1 Welcome to Summer 2015 at the RNCM As Summer 2015 approaches, the RNCM Our orchestral concerts are some of our most prepares for one of its most monumental concerts colourful ones, and more fairytales come to life to date. This is an historic moment for the College with Kodaly’s Hary Janos and Bartók’s Miraculous and I am honoured and thrilled to be welcoming Mandarin as well as with an RNCM Family Day, Krzysztof Penderecki to conduct the UK première where we join forces with MMU’s Manchester of his magnificent Seven Gates of Jerusalem Children’s Book Festival to bring together a feast at The Bridgewater Hall in June. This will be of music and stories for all ages with puppetry, the apex of our celebration of Polish music, story-telling, live music and more. RNCM Youth very kindly supported by the Adam Mickiewicz Perform is back on stage with Bernstein’s award- Institute, as part of the Polska Music programme. winning musical On the Town, and our Day of Song brings the world of Cabaret to life. In a merging of soundworlds, we create an ever-changing kaleidoscope of performances, We present music from around the world with presenting one of our broadest programmes to Taiko Meantime Drumming, Taraf de Haïdouks, date. Starting with saxophone legend David Tango Siempre, fado singer Gisela João and Sanborn, and entering the world of progressive singer songwriters Eddi Reader, Thea Gilmore, fusion with Polar Bear, the jazz programme at Benjamin Clementine, Raghu Dixit, Emily Portman the RNCM collaborates once more with Serious and Mariana Sadovska (aka ‘The Ukranian as well as with the Manchester Jazz Festival to Bjork’). bring The Hot Sardines, Stuart McCallum, The Contemporary music forms an important part Pepper Street Orchestra and the Robert Glasper of the RNCM’s artistic programme, and we are Trio to Manchester. The RNCM Big Band works proud to partner BBC Radio 3 on a Young Artists’ with Colin Towns, our Jazz Collective goes to Day based on composition. The Summer season is Hollywood, and our Session Orchestra takes to peppered with works by composers such as Berio, the stage twice this term! Sciarrino and Boulez, and we also welcome Sir Looking at the music of various countries, we Harrison Birtwistle and Michael Finnissy to the explore the music of Poland with the works of College, while the RNCM Percussion Ensemble Lutosławski, Gorecki, Szymanowski, Zubel and creates an adventurous programme with John Penderecki; the music of France through Debussy, Cage, Varese and Hesketh. Milhaud, Ravel, Saint-Saëns and Poulenc; and the I look forward to welcoming you to our events music of Russia through our Keyboard Festival, and hope that you will join us for our Gold Medal presenting a very rich programme based on Competition showcasing ten of the RNCM’s most Russian fairytales and ballet music with works brilliant performers on 13 June. by Scriabin, Prokofiev, Rachmaninov, Stravinsky and Shostakovich. We are also very lucky to be welcoming Noriko Ogawa, Stephen Hough, Dr Michelle Castelletti – Artistic Director Jean-Efflam Bavouzet as well as Dmitri Alexeev this Summer. Dance and multimedia form an essential part of our focus this term as we collaborate with KSDance Ltd as well as the Manchester School of Art to present interactive and multi-sensory theatrical experiences. Film music takes centre stage once more, with the suite to the soundtrack of the film Ran by Takemitsu and live organ improvisation for the iconic horror film, Nosferatu. 2 3 Friday 17 April Sunday 19 April Tuesday 21 April 7.30pm RNCM Concert Hall From 9am Various venues 7.30pm Carole Nash Recital Room David Sanborn David Polar Bear National Youth Brass Band Masterclass Polar Bear have once again marked themselves Championships of Great with Noriko Ogawa as one of the most exciting and progressive Britain Christopher Rowland International bands of their generation with a recent second Masterclass nomination for a Mercury Music Prize. The Over 40 leading youth brass bands compete for band, led by three times Mercury nominee one of the four national titles. Continuing our focus on French piano music, Seb Rochford (Paul McCartney, Brian Eno, Tickets £10 from www.brassbandsengland.co.uk Noriko Ogawa works with RNCM pianists on Beck, Yoko Ono) on drums, has continued to Concessions available French repertoire ahead of the next recital in the Promoted by Brass Bands England innovate and transcend genres, connecting with Piano Series with Stephen Hough on 30 April. jazz, rock, hip-hop, electronic and mainstream Tickets £8 audiences alike. Saxophonists Pete Wareham Concessions available Supported by Christopher Rowland Masterclass Fund (Acoustic Ladyland) and Mark Lockheart Monday 20 April www.rncm.ac.uk/pianoseries (Django Bates) together possess a broad Promoted by RNCM emotional vocabulary, yet here they appear Doors 7pm RNCM Concert Hall translucent, elusive. Bassist Tom Herbert is irresistible when he plays inside the groove, but Villagers