An introduction to new music - as recommended by composers...

At Britten Sinfonia, commissioning and performing new music is a huge part of what we do, but we know that new and contemporary music can be daunting if you haven't had much experience of it before. Our upcoming concerts in April feature two world premieres - Bryce Dessner's El Chan, which will feature in our At Lunch Four programme, and Elena Langer's story of an impossible love, which will be performed in our programme featuring pianist Benjamin Grosvenor.

To get you in the 'new music' mood, take a listen to our Spotify playlist of works by the composers we've commissioned in our 2015-16 season (including Bryce Dessner and Elena Langer). We've also asked the OPUS2016 shortlisted composers for their suggestions of what to start with if you're looking to explore more...

Daniel Kidane:

Don’t be scared to immerse yourself in to something new – you have nothing to lose but so much to gain.

Robert Peate:

Anything and everything – just keep listening and be open to what you hear. Don’t worry about ‘understanding’, just experience it (more than once if you can).

Neil Smith:

There are some great pieces to begin with such as Berio’s Sinfonia or Xenakis’ Rebonds but sometimes the best way in is to listen to more experimental popular music. Anyone who enjoys a bit of Autechre shouldn’t struggle with the best bits of Stockhausen or Boulez. There are also lots of British composers who write music I still consider beautiful in quite a traditional manner: take George Benjamin’s amazing Written on Skin for example.

Andrew Thomas: 

Find a sound/texture you like and follow how it develops during a piece - be open to all the parameters of sound available in contemporary music and embrace what you don’t understand - the music I most admire is the music I don’t understand!


Andrew Baldwin:

My advice would be to start with a composer(s) you know and like, and list what musical ideas you like about them (what is common in their music etc). Then consult with a music friend that knows of other composers that use similar processes/ideas. Suddenly you will notice your listening repertoire growing and discovering some great music. I created a Spotify playlist that my teacher and I came up with of works that I would find interesting, and there hasn’t been one piece that I haven’t taken something away from – as well as discovering some new favourite contemporary composers.

Emma Wilde:

I think people should not be afraid. Most people have been confronted with modern art in some way even without knowing it, they have probably been to an art gallery or exhibition and modern music is no different. My listening recommendations would include anything by Ligeti as I think that was the first contemporary composer I really connected with. Also the German composer and pianist Nils Frahm, his live shows are electric, he has a great connection with the audience and is a really innovative composer and performer, there are many good videos on YouTube.

 

Margaret Haley:

Tune in to Radio 3 programmes: Late Junction, and Hear and Now. Listen with an open mind. Listen to recordings as much as you can, then listen again. Music festivals can also provide a great way of sampling new music, e.g. HCMF shorts.

Sohrab Uduman:

Start with whatever is to hand and whatever grabs your interest for whatever reason, however seemingly profound or trivial it may appear to be. It is not life-threatening, will not cause you physical damage and will not, probably, change your political allegiance. It is art, a voyage, an adventure; an opportunity, at the very least, to step out of routine and ‘normative behaviour’ and experience something that should prove beautiful, moving, revelatory and subversive.

Gonçalo Gato:

An open mind and receptiveness to the fantastic, as opposed to the ordinary. Also, it is important to look for concerts that feature some sort of introduction carried out by music historians, musicologists, or composers themselves. This will provide context and prepare the listening experience for those who find it more difficult.




James Hoyle:

I don’t believe in starting with something ‘easy’ - I’d suggest to just throw yourself in, listening to as many different types of new music as possible. There’s such a wide variety out there so there is surely something for everyone.

At Lunch Four features Bryce Dessner's El Chan, Schumann's Piano Quartet Op.47 and a selection of Bartok's folksong-inspired Duos - Norwich Fri 8 Apr, Cambridge Tue 12 Apr & London Wed 13 Apr. Find out more.

Benjamin Grosvenor directs features Elena Langer's story of an impossible love, Mozart's Piano Concerto No.27 and a works by Bartok and Strauss - Bradford on Avon Sat 23 Apr, Cambridge Wed 27 Apr, Norwich Fri 29 Apr & London Sun 1 May. Find out more.

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).

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.