came from performing and hence encountering the music of composers such as Messiaen, Webern, Stockhausen and Boulez. Interestingly, the issue of accessibility of 'new' music during my student days at Surrey and Birmingham meant simply that; one of access to the music. Since scores and materials were readily available it was relatively straightforward, given the company of other like-minded people and some quality time, to gain physical contact with this music. And, yes, there was also an audience!


How do you start a new work/ what is your composing method?

Largely at the computer, for sketching and playing with material and for its ability to allow you to work in interesting ways with physical sound in conjunction with abstract, symbolic, ideas and notation. Recently I’ve been trying to spend more time sketching with pencil and paper since, for purely instrumental, ‘acoustic,’ music, this is more efficient.


What’s your musical guilty pleasure?

I don’t associate pleasure with guilt. On the other hand, if I sit at a piano I tend to play Beethoven sonatas, which I do badly and annoy my family, so this would be an embarrassing pleasure.


What instrument do you play?

It was the clarinet, but in another lifetime. I owe a lot to the instrument since it went some way in bringing me to composition by putting me in direct touch with some great music, including those extraordinary Alan Hacker pieces by Birtwistle and Maxwell Davies, and Roger Heaton’s performances of music by Globokar and Radulescu.


How do you feel about the opportunities that are available to composers?

These exist and the main challenge for us is getting our work an airing, rather than producing it. Hence, the great opportunity provided by OPUS2016 in this instance to write for Britten Sinfonia.


What would be your advice to other young composers today?

I recollect Poul Ruder’s advice when he was once asked this question: “ Always use a ruler [for straight lines I assume] and stay out of jail.” Well, computers have largely made rulers redundant for us composers but the latter part of his guidance is still worth taking note of.


What does the future hold for you? What are your next steps going to be as a composer?

I don’t know what it holds but I’ll try and deal with it one piece at a time.


You can join Sohrab and the other OPUS2016 shortlisted composers on 22 & 23 January 2016 for two days of workshops at the Barbican in London, with discussions and performances of the pieces these composers have been working on. Find out more and how to reserve your place here.

Tuesday 5 January 2016

OPUS2016 shortlisted composer - Andrew Thomas

(c) Liz Boyd
Full Name: Andrew Thomas
Age: 33


Where are you from? Where do you live now? Do you think this is relevant to understanding your music?

I was born in Essex but have lived most of my life in Surrey. I don’t feel this has a direct impact on my music though - I would say I have a global outlook and field of aesthetic influence.


How will you approach writing your OPUS2016 composition for Britten Sinfonia? 

I’m going to write a piece that will exploit the skills of the players in the ensemble and develop some recent pre-occupations in my music and hopefully as a result find some new directions for me to go both in this piece and in the future.


Who have you worked with previously? What ensembles/orchestras/organisations?

London Sinfonietta, CHROMA, Orkest de Ereprijs, Schubert Ensemble, London Chamber Orchestra, Construction Site Ensemble, Kokoro amongst others.


What’s your earliest musical memory?

I used to love the song with the chorus ‘we didn’t start the fire’ (so much so that I broke my dads tape player from rewinding it so often) although I can’t remember who it’s by. My first ‘classical’ memories are singing as a treble in choirs and seeing the Lutoslawski cello concerto at the proms.


Describe your growth as a composer to this point. What were the pivotal points?

My lecturers as an undergraduate (Simon Emmerson and Dennis Smalley) were very influential in the exposure and insight to new music they offered, as well as the encouragement of my composition teacher Rhian Samuel and flute teacher at the GSMD, Katy Gainham, who encouraged my exploration of contemporary repertoire. I was also lucky enough to study with Jonathan Harvey whilst completing my masters which has had a lasting impact on my aesthetics and technique. In terms of my music I would say that a project I completed with the London Chamber Orchestra in 2012 was pivotal in the maturing of my voice and style which continues today.


How do you start a new work/ what is your composing method? 

I always start by imagining sound, then I try to notate it with pencil and paper. I then do a lot of pre-composition and analysis of the material I’m generating so I can start to structure the piece. Depending on the piece I then might use a computer to check complex rhythmic combinations or discuss things with a performer. I never use a computer to orchestrate and I’m a terrible pianist so work at the piano is only ever in the early stages.


What living person do you most admire, and why?

Apart from (obviously) my beautiful wife and two young children I am a big fan of Kaija Saariaho - her music is so original and she speaks and promotes contemporary music with real authenticity.


What instrument do you play?

I trained as a flautist and have been playing professionally for about 12 years. I also sing professionally as a bass in small ensembles and solo oratorio roles as well as conducting.


How do you feel about the opportunities that are available to composers?

There are a lot of good, able, qualified composers applying for not many opportunities. Very few involve anything more than expenses so it is becoming more and more difficult to devote enough time to composing and earn a living. Luckily it’s something I’m passionate about so I find the time but it can be hard and involve very late nights and time away from the family.


What would be your advice to other young composers today?

Listen to as much music as possible but always be critical and ask how your voice and aims fit with what you're listening to and don’t forget the importance of music of the past on what we do today. Be pro-active in writing for players, don’t wait for them to come to you and grow thick skin - for every success there’s more rejection. Only do it if you REALLY want it - you won’t make a fortune out of it!


What does the future hold for you? What are your next steps going to be as a composer?

I’m working on a new piece for Japanese Noh musicians, harp, soprano and electronics for Kings Place and will then be starting a piece for The Hermes Experiment to be premiered in November 2016. I’m also arranging a number of future projects for various duo combinations.


You can join Andrew and the other OPUS2016 shortlisted composers on 22 & 23 January 2016 for two days of workshops at the Barbican in London, with discussions and performances of the pieces these composers have been working on. Find out more and how to reserve your place here.