does so only occasionally, giving these moments Conor O’Brien returns with the third album from Monday 13 April rare power. All this is combined and melted Villagers. The follow-up to his début, Becoming Villagers 7.30pm RNCM Concert Hall together with the magic touch of electronic a Jackal, and its successor, Awayland – both wizard Leafcutter John. This Manchester show hugely acclaimed and Mercury-nominated – David Sanborn Band follows the release of their sixth album Same as Darling Arithmetic is a breathtakingly beautiful, David Sanborn’s soulful saxophone has been You on 30 March. intimate album about love and relationships. one of the signature sounds in contemporary Tickets £15 Tickets £14 jazz for some four decades, in a career that’s Concessions available No concessions travelled from James Brown and David Bowie to www.polarbearmusic.com www.wearevillagers.com Jaco Pastorius and Gil Evans, as well as a string Promoted by RNCM Promoted by DHP Family of landmark recordings of his own. Following 2013’s sold out London show – a terrific acoustic set with Bob James – this Tuesday 21 April concert is one of his first shows outside London 11.30am RNCM Concert Hall in many years, and sees him return to the Bear Polar fiercely grooving electric fusion that defined his A Concert to Celebrate the blistering live performances through the 80s and 90s, with a brand new album. Opening of the Ida Carroll Tickets £25 £20 Walkway Wednesday 22 April Concessions available Formal Opening www.davidsanborn.com 7.30pm RNCM Concert Hall Promoted by RNCM in association with Serious by Sir Harrison Birtwistle The newly-named Ida Carroll Walkway RNCM Brand New recognises the Ida Carroll Trust’s generous Orchestra Saturday 18 April donation to the Concert Hall campaign and Tuesday 14 April 7.30pm RNCM Concert Hall Piero Lombardi Iglesias, Harish Shankar, its longstanding support of the RNCM. In this 7.30pm RNCM Concert Hall Jan Wierzba conductors celebratory concert, artists including Anthony Taiko Meantime Hear newly composed music for symphony Christian Blackshaw with special guest Chieko Kojima Halstead (horn), Thomas Verity (clarinet), John Wilson and Peter Lawson (piano duo), John orchestra, as RNCM composers unveil their Piano Recital In a unique collaboration with the world- Turner (recorder), the Solem Quartet and the latest work. For Music in Hospitals renowned Chieko Kojima of Kodo, Taiko Manchester Chamber Ensemble perform works Free admission, no ticket required and East Cheshire Hospice drumming returns to the RNCM in a show that by Grieg and Schubert, and new works by a Promoted by RNCM tells the dramatic Japanese legend of ‘Dojoji’ host of eminent British composers. The British pianist performs works by Mozart, + through drums, flute and dance. Free admission, by ticket only Schubert, Liszt and Chopin. 6.30pm Carole Nash Recital Room Tickets £15 Promoted by Ida Carroll Trust and RNCM Tickets £18 Spotlight: Rhythmic Conjunction – Modern works for Concessions available saxophone quartet No concessions Promoted by Rhythmworks Ltd Promoted by Music in Hospitals Free admission, no ticket required 4 5 Thursday 23, Friday 24 and Saturday 25 April Thursday 23 April Saturday 25 April 7.30pm RNCM Theatre 7.30pm RNCM Concert Hall 7.30pm RNCM Concert Hall On the Town RNCM Percussion Ensemble Altrincham Choral Society RNCM Youth Perform Music to include: Handel’s Messiah Music by Leonard Bernstein Edgard Varèse Ionisation Lancashire Chamber Orchestra and organist Book and lyrics by Betty Comden and John Cage Third Construction Jeffrey Makinson join Altrincham Choral Society Adolph Green Kenneth Hesketh Polygon Windows in Handel’s masterpiece, over 250 years since Based on a concept by Jerome Robbins (after Aphex Twin) its first performance. Ionisation Caroline Clegg director Scored for 13 percussionists, was the Tickets £12.50 very first work to be composed for a stand-alone Concessions available musical director Stuart Overington Promoted by Altrincham Choral Society Stewart Bartles lighting designer percussion ensemble. Don’t miss the opportunity to hear this key work, plus a selection of works New York, New York, it’s a helluva town! So that followed it, performed by the RNCM’s says the most famous song from this award- virtuoso players. winning musical about the adventures of three Tickets £7 sailors in the city that never sleeps. With 24 Concessions available hours of shore leave they’re eager to experience Promoted by RNCM Andy Irvine Andy all the city has to offer…and hopefully find the girl of their dreams. Full of sharp dialogue, + electrifying dance and lush music, this 6.30pm RNCM Studio Theatre Broadway hit, set against the background of the Spotlight: The Happy Workshop – Strauss’ second war, now drops anchor in Manchester with the wind symphony Free admission, no ticket required RNCM’s talented Youth Perform. This amateur production is presented by arrangement with Boosey & Hawkes Music Publishers Limited.