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Updates on everyone here at Cambridge Creative Management, and all we represent!
Wednesday 10th April 2024
Slovenia, London, Melbourne, Adelaide, Brussels…!
It’s been a typically busy Easter patch for conductor, Stephen Layton, this year.
Having returned from a month in Utah, at the start of the year, Stephen almost immediately travelled to Slovenia where he conducted performances of the Durufle Requiem with the Slovenian Philharmonic Choir and organist, Harrison Cole. The project included an outreach element, inviting students from a local high school to perform alongside this wonderful choir, in both Koper and the Philharmonic Hall in Ljubljana.
Stephen headed back to London in time for his annual Good Friday Bach St John Passion performance at St John’s Smith Square. Each year, Stephen conducts his award-winning choir Polyphony and the virtuosic Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment in a sell-out performance of this Easter Passion to great critical acclaim. This year, the stellar cast of soloists included James Gilchrist as Evangelist, Neal Davies as Christ, Rowan Pierce,
soprano, Iestyn Davies, countertenor, Ruairi Bowen, tenor and Ashley Riches, bass. True to form, the performance was a triumph and a fitting way to mark 300 years since the first performance of the work.
After London, Stephen flew out to Melbourne, where he enjoyed a fabulous return to theMelbourne Symphony Orchestra, for a further performance of Bach St John Passion. Limelight described the performance as ‘A nuanced, emotionally stirring rendition of the last days of Christ, conducted with reverence for music and story.’ The review continues ‘From its impactful opening… Layton managed to instil in all the performers a profound sense of Bach’s faith, and this was reflected en masse in the choir and individually in each soloist…. Bach’s strong religious faith was reflected in the reverence with which Layton approached the music and its message, and his influence on the performers seemed to be a very grounding one. His profound knowledge of Bach’s St John Passion, combined with his ability to elicit fresh performances from both singers and musicians of this three-hundred-year-old work, produced a stirring, emotion-packed depiction…’ You can read the full review here: https://limelight-arts.com.au/.../st-john-passion.../
Stephen is now in Adelaide, where he returns to the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra for performances of Tabakova, Bach, Handel and Jankowski before he heads back to Europe to join the Vlaams Radio Choir again. Here, Stephen will conduct the choir in performances of Sarah Kirkland’s Mass for the Endangered in Brussels and Utrecht, along with members of the Brussels Philharmonic Orchestra. More information here: Vlaams Radiokoor - Vlaams Radiokoor
Thursday 20th April 2023
Fenella Humphreys wins BBC Music Magazine Award!
Last night, Fenella Humphreys was announced as the winner of the 2023 BBC Music Magazine Premiere Recording Award for her disc Caprices on Rubicon! Nominated by the BBC Music Magazine jury, and voted for by the public, Fenella was up against stiff competition in the category but was awarded the accolade in a star-studded ceremony at London’s Kings Place. Fenella was also honoured to have been asked to perform at the awards and gave a sensational rendition of one of the winning discs’ works ‘Glasgow Reel Set’ by composer Seonaid Aitken. Fenella was delighted to have been joined at the event but many of the composers who were featured on the disc.
Fenella’s remarkable disc presents a glittering celebration of all things Caprice, ranging from Paganini to a wide selection of contemporary composers, some of whom contributed not only individual works, but who joined together for a splendid composite set of variations on Paganini’s famous 24th Caprice. The stellar line-up of composers includes
Roxanna Panufnik, Sally Beamish, Adrian Sutton, Freya Waley-Cohen, Oliver Leith, Fritz Kreisler, and Grażyna Bacewicz, for a selection of works BBC Music Magazine called ‘diverse but surprisingly cohesive’. With notes on their music by the composers, and comments on Paganini, Kreisler, and Bacewicz by Fenella, this is a personal, daring and exciting album of dazzling virtuosity.
