Cohan Collective Residency

I’m excited to be going Bournemouth in a couple of weeks to take part in The Cohan Collective 2018 residency. This project brings together choreographers, dancers, musicians and composers to explore collaboration. Mentoring comes from choreographer Kim Brandstrup and composer Kenneth Hesketh, with founding directors Robert Cohan and composer Eleanor Alberga leading the residency. The project is led by Yorke Dance Project in partnership with Pavilion Dance South West and Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra. I can’t wait to get working with dancers again…

New York

Dorothy Chan

I had a great time at the MISE-EN Music Festival in New York last week. Great to meet and talk with composers from all around the world and to hear their pieces and presentations. Pianist Dorothy Chan performed my Mr. Turquoise Synth (2017) brilliantly, alongside Mr. Turquoise Synth himself of course. We hope to find a way to work together again in the future. Thanks to Moon, Jordann and everyone at Ensemble Mise-En.

Mr. TS resting before the concert

Brooklyn Bridge

‘Mr. Turquoise Synth’ selected for MISE-EN MUSIC FESTIVAL 2018 in New York

I’m delighted that Mr. Turquoise Synth for piano and 1-bit synthesiser has been selected as one of 26 pieces to feature at the MISE-EN MUSIC FESTIVAL 2018 in New York. I loved going to the festival back in 2014 and am interested to hear how Mr Turquoise (designed by Blake Troise aka PROTODOME) gets on duetting with someone else than the dedicatee Yshani Perinpanayagam. More details to follow!

‘The Virus Within: Hearing HIV’ Premiere

Loved working with my friends Workers Union Ensemble and Dr Chad Swanson (King’s College London) on my newest piece The Virus Within: Hearing HIV. We premiered the piece on Thursday to a great crowd at Guy’s Chapel, King’s College London. Unfortunately the Southampton performance on 10 March has had to be cancelled but we will play at the University of Southampton Science and Engineering Day 2019 instead!

We asked the audience in London for five word reviews. Here are some of my favourites (!):

  • “Novel, exciting and inventive, complex piece”
  • “Head on crash with virus”
  • “Interesting but slightly anxiety inducing!”
  • “Brilliant translation: science to music. Thank you! One of the best pieces of scientific performance art I’ve ever seen/heard. Incredibly intellectually rewarding. Wonderful!”
  • “Top science/music mash-up”
  • “A structurally chaotic masterpiece!”

Recordings and video to come soon and, hopefully, more performances!

‘B.m.B’ for New Music Players

I’ve just finished a new piece B.m.B for small ensemble and electronics, which will be performed by Ed Hughes’ New Music Players on 8 February 2018 at the Attenborough Centre as part of a their Tallis Festival.

The piece is my creative response to Brexit and the world of the great 16th century English composer Thomas Tallis!

It will be performed alongside works by Ed Hughes, Rowland Sutherland, and Sussex composers Lee Westwood, Eleanor Clapp, Jason Hazael and Hugh Chambers, and an AI generated composition based on machine readings of Tallis’s musical output.