Artists

British band combining jazz with electronic music that originated in the second half of the 1990s. Producer Jason Swinscoe is its founder and leader. The band currently includes him and Patric Carpenter (record decks), Luke Flowers (drums), Tom Chant (saxophone), Nick Ramm (piano), Stuart McCallum (guitar) and Phil France (guitar). The unique sound of The Cinematic Orchestra results from improvised music, turntable techniques and electronic samples created by Swinscoe. In the studio, Swinscoe often remixes material played live and recorded, thus combining improvisation with electronic post-productions, resulting in the final product.

Sinfonietta Cracovia is considered one of the leading Polish and European chamber ensembles. The exceptional atmosphere of their concerts, the audience’s enthusiastic reception, excellent reviews and, most importantly, the quality of their music presentations on stage show the ensemble’s continuous development. The success of Sinfonietta is also connected with a modern method of management that helps to gain new fans of classical music.

He was born in 1970 in Reading. The film director, special effects expert, maker of videoclips and commercials had his debut as a maker of comic books published in the British weekly 2000 AD. He worked on the creation of special effects for the following films: Alien 3, Alien: Resurrection and Judge Dredd. He created monster models for M.A.R.K. 13 Hardware and Nightbreed. He also worked on the creation of the unfinished Artificial Intelligence by Stanley Kubrick. He has been producing videoclips since 1995.

Since September 1 2008, the Asko Ensemble and Schönberg Ensemble have been united in Asko|Schönberg: not an ensemble, not an orchestra, but a flexible group of musicians who can appear in formations of any needed size to perform twentieth- and twenty-first-century music. The music of great, established composers such as György Ligeti, György Kurtág, Karlheinz Stockhausen, Mauricio Kagel, Louis Andriessen who have secured their place in music history. But also the music of a younger generation, composers such as Michel van der Aa, Martijn Padding and Julian Anderson, and even the youngest generation, whose compositions are still wet from the ink.

Reinbert de Leeuw has been the conductor and musical director of the Schönberg Ensemble since its start in 1974. He has been working with leading Dutch orchestras and ensembles on a regular basis. He takes part in music festivals all around the world. He worked as artistic director of the Aldeburgh Festival (1992) and the Tanglewood Festival of Contemporary Music (1994–1998); he also ran the Carte Blanche-series in the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam between 1995 and 1996.

Ensemble Intercontemporain was started in 1976 on the initiative of Pierre Boulez in cooperation with Nicholas Snowman with the support of Michel Guy, at that time acting as the Minister of Culture. The ensemble consists of 31 soloists fascinated with the music of the 20th and 21st centuries, permanently associated with the group, thus being able to meet its statutory duties of concert-giving and providing educational activities. The musicians, directed by Susanna Mälkki, closely cooperate with various composers. They expand their knowledge of instrumental techniques and create projects combining music, dance, theatre, film and audiovisual arts. They give many concerts, including premieres, of compositions that are considered to be 20th century masterpieces.

He was born in Finland. He studied piano and cello at the Sibelius Academy in Helsinki before starting his conductor’s studies with his tutor, Jorma Panula. He took part in master courses with Myung Whun Chung in Accademia Chigiana, Italy; in 1994 he won the Nordic Conductor’s Competition in Bergen. Lintu has been the head conductor of the Tampere Philharmony Orchestra since September 2009.

Ensemble Recherche is one of the most outstanding ensembles of contemporary music. Since its beginnings in 1985 it has presented over 450 premieres, significantly contributing to the development of contemporary chamber music and ensemble music. The group, consisting of nine soloists, has won a steady position on the international music scene: beside its comprehensive concert programme, Ensemble Recherche takes part in its own music and dance projects, radio broadcasts and film productions.

He studied at the Guildhall School of Music & Drama in London, the Britten-Pears School (tutored by Hans Hotter, Suzanne Danco, Hugues Cuénod and others) and in the Banff Centre in Canada. As a specialist in new music he participated in many first performances of music, e.g.: Beat Furrer’s ...für Stimme allein (Oper Bonn/Konzerthaus Wien); Gerhard Winkler’s Heptameron (Münchener Biennale); Peter Maxwell Davies’ Mr. Emmet Takes a Walk (German first performance); Christian Utz’s Zersplitterung (EarPort Duisburg).

