THE AIM
Scottish Ensemble needs your help to raise £5,000 which will support our most ambitious cross-artform collaboration to date: Goldberg Variations - ternary patterns for insomnia.
ABOUT THE PROJECT AND CAMPAIGN
In 2015/16 Scottish Ensemble (SE) presents its most ambitious project to date: Goldberg Variations - ternary patterns for insomnia. In an international collaboration with Stockholm-based contemporary dance company Andersson Dance, 11 SE musicians and 5 dancers are choreographed together to offer new perspectives on Bach’s iconic Goldberg Variations. The result is a singular experience of musician and dancer performing as one.
The project premièred in Stockholm on 17 September, and received a hugely enthusiastic response, with the Svenska Dagbladet saying the collaboration was:
“sublime… a generous dance concert that brings the human spirit to life”.
WHY WE NEED YOUR SUPPORT
This is our most ambitious cross-artform collaboration to date. However, ambitious means expensive - and this is where your help, no matter how big or how small, could make all the difference.
Following a seven-date UK tour beginning at Glasgow’s Tramway on 13 November 2015, we have secured invitations to return to Sweden for a further six dates in 2016. We have already raised a significant six-figure sum from individuals, trusts and partners in Sweden for this project.
Now, we hope you will help us with the final push – to raise the final £5,000 we need to fund this stage of the production.
The dates we are seeking support for are:
Wed 27 Jan 2016 // Gävle Theatre, Gävle Fri 29 Jan 2016 // Västerås Konserthus, Västerås Sun 31 Jan 2016 // Kungsbacka Theatre, Kungsbacka Tue 2 Feb 2016 // Vara Konserthus, Vara Thu 4 Feb 2016 // Dansstationen/Palladium, Malmö Sat 6 Feb 2016 // Norrlandsoperan, Umeå
Your gift will be securing the future not only of the Goldberg Variations project, but also SE's impressive reputation for ambitious cross-artform work on an international level.
BENEFITS
In order to thank you for supporting us we have created a range of exclusive benefits that aim to bring you closer to Goldberg Variations - ternary patterns for insomnia and its performers. These include an invitation to the opening party for the UK launch, backstage tours, an informal dinner with the musicians and dancers and more - please see the PLEDGE column to your right for details.
ABOUT SCOTTISH ENSEMBLE
Re-defining the string orchestra, Scottish Ensemble inspires audiences in the UK and beyond with vibrant performances which are powerful, challenging and rewarding experiences. Known both in the UK and internationally for its versatility and ambitious programming, Scottish Ensemble reaches out to create rich partnerships across boundaries of genre, geography and musical style.
Founded in 1969 and based in Glasgow, Scottish Ensemble is the UK’s only professional string orchestra, built around a core of 12 outstanding string players who perform together under Artistic Director Jonathan Morton. SE’s distinctive programming style habitually blends music from different ages, offering new perspectives and making unexpected connections. Performing standing up, the individual players bring an energetic and passionate dynamic to every performance, both in the concert hall and in SE’s comprehensive programme of education and outreach activities.
SE’s first-class reputation attracts collaborations with world-class soloists, with recent and upcoming projects featuring: trumpeter Alison Balsom; violinists Patricia Kopatchinskaja, Anthony Marwood and Nicola Benedetti; pianists Gabriela Montero and Alasdair Beatson; violists Lawrence Power and Maxim Rysanov.
Alongside performances across Scotland, SE presents an annual series of concerts at London’s Wigmore Hall and has appeared at BBC Proms and the Edinburgh International, City of London, Aldeburgh and St Magnus festivals. Recent invitations to tour abroad have resulted in engagements in Turkey, Taiwan, China, Romania, Sweden and dates across the USA including performances at Walt Disney Hall and New York Town Hall.
SCOTTISH ENSEMBLE CROSS-ARTFORM PROJECTS
In September 2014, Scottish Ensemble launched a new type of collaborative project. We worked with internationally renowned artist Toby Paterson to create a cross-artform project that brought together music, art and architecture in a site specific environment. The result was a new type of SE concert that created new connections with the string repertoire - you can see the result in this short event documentary: 20th-Century Perspectives: City Spaces & Strings: The event.
Goldberg Variations - ternary patterns for insomnia is our second cross-artform project, which this time sees us stage a production on an international scale. We will create at least one of these major projects every year, giving current and new audiences the opportunity to experience our world-class music making in unusual ways.
MORE
For more information about the project, our forthcoming UK tour dates, photography, news and blog posts, visit the official website: