BiLE have performed XYZ in Oslo, Venice and Birmingham and it was also recently performed at ton:art 2011by Benoit and the Mandelbrots.

‘ + NEW SOUND BY CONCEPT AND DESIGN

10 works by 10 young composers and artists; where each piece has been conceived not only with the final sonic result in mind, but also to express or represent some pre-conceived concept or design.

CNCPTN is a new bi-monthly e-zine focusing on the concepts and designs behind the work by selected young composers and artists.

Each issue will profile the concepts and designs behind this type of composition and artwork, providing a platform for composers and artists to display more than just the audio they create, no matter how detailed or abstracted the original stimulus may be.’

http://cncptn.com/

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On the forming of a Laptop Ensemble:

-          Democratic approach: BiLE rejects the notion of an autocratic ensemble with a top down approach in which the roles of composer/programmer, leader, performer are discrete and hierarchical. BiLE instead supports the approach of integration, collaboration and the blurring of the distinctions between, composer-performer-collaborator in a democratic non-authoritarian ensemble.

-          Collaboration: BiLE supports the production of scores and collaborative compositions where the framework is such that each composer-performer is free to interpret the sound production elements of the piece. Thereby allowing each member to contribute their ideas and imagination to every performance.

-          Musicality: BiLE asserts that Musicality should be at the forefront of the priorities of any music making ensemble. Therefore technological concerns are subservient to musical intentions and musicality is central to the criteria set out to define the ensemble.

-          Inclusivity: BiLE is an inclusive ensemble with criteria for membership based on similar musical aesthetics and a high quality and complementary musical output rather than specific technical skills. This makes BiLE a creatively rather than technically focussed ensemble. BiLE members should be experienced in Composition and/or performance and dedicated to ensuring all creative output is of high quality.

-          Cross-Platform: BiLE’s commitment to inclusiveness necessitates the ensemble to be cross-platform. Any ensemble member is free to use the software they feel is most suited to the performance and their technical skill level. BiLE has developed their own networking tools in order to facilitate this cross-platform approach.

-          Open Support Forum: BiLE members should support each other in the creation of quality musical performances and in the production of new works through technical and musical guidance shared with other members of the ensemble. The rehearsals should be an open forum for ideas and discussion on music, technology, performance, improvisation and other matters relating to the ensemble.

-          Communication: BiLE are committed to sharing their creative output with their audiences in as inclusive a way as possible. BiLE feel that visual aspects are an important communication tool in any performance and as such include visuals and movement as appropriate to the aesthetics of the piece being performed. BiLE shall also engage in talks and demo’s before or during performances to facilitate audience understanding of BiLE’s creative process and performance aesthetic.

-          Progressive Experimentalism: BiLE should be a progressive ensemble priotritising experimentalism over historicism. BiLE should consider and utilisie the possibilities available by virtue of being a networked laptop ensemble and should not rely on old musical forms and structures to develop their creative output.  Exploring the new forms and creativity that can be developed by the use of this technology is desirable so long as an emphasis on musicality is maintained.

We are playing two pieces: my piece XYZ (or Sonic Arm Wrestlers) and Partially Percussive by fellow BiLE member Charles Celeste Hutchins.

Here’s a sneak preview of the graphics by Antonio Roberts for XYZ… the piece is about fighting to control other players sounds, so we were going for MEAN!

And a recording of Partially Percussive:

We’ll be repeating the performance in Birmingham and playing another piece: EA Sonata for Cello by Julien Guillamat at SOUNDkitchen‘s SONICpicnic on 29th July- so dont worry if you cant make it to Venice on Monday!

They’re recordings from a collaborative project I did with Kurly McGeachie - an up-and-coming star of the Birmingham Performance Poetry scene.

We worked together to come up with two pieces which were performed at We Are Birmingham in February - here they are:

You can also find them on my Music page along with some more of my music  

(I’ll be uploading some more music soon! Watch out!)

So it turns out that 2011 is pretty hectic… as i guess you can tell from the fact it’s now almost half way through the year, and my last post was in the final throes of 2010!

