FESTIVAL CURATORS ▼
SOUND AND MUSIC Sound and Music is one of the UK’s leading agencies for new and experimental music. Working in partnership with complementary organisations, it raises awareness of this vital and inspiring art form through a range of performances, tours and regular festivals such as The Cutting Edge, Fertilizer, the Sound Source and Expo. The agency brings together practitioners, producers and promoters under one roof, with the aim of attracting bigger and more diverse audiences to engage with innovative and sometimes challenging work. Above all, Sound and Music is committed to giving as many people as possible access to its work. Spanning the spectrum of musical experience – from young people’s first encounters with music to the support and development of professional artists — it organises a broad programme of initiatives to create opportunities to discover, learn and create. Sound and Music also believes passionately that the more you know about what you’re listening to, the more you’ll get out of the experience. Its extensive resources range from preevent information, articles and related material to a collection of 40 years’ worth of archive scores and recordings by modern British composers. The hub for all these activities and events is soundandmusic.org, which brings together a huge network of artists, publishers, promoters and music fans, as well as providing a social space – the SAM Network. Whether creating your own profile, bookmarking audio and visual links, or searching the most comprehensive listings in the UK, soundandmusic.org is a new place to share, learn and create – a kind of virtual venue for music and sound in the UK.
THE SPITZ
TWISTED LOUNGE
The Spitz, housed in the old Spitalfields Market, was one of London’s best known and most loved music venues. It was forced to shut its doors in 2007 because of the ‘development’ of the market. But two years on, The Spitz is very much alive and kicking, presenting concerts at venues across the capital. The Spitz began life in 1996 with the aim of regenerating a then neglected part of London. Situated between the City and the East End, it quickly gained a reputation for presenting consistently high quality concerts, and became a favourite haunt of artists such as Talvin Singh, PJ Harvey and Damon Albarn. As the millennium dawned, Goldfrapp and Cat Power made early appearances, while regular performances from groups like The Tiger Lillies kept the venue from straying too far away from its alternative roots. The Spitz also became known for its annual blues, folk and One Man Band festivals, and for its contribution to the London Jazz Festival. As The Spitz grew, so did the East End, with the neighbourhoods of Hoxton, Shoreditch and Brick Lane becoming an essential part of London’s nightlife. The Spitz remained a constant, offering an eclectic mix of music from all genres. As the developers moved in, over 10,000 people signed a petition demanding The Spitz stay. It moved on with dignity, with a final concert of jazz greats providing a suitably rousing send off. ‘Bowed but not defeated’ was Time Out’s well-judged epitaph. For those of you who missed out on The Spitz experience, our mini Festival of Blues and series of free atrium concerts will give you a small taste of this much-missed venue’s indefinable magic. www.spitz.co.uk
Leon Michener Leon Michener explores experimental structured improvisation and its links with classical composition. He studied under pianist John Bingham and has performed with Evan Parker, Julie Tippetts, Tony Marsh, Neil Metcalf and tabla player Shivshanker Array. His debut solo album, Imaginary Landscape, which features works by Xenakis, Cage, Scelsi and Ives, was met with critical acclaim. Members of his vocal group Glossalia recently supported Holger Czukay – from experimental German group Can – for the Roundhouse’s Short Circuit festival. For more information, visit www.leonmichener.com David Toop David Toop is a musician, composer, writer and curator. His first album, New and Rediscovered Musical Instruments, was released on Brian Eno’s Obscure label in 1975, and since 1995 he has released eight solo albums. Musicians he has worked with include Max Eastley, Evan Parker, Talvin Singh and Ivor Cutler. He has written four books: Rap Attack, Ocean of Sound, Exotica (winner of an American Book Award in 2000) and Haunted Weather. He has recently finished writing his fifth book, Sinister Resonance: Listening to the Uncanny, and is currently composing a chamber opera, Star-shaped Biscuit, for Aldeburgh Music. For more information, visit www.davidtoop.com Melanie Abrahams and Tilt Melanie Abrahams is a producer and founder of the artist management and production companies renaissance one and Tilt. She has toured artists across Europe and was the producer of Modern Love, a spoken word piece that was nominated for an EMMA Award for Best Play/Theatre Production. Tilt opens up new spaces for spoken word, and its links to music, performance and visual expression. Since 2005, the company has produced events featuring talents such as Sophie Woolley, Michael Horovitz, Patience Agbabi and Jamaican dub artist Mutabaruka. It hosts the spoken word party London Liming. For more information, visit www.renaissanceone.co.uk
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