News
Friday, 15 July 2011
Oxford Improvisors: Ten years of COHESION
Marking the tenth anniversary of the existence of Oxford’s leading new and improvising music group, the Oxford Improvisers Co-operative are presenting COHESION 5, a special festival celebrating the dynamic range of new music it has been fostering since its re-establishment ten years ago. COHESION 5 will take place on 2 - 4 December 2011 and will feature the exceptional talents of local new music and improvising musicians, collaborations with Oxford’s outstanding dance artists, along with internationally renowned visiting musicians.
COHESION 5 aims to highlight the range of work in which the improvisers are skilled. For example, large scale improvisation using agreed techniques of organisation. These include methods such as Butch Morris’s ‘conduction’ that have been successfully demonstrated on the very well received Oxford Improvisers Orchestra CD, Four Compositions for Orchestra which was recorded at COHESION 1 in 2007. In this festival the Oxford Improvisers aim to teach their knowledge of these skills to local amateurs through a series of workshops led by experienced professional improvisers culminating in a performance on Sunday, 4 December. (See listings below)
Headlining COHESION 5 is the world-class Afro-American composer and improvising trumpet player, Ishmael Wadada Leo Smith (pictured: photo: Kosmic Music), who has inspired numerous and diverse communities to participate in making new and improvised music. He will perform a specially commissioned piece in concert with ensemble from the Oxford Improvisers Co-operative on Friday, 2 December. (See listings below).
As part of COHESION 5 Oxford Improvisers will organise a large scale work themed around the issues of Cohesion and Multiculturalism, referencing the vibrant communitarian traditions of African American and British music’s. To join in on this unique opportunity and to find out more about this and the festival contact the Oxford Improvisers at http://www.oxfordimprovisers.com.
About Oxford Improvisers
The Oxford Improvisers Co-operative have a strong track record in new and improvised music, promoting their own concerts, inviting international artists to perform in Oxford. They have worked in partnership with organisations such as Oxford Contemporary Music (OCM), Contemporary Music Making for Amateurs (CoMA), Oxford Music Network and Moving Tone (Music Arts). Its reputation has been and continues to be a source of musical inspiration and innovation and teaching. They hold an informal improvising evening every Monday night at 7.30pm in the Richard Hamilton Building, Oxford Brookes University, Headington Campus, Oxford.
Festival line-up and Timetable
Concert: Celebration 2011
2 December 2011
Venue: Jacqueline du Pré Music Building Music
Tickets: £6 - £9
8.00 pm
A specially commissioned new work by Ishmael Wadada Leo Smith for the Oxford Improvising Orchestra will be performed and will include ensembles from the Oxford Improvisers Co-operative.
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Workshops: Youth Groups
3 December 2011
Venue: Pegasus Theatre
Exciting new collaborations between world class local and international musicians along with Oxford’s outstanding dance artists.
1.30 pm - 3.30 pm: Taster workshop on improvisation techniques.
Tickets: £5 - £8
4.00 pm - 6.00 pm: Open session. An open rehearsal and discussion for the evening performance. Open to all youth groups at Pegasus and outsiders who request attendance. This will be convened by Oxford Improvisers in collaboration with dance artists and guest musicians.
Tickets: Free Admission (but booking required).
8.00 pm: Concert: New moves; new sounds.
Tickets: £6 - £9
Stunning collaborations between dancers and musicians featuring the exceptional: Ishmael Wadada Leo Smith, Tunde Jegede, Hafiz Al-Karrar as well as members of Oxford Improvisers working with some of Oxford’s talented dancers.
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Debate and Concert
4 December 2011
Venue: Jacqueline du Pré Music Building Music
6.00 pm: Debate: What are the alternatives to the Eurocentric hierarchical model of composition and performance?
8.00 pm: Concert: Cohesion 5 2011
Tickets: £6 - £9
A new work for all of Oxford’s musical communities plus a performance by the amazing Abbey Road Quartet: Ishmael Wadada Leo Smith, Pat Thomas, John Coxon and Mark Sanders.
