New performances at Aldeburgh Festival, a new Community Commission and a special birthday - the new year started with a bang! Here are some highlights from the first month of 2022.
Community Commission in Coventry
We made the trip to the 2021 UK City of Culture to film a brand new Community Commission with music by composer Derek Nisbet. The music from this series reflect the stories of individuals or organisations who mean a lot to a community.
We will be releasing the new video later this Spring, so make sure to subscribe to our YouTube channel to watch and get a notification when the video is live.
On the road: Composition Challenges
School isn't complete without a fun challenge - specifically Composition Challenges!
Last month, we visited over 180 children in six schools across Enfield, Camden, Barnet and Newham to get students composing in person! London Sinfonietta musicians worked with children to launch new challenges, give feedback on pieces already created, and perform children’s compositions live in the classroom. Thanks to all the students and teachers at Kingfisher Hall Primary Academy, Enfield Heights Academy, Woodpecker Hall Academy, Brampton Primary School, Hadley Wood Primary School and Christ Church Primary School.
Are you a music teacher and want your school to get involved? Sign up here to get everything you need to get composing!
Aldeburgh Festival 2022
General booking for the Aldeburgh Festival is now open, and we will be making a return to the festival later this year with the world premiere of Tom Coult's opera Violet and also revisit Laura Bowler's ground-breaking Houses Slide which addresses the most serious issue of our generation.
Violet
Friday 3 - Sunday 5 June 2022, 7.30pm and 4pm
Snape Maltings Concert Hall
Combining the acclaimed talents of writer Alice Birch and composer Tom Coult, the opera follows Violet and her tired daily routine dictated by the inescapable chime of the Clock Tower, until one night she feels time quicken. As the hours disappear, ordered society falls into disarray. Can Violet finally escape? Co-commissioned and co-produced by Music Theatre Wales and Britten Pears Arts.
Find tickets
Houses Slide
Saturday 4 June 2022, 7pm
Britten Studio, Snape Maltings
Houses Slide describes one woman's intimate psychological journey to figure out her response to the climate crisis. This is music that moves, that rages, and ultimately that unites us. The ground-breaking bicycle-powered concert presentation is conceived and directed by acclaimed theatre director Katie Mitchell.
Find ticketsThe Festival of Contemporary Music for All 2022
The biennial event run by CoMA is back. With various events occurring throughout the UK and beyond, participants involved will have opportunities to premiere commissioned works alongside professional players and take part in a range of workshops, rehearsals and concerts.
We announced our return to the festival and will be taking part in three events on Sunday 6 March:
The Festival of Contemporary Music for All 2022
Sunday 6 March 2022
Queen Mary University of London
Join us at Queen Mary University of London and discover how to compose your own graphic score, take part in a wide range of musical activities and experiences throughout the day or see us perform as part of New Music Now!
Find ticketsAlex Paxton on Resonance FM
on 4 January, Writing the Future composer Alex Paxton was the guest on Benjamin Tassie's programme Future Classical on Resonance FM. Hear extracts of Alex's music as well as the two speak about everything from jazz, improvisation and Hieronymus Bosch.
Tapestries
Thursday 31 March 2022, 7.30pm
Southbank Centre's Queen Elizabeth Hall
Hear the world premiere of Alex Paxton's kaleidoscopic new piece Candyfolk SpaceDrum. Inspired by large Bruegel and Ody Saben paintings and Grayson Perry’s Walthamstow Tapestry, expect a busy and sensually colourful tapestry that depicts all aspects of our society.
Find ticketsThe Guardian cultural highlights of 2022
The Guardian released their cultural highlights of the new year, and among the selections were Tom Coult's first opera Violet (a co-production by Music Theatre Wales and Britten Pears Arts) and the Southbank Centre's SoundState series, which features our concert Tapestries with world premieres by George Lewis and Alex Paxton.
Starting 2️⃣0️⃣2️⃣2️⃣ on a high 🙌
— London Sinfonietta (@Ldn_Sinfonietta) January 1, 2022
Check out @guardianmusic Cultural Highlights of 2022 incl:
🎶 SoundState @southbankcentre feat. our concert Tapestries with @alexpaxtonyeah & George Lewis
🎶 @MTW_tweets production of Violet by @tomcoult https://t.co/IytUd1s92w#HappyNewYear
More posts from the month
A Postcard Piece from composer Njabulo Phungula, which was performed at Kettles Yard in Cambridge:
A little look at Alicia Jane Turner's score for Tell me when you get home, which was premiered at our concert Then & Now on Sunday 6 February.
Finally, it was a certain ensemble's birthday on 24 January...
Published: 1 Feb 2022