So now for the excuses: So far this year i think I’ve been involved in 4 new projects, written 25 minutes of music, performed 8 times, and been involved with the organisation of 10 events and got into the habit of functioning on very little sleep… not so surprising then that blogging has slightly slipped down the priority list…

HOWEVER I’m back and with a new resolve to update the 2 or 3 people who’ve ever read my blog with what’s been going on in the world of my music and interesting stuff that’s happened in Birmingham.

Keep checking back for new blog posts and updates to the other parts of my site (added some links to some better maintained websites than my own, a page where you can find out when and where my music is being played and updated the ‘Who am I?’ page so that it’s actually relevant)…

That’s all for now, have a good day!!!

I wonder whether Martin Mulaney has in fact EVER been to a BCMG concert, or knows ANYTHING about their comprehensive and far-reaching education programme?!

However, further to his argument, Mr Mullaney seemed to suggest that the only art worth supporting is that which works with the impoverished communities of e.g. Handsworth and that supporting art for the white middle classes of Moseley etc should not be the job of the Council… you have to wonder then why the council is choosing to continue to fund the likes of the symphony orchestra, the modern art gallery and the ballet which are stereotypically attended by the middle-classes and exactly what Mr Mullaney thinks is not the job of the council to support!

Mr Mullaney also seemed to have no idea who Birmingham Jazz are (another organisation who are getting a 100% cut!) and suggested that if he hasn’t heard of an organisation then they’re clearly not doing a good job, and probably no one else has heard of them either… im more inclined to think that if the Cabinet Member for Leisure Sport and Culture hasnt heard of an organisation thats getting an 100% cut to their BCC funding then HE’s probably not doing his job very well and should probably find out who they are and what they do before making a decision of that magnitude!

There was of course the ironic news this week that Stephen and Jackie Newbould, the Director and General Manager of BCMG, have been awarded the RPS Leslie Boosey Award affirming BCMG reputation for high quality and progressive music making. Surely this is something that Birmingham City Council and Martin Mullaney should be PROUD to support!

‘If the mountain won’t come to Muhammad, Muhammad must go to the mountain’.

To rephrase less eloquently, if people don’t go to concert halls bring the concert hall to them. Last Friday evening thats just what happened.

You may have been bemused by the appearance of an orchestra in the centre of Birmingham! This was a performance by the Guerilla Orchestra to protest against wide ranging cuts in music education and the cuts to many local arts organisations and music outreach projects who are losing their funding.

‘What the axing of all funding to higher education arts institutes says is that art is not important. What we do is not valid. That music plays no valuable part in this society. Of course this is ludicrous’. Heather Bird (Guerilla-in-cheif)

There were no placards, no banners, no marching, just a positive protest demonstrating exactly what the country could lose with it’s brutal cuts to the arts sector. We were lucky enough to get the backing of Peter Donohoe (an internationally famous pianist) who conducted the orchestra and fully supports the cause.

The GUERILLA ORCHESTRA was the brainchild of Manchester based  Bassist Heather Bird who was inspired by a similar protest in Holland where musicians turned up at a train station and performed Mambo from West Side Story. Our orchestra went for a tongue-in-cheek approach and performed the theme tune from Mission Impossible.

Aswell as the motely crew that made up the Guerilla Orchestra in Birmingham -  made up of around 40 professional, amateur and student musicians- renegade music groups simultaneously popped up in unexpected places in Liverpool and Manchester.

Many people got involved in GUERILLA ORCHESTRA via a facbook group posted by 2 weeks before the protest. Since the event GUERILLA ORCHETRA has gone global with interviews in The Strad – featuring arts based activism in Holland, Italy and UK, and Financial Times and an interview in the National newspaper of the United Arab Emirates.

A “phase two” GUERILLA ORCHESTRA plan is afoot, so watch out for more spontaneous musical performances in your town centres and shopping malls.

And why not? It’s about time classical musicians brought their wares into public spaces whether it’s to protest about government policy or simply to allow the public to experience the music in a more familiar, if unexpected context.

Premieres of pieces by Mark Anthony Turnage and Charlotte Bray.

http://www.bcmg.org.uk/diary.php?showid=207

Here’s some Turnage to keep you going in the mean time…