Proms at … Roundhouse, Camden: 20.08.16

[Eine Alpensinfonie]

15:00 Saturday 20 Aug 2016
Roundhouse, Camden

Sir Harrison Birtwistle: The Message
György Ligeti: Ramifications
Georg Friedrich Haas: Open Spaces II
David Sawer: April \ March (BBC co-commission: world premiere)

Jonathan Morton, violin
London Sinfonietta
Andrew Gourlay, conductor

The Proms returns to Camden's industrial answer to the Royal Albert Hall for a programme which takes its lead from Ligeti's iconic Ramifications. This embracing score, for two groups of spatially positioned strings, is heard alongside music by one of Ligeti's natural musical heirs, Georg Friedrich Haas, and other new pieces concerned with physical space.
The concert culminates in a major work from David Sawer that reflects the energy and physicality of dance.

[Eine Alpensinfonie]

Is there any particular reason why the Roundhouse is associated with contemporary music?

[VodkaDilc]

Is there any particular reason why the Roundhouse is associated with contemporary music?

It certainly goes back to the Boulez era at the BBCSO; whether it's older than that I am not sure. As a student I took part in a Roundhouse Prom in about 1971. It was televised at the time and the crockery smashing scene from one of the Ligeti pieces often crops up in BBC documenataries.

[Serial_Apologist]

It certainly goes back to the Boulez era at the BBCSO; whether it's older than that I am not sure. As a student I took part in a Roundhouse Prom in about 1971. It was televised at the time and the crockery smashing scene from one of the Ligeti pieces often crops up in BBC documenataries.

"Oh yes I remember it well".

[bluestateprommer]

Another case of catching up with this PSM before the 30 day deadline, where the London Sinfonietta and Andrew Gourlay did well all around. Just to put the program on the record:

Sir Harrison Birtwistle: The Message
Georg Friedrich Haas: Open Spaces II
Mica Levi: Signal Before War (BBC commission: world premiere)
David Sawer: April \ March (BBC co-commission with the Royal Philharmonic Society Drummond Fund with support from the Ernst von Siemens Music Foundation: world premiere)
Jonny Greenwood: smear
György Ligeti: Ramifications

Perhaps the most pleasant surprise for me was JG's smear. DS' work ran on rather long for its material, and I'm not really sure that his kind of "looking backwards" statement did much to explain the music. (Presumably he had in mind the philosophical quip that "life is lived forward but understood backward".) But it was certainly good to have both DS and Mica Levi present to talk about their work, even if ML seemed rather reticent to talk.

[VodkaDilc]

It certainly goes back to the Boulez era at the BBCSO; whether it's older than that I am not sure. As a student I took part in a Roundhouse Prom in about 1971. It was televised at the time and the crockery smashing scene from one of the Ligeti pieces often crops up in BBC documenataries.

I see there's a documentary on the Roundhouse on BBC4 tomorrow. Here comes the crockery again?!