Fenella’s forthcoming recording on Rubicon, Prism, will again focus on unaccompanied violin works - from new works written by young British composers to iconic recent works by Caroline Shaw, Jessie Montgomery and George Walker, with Fenella's new arrangement of Bach’s Toccata and Fugue BWV565 at its heart.
Thursday 9th March 2023
Stephen Layton announces departure from Trinity College Cambridge
Stephen Layton MBE announced this evening that he is to leave Trinity College Cambridge after 17 years as Fellow and Director of Music to devote more time to his international guest-conducting career. His last concerts with the choir will be on a tour to Germany this summer, where they will perform the Duruflé Requiem in six concerts, including at Frankfurt Cathedral.
Stephen’s guest-conducting in the coming weeks includes returning to Sydney Opera House to conduct the Sydney Symphony Orchestra, conducting the annual St John Passion with the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment and, after Easter, returning to The Concertgebouw, Amsterdam, with Polyphony and Britten Sinfonia.The Choir of Trinity College Cambridge has achieved world-class status under Stephen’s directorship; it has become celebrated for its exploration of new choral works and synonymous with paving the way for young professional singers. In 2012, the Choir was awarded the Gramophone Award for Choral Music for Howells’ Requiem and a US Grammy
nomination for Best Choral Performance for Beyond All Mortal Dreams, both on the Hyperion label. Trinity’s wide-ranging concert, touring and recording repertoire, including Bach’s B Minor Mass and Christmas Oratorio with the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment, culminated in the acclaimed 2023 recording and film of the Duruflé Requiem in Paris’s St Eustache. In 2012, Layton pioneered the audio live-streaming form, and in 2019 launched video livestreams, taking every note of Trinity Choir’s music to audiences around the world.
Stephen Layton said: “The time has come for me to move on from Trinity College Cambridge and pursue my own guest-conducting career, something I have always hoped to do. It has been a joy and an exceptional privilege to work with The Choir of Trinity College Cambridge for so many years. I am extremely proud of what we have achieved together. Beyond the services, discography, technological advances and touring successes, it is the students who form the major part of my legacy: those members of this extraordinarily gifted group who changed the nature of a ‘college choir’ into a leading artistic professional beacon on the world stage. I warmly wish them rich success for the future and I know that they will go from strength to strength.”
Dame Sally Davies, Master of Trinity, said: “The music at Trinity was one of the reasons I was thrilled to come to Trinity and as Master it is my absolute pleasure to regularly attend services and concerts in the College’s Chapel. Under Stephen Layton’s leadership the Choir has exceeded all expectations to become one of the best choirs in the world.
“Stephen is not only an incredibly accomplished conductor, but also has a talent for identifying opportunities that enable members of the Choir – who are drawn from our student body – to grow and develop their musical talents and interests. I am sure alumni and current members of the College will join me in thanking Stephen for the 17 years he has dedicated to nurturing our choir members and putting Trinity firmly on the global musical map.”
Stephen Layton’s guest-conducting career will see him continue to tour the world each season, working with leading choirs, orchestras, and composers. His interpretations have been heard from Sydney Opera House to the Concertgebouw, from Tallinn to São Paolo, and his recordings have won or been nominated for every major international recording award. Stephen Layton secured Gramophone’s 2001 Best Choral Performance Award with Polyphony for Britten’s Sacred and Profane, and two Grammy nominations for Polyphony in 2005 for Lauridson’s Lux Aeterna and in 2006 for Whitacre’s Cloudburst, all on the Hyperion label. In 2010, Gramophone Magazine heralded Stephen’s choir, Polyphony, as the second best in the world, with Trinity Choir in fifth place. Stephen's 2012 recording of Poulenc’s Half Monk |Half Rascal (OUR), with the Danish National Vocal Ensemble, was nominated for a Gramophone Award in the same year he won the award with Trinity College Choir’s Howells disc. Stephen Layton boasts five Grammy nominations in all, together with the Diapason d’Or de l’Année in France, the Echo Klassik award in Germany, the Spanish CD compact award and Australia’s Limelight Recording of the Year. In 2022, Stephen was made Honorary Doctor of Music at the University of Derby.
