Orchestral Theatre

Jane Mitchell is my guest for this episode, the last in the series. Jane is principal flute and creative director for Aurora Orchestra, and has been deeply involved in Aurora's programming, production, and devising of work since the orchestra began. Jane has played a key role in the development of the orchestra’s series for young people, Far Far Away, and the online platform Aurora Classroom. Jane won the Royal Philharmonic Society ABO Musician Award (then known as the Salomon Prize) in 2020 for her work with Aurora. This conversation was recorded on March 29, 2023. This podcast is part of a ⁠⁠research project⁠⁠ funded by the ⁠⁠British Academy⁠⁠. For more information, please visit the ⁠⁠project blog⁠⁠.

My guests for this episode are Jonathan Morton and Jenny Jamison from Scottish Ensemble. Jonathan Morton is Artistic Director at Scottish Ensemble, where his eclectic and engaging programming has been enthusiastically praised by audiences internationally, offering fresh perspectives on familiar repertoire and championing new works. Under his leadership Scottish Ensemble has been collaborating increasingly with other art forms such as dance, visual arts and theatre. Jonathan is also Principal First Violin at London Sinfonietta, where he has been given the opportunity to work closely with many of today’s leading composers and performers. Jenny Jamison has been Chief Executive at Scottish Ensemble, since August 2018, having held roles in the organisation since 2011. Jenny has led the organisation through its 50th anniversary in 2019–20, conceived and developed ambitious digital projects during the pandemic, and spearheaded a new Creative Europe cooperation – The Bridge Network – bringing together ensembles from across the continent to explore concert innovation and audience development. She has been a key part of Scottish Ensemble’s growth trajectory, with experience across strategic and artistic planning, fundraising, concert management/production and, especially, in developing music-led cross-artform collaborations. This conversation was recorded on January 23, 2023. This podcast is part of a ⁠research project⁠ funded by the ⁠British Academy⁠. For more information, please visit the ⁠project blog⁠.

Adam Szabo is my guest for this episode. Adam is the chief executive and co-founder of Manchester Collective. Formed in 2016, Manchester Collective has become known for their experimental programming and daring collaborations. They play in concert halls, warehouses and factory spaces across Europe and the UK, performing a combination of cutting-edge contemporary music, core repertoire of classical music, and staged work. This conversation was recorded on November 18, 2022. This podcast is part of a ⁠research project⁠ funded by the ⁠British Academy⁠. For more information, please visit the ⁠project blog⁠.

In this episode I speak with Yusuf Narcin, a bass trombonist, educator, and workshop leader, based in London. Yusuf works in a variety of genres, including jazz, folk, klezmer, and improvised music. Among the classical ensembles Yusuf plays with are Paraorchestra and Multi-Story Orchestra. Yusuf is also a member of the award-winning brass band/theatre troupe, Perhaps Contraption. In our conversation, Yusuf tells me about his experience of playing with Paraorchestra and Multi-Story Orchestra, and about the connections between music and theatre. This conversation was recorded on December 16, 2022. This podcast is part of a research project funded by the British Academy. For more information, please visit the project blog.

In this episode I talk with the production and design team Harry Ross and Helen Scarlett O'Neill about their collaboration with the London Contemporary Orchestra on their 2013 concert series entitled 'Imagined Occasions'. This series, which focused on the composer Claude Vivier, took place in unconventional performance sites around London, including an underground station. This conversation was recorded on November 25, 2022. This podcast is part of a research project funded by the British Academy. For more information, please visit the project blog.

My guest for this episode is the composer/performer Neil Luck. Neil runs the performance group ARCO – a company that focuses on experimental music-theatre. I talk with Neil about his 2018 piece Regretfully Yours, Ongoing, commissioned by the London Contemporary Music Festival. This experimental composition is written for orchestra, choir, table-top soloist, solo voice, solo guitar, solo viola, and video. This conversation was recorded on September 19, 2022. This podcast is part of a research project funded by the British Academy. For more information, please visit the project blog.

My guest for this episode is Kate Wakeling, writer-in-residence with Aurora Orchestra. I talk with Kate about 'Far, Far Away', Aurora's series of storytelling concerts for children, which are part of the orchestra's exploration of theatrical approaches to performing music. Kate writes the scripts for these concerts. This conversation was recorded on October 14, 2022. The sound design for this episode includes music recorded by The Exeter Community Family Orchestra, which is associated with the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra and the University of Exeter, and is led by Hugh Nankivell and Emma Welton.  This podcast is part of a research project funded by the British Academy. For more information, please visit the project blog.

In this episode I speak with Andrew Burke, Chief Executive and Artistic Director of London Sinfonietta. Andrew tells me about the Sinfonietta's history of artistic risk-taking -- engaging audiences with new music and unconventional approaches to performing music -- and how this relates to current funding models. This conversation was recorded on October 25, 2022. The sound design for this episode includes music recorded by The Exeter Community Family Orchestra, which is associated with the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra and the University of Exeter, and is led by Hugh Nankivell and Emma Welton. This podcast is part of a research project funded by the British Academy. For more information, please visit the project blog.

In this episode I speak with Rakhi Singh, co-founder of Manchester Collective. Rakhi tells me about how Manchester Collective originated and how it functions. I ask about some of Manchester Collective's collaborative projects involving artists from other disciplines. We also discuss how classical musicians present themselves in performance and how they are trained. This conversation was recorded on October 20, 2022. This podcast is part of a research project funded by the British Academy. For more information, please visit the project blog.

This is the first episode of a podcast series that explores how orchestras are collaborating with artists from other disciplines and experimenting with how performance is presented. I talk with key players involved in exploring new performance possibilities. My first conversation is with Charles Hazlewood, Artistic Director of Paraorchestra, the world's only large-scale virtuoso ensemble of professional disabled and non-disabled musicians. 'Every phrase of music is an act of love from one person to another person', Hazlewood tells me. 'Every gesture, every big idea we have at Paraorchestra is largely informed by theatre'. This conversation was recorded on November 21, 2022. This podcast is part of a research project funded by the British Academy. For more information, please visit the project blog.