The ensemble was founded by David Atherton and Nicholas Snowman in 1968. Since the beginning of its existence, the group’s task has been to present compositions by creators of the newest music, both little-known composers and those whose position on the music market was well-established.On the list of over 200 works commissioned by the London Sinfonietta are to be found works by such artists as John Taverner, Iannis Xenakis, Luciano Berio, Elliott Carter, Mark-Antony Turnage, Toru Takemitsu, John Adams, Witold Lutosławski, Paweł Szymański et al. The ensemble is considered to be one of the best groups in the world involved in contemporary music.

She studied at Trinity College, Cambridge and was then tutored by Patricia MacMahon at the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama. She has won many prestigious awards, e.g. the Maggie Teyte Prize (2001) and she won the Handel Singing Competition (2003). She was also granted Sir John Moore’s Award and the Chris Ball Bursary award of the Welsh National Opera.

He was born in 1943 in Blackpool. He studied music at Cambridge University. He was the youngest conductor ever to perform in the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden. He has performed on a regular basis with the English National Opera, Canadian Opera Company, Glyndebourne Festival Opera and Metropolitan Opera in New York. He is a co-founder and director of London Sinfonietta; he presented many major premieres with that ensemble, e.g. Lutoslavsky’s Chain I.

The ensemble was founded in 1980 in Frankfurt-am-Main. It is among the leading interpreters and propagators of the newest music. The group numbers approximately twenty musicians from Argentina, Bulgaria, Germany, India, Israel, Japan, Poland and Switzerland, playing in string, woodwind and brass, as well as percussion sections. All members of the ensemble are in equal measure responsible for artistic, organizational
and financial matters.

She studied cello at the Thelma Yellin High School of the Arts and regularly cooperated with the Jerusalem Early Music Workshop. She then took up vocal studies and was tutored by Jill Feldman and Peter Harvey. She continued her studies under Era Givoni and simultaneously graduated from Tel Aviv University, majoring in natural sciences. She graduated from the Royal Conservatory in Hague, tutored in vocal studies by Rita Dams, Barbara Pearson and Diane Forlano. She also graduated from the New Opera Academy (Hague – Amsterdam). Her concert and opera repertoire covers music from the periods between the Renaissance and 21st century. She regularly performs in Europe and Israel.

She was born in Newport in South Wales. After graduating from the Reading University she continued vocal studies at the Royal Academy of Music and in the National Opera Studio in London. Since her successful debut as Valkyrie in the Scottish Opera in 1992, she has performed an extensive repertoire of music ranging from 12th to 21st century. As a genuine contralto with an extensive range, she has attracted the attention of many composers.

He was born in Mumbai (India). He started learning to play the violin when he was eight. In 1975 he moved to England to learn at Yehudi Menuhin’s school. He continued his tuition with David Takeno at the Guildhall School in London. In 1986–1992 he was primarius (primary violinist) of the Mistry String Quartet, with whom he performed in Europe and Asia and recorded Edward Elgar’s, Arnold Bax’s and Elizabeth Maconch’s compositions for Decca Argo, Chandos and Unicorn, as well as for the BBC.

She was born in Fukui (Japan) in 1981. She took part in the Open Chamber Music Festival of Prussia Cove in England and in Japan’s Viola Space. She was granted Albert Lullin’s award from the Geneva Conservatory and a special award for violists from the Verbier Academy, founded by Fondation Henri-Louis de la Grange.

He was born in La Rochelle in France. He studied music in Paris. In 1990 he became the main french horn player in Ensemble Modern. He started conducting in 1999 with his debut as the second conductor after John Adams of Ives’ Symphony No. 4. He is widely known as an expert in contemporary music. He serves the function of artistic director of Swedish new music ensemble , KammarensembleN; he often collaborates with leading composers and performs with Ensemble Modern, Birmingham Contemporary Music Group, Remix Ensemble, London Sinfonietta and other groups. H

He studied at Hochschule für Musik und Theater in Hannover and der Musikakademie w Basel, tutored by Hatto Beyerle. He is an alto violinist of the Ensemble Phoenix Basel; he makes up Trio Ginkgo together with violinist Felix Borel and double bass player Wolfgang Fernow. As a chamber player he has performed at Luzerner Festspielen, Schleswig Holstein Musik Festival, Musikmonat Basel, Ars Musica (Brussels) and other festivals.

He is a bass guitarist of international reputation, known for his versatility, musicality and creativity. In his early career, he played with Mike Mower in the Itchy Fingers band; later he joined Hiatus who won the Schlitz Jazz award in 1986. Later he played for eight years in a band with guitarist Jim Mullen and was the producer of its three albums. Since then he has performed with leading British jazz musicians such as Nigel Hitchcock, Tim Garland, Django Bates, Bill Bruford, Gwilym Simcock and Gerard Presencer, and with the entire musical spectrum ranging from Black Sabbath to James Galway.

In 1984 he graduated from the Royal College of Music, where he studied the saxophone and clarinet under Stephen Trier and John McCaw. Since 1994 he has been a teacher of the saxophone at the same institution. In 1986 he debuted in Mark-Anthony Turnage’s Sarabande (and has closely cooperated with him ever since), performing a composition written especially for him, Your Rockaby, first presented in Royal Albert Hall.

He started playing the drums at the age of twelve, imitating his idol, Buddy Rich. The climax of his early career was his repeated performances with the National Youth Jazz Orchestra. In 1984 Ian moved from Cardiff to London, where he has been living ever since. He has played with the most outstanding musicians, recorded albums and soundtracks and performed all around the world.

He started his career as a guitarist at the beginning of the 1980s. Soon, he became one of the most prominent persons on the British jazz scene. He was a co-creator of Loose Tubes orchestra - the first jazz band invited to perform at the BBC Proms. Since then he has been active as a band player, bandleader and composer; he has also recorded albums.

He is an artist frequently invited to work with major orchestras and ensembles, and at major festivals. Starting from the 2007/2008 season, he has performed the function of Artist in Association with Tapiola Sinfonietta. Since 1995, he has worked as a lecturer in Tanglewood Music Center, where in 1999–2005 he also acted as new music director; currently he is the chair of the conducting department. In 2001–2005 he was the first music director of Remix Ensemble Casa de Musica Porto; working with that ensemble, he commissioned productions of new compositions and composed innovative programmes combining jazz, film and musical theatre.

The group was founded in 1985 on the initiative of Beat Furrer. It is comprised of 24 soloists specializing in contemporary music performance, particularly emphasizing democratic exchange among the musicians, the conductor and the composer, thereby rejecting the traditional hierarchical model of music practice.

He was born in 1953 in Buenos Aires into a family of Italian origins. He studied in Milan, Italy and was tutored by Franco Ferrara at the Accademia Musicale Chigiana in Sienna and by Sergiu Celibidache in Germany; he has lived in Milan for many years. He has conducted many Italian operas, e.g. l’Orchestra Sinfonica della Radio in Milan, Turin and Rome, l’Orchestra Sinfonica Siciliana, l’Orchestra Regionale Toscana, l’Orchestra da Camera di Padova e del Veneto, La Fenice in Venice, Teatro dell’Opera in Rome, Teatro G. Verdi in Triest, La Scala in Milan, l’Orchestra Sinfonica Nazionale della RAI and Orchestre de la Suisse Romande, Stadtisches Opernhaus- und Museumorchester in Frankfurt, the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, Orquestra Gulbenkian, and also the famous ensembles of new music: Ensemble Modern, Ensemble Contrechamps Geneva, Nieuw Ensemble, Ensemble Recherche, and Klangforum Wien.

Vera Fischer was born in 1973 in Basel. She graduated from Musikhochschule Zürich, majoring in flute under Günter Rumpel and Philippe Racine. She was granted her higher education diploma in 1998. It was during her studies that she first focused on various means of expression of contemporary music. For a long time she has worked with many ensembles in first performances of solo and chamber compositions. She regularly cooperates with Züricher Ensemble CATTRALL and the orchestras: Oper Zürich, Tonhalle Orchester Zürich and Basel Sinfonietta.

Richard David James was born in 1971 in Ireland. The critics refer to him as the most creative and influential artist in modern electronic music. When he was 20 years old he founded Rephlex Records together with Grant Wilson-Claridge in order to promote the underestimated, incomprehensible and partly unknown house music genre – acid techno according to him.

He was born in 1975. Undoubtedly far-reaching, Hecker's work discards all formal habits embedded in our listening patterns. It is a process in which computer-generated sounds evolve into a phantasmagoria of acoustic impressions, where spatial movement and psycho-acoustic phenomena intertwine. Though groundbreaking, the artist’s work articulates the most novel as well as historic developments in electro-acoustic sound and computer music. The artist skilfully blurs the boundaries between computer-generated and traditional music; thus, through this matrix, the listener no longer knows who is responsible for the end product.