Stephen Layton has introduced a vast range of choral works to the UK and the rest of the world. His close associations with some of the greatest established composers, including Arvo Pärt, and the late John Tavener, and also emerging composers including Ēriks Ešenvalds, Uģis Prauliņš, Paweł Łukaszewski and Jaakko Mäntyjärvi, have given rise to a whole new sound-world which has transformed the choral music landscape. In 2003 he edited, choreographed and conducted the world premiere of John Tavener’s seven-hour vigil Veil of the Temple, working closely with the composer to realise the work which Tavener described as “the supreme achievement of my life.” Stephen subsequently led the American premiere of the work at New York’s Lincoln Center.
Stephen Layton’s easy authority across multiple genres has seen him deliver his own editions of Handel with orchestras such as Seattle, Minnesota and Philadelphia, whilst in the same season premiering the avant-garde vocal music of today.
Stephen will continue to direct Polyphony and the Holst Singers, and education will remain a major focus as he continues to deliver masterclasses and workshops at colleges and conservatoires around the world.
Thursday 22nd February 2023
Layton releases new Duruflé Requiem film, recorded in Paris
Yesterday, Stephen Layton and The Choir of Trinity College Cambridge released a new film of the Duruflé Requiem, which precedes their new record of the same repertoire. Filmed at the Eglise Saint-Eustache, Paris, in July 2022 as part of a French tour, it has been beautifully produced by Andrew Staples and Classical Films.
The soloists include baritone Florian Störtz, mezzo-soprano Katherine Gregory, organist Harrison Cole and cellist Myrtille Hetzel, all directed by Stephen Layton. The full version is available on the Choir’s You Tube channel:Duruflé - REQUIEM - At Saint-Eustache [4K] | The Choir of Trinity College Cambridge - YouTube Here you can also access a huge selection of other video footage of the choir from their weekly webcasts.
Monday 5th September 2022
CCM signs Fenella Humphreys
CCM is delighted to announce the signing of the virtuosic violinist Fenella Humphreys today. Attracting international attention for her spellbinding performances, Fenella Humphreys has established herself as one of the UK’s most versatile violinists. Her easy authority across a multitude of genres has secured the interest and support of a number of today’s leading composers, with Fenella having given world premieres by such composers as Sir Peter Maxwell Davies, Sally Beamish, Cheryl Frances-Hoad and Freya Waley-Cohen among others.
Her natural affinity with the core repertoire, combined with a strong desire to unearth new ‘classics’, ensures Fenella is in high demand for both chamber music and concerto performances alike. Her fearless approach to programming has not only led to performances at the most coveted festivals and venues, but also resulted in her releasing several recordings which have garnered reviews and accolades of the highest order, including the prestigious BBC Music Magazine Instrumental Award.
For more information on Fenella, please take a look at her biography HERE.
Thursday 16th June 2022
Summer celebrations for the Brodsky Quartet!
The Brodsky Quartet continue their big birthday celebrations across the summer months, taking in many of the UK’s major festivals in the coming weeks. Highlights include:
26th June: Thaxted Festival with Martin Roscoe
27th June: Bradfield Festival
28th June: Harrogate Festival
7th July: Lichfield Festival with Danny Driver
11th July: Cheltenham Festival
12th – 16th July: Dante Festival
19th/20th July: Buxton Festival with the Manchester Camerata
In August, the quartet returns to Dartington Arts where they will run the advanced course. Here they will be offering their side-by-side Shostakovich cycle which gives
students a rich pedagogical experience in terms of the in-depth preparation and immersive performance opportunity.
Looking ahead to the autumn, we come to the focal point of their anniversary season: a return to Kings Place (where they are artistic associates) to perform the complete Shostakovich cycle again. They last performed the full cycle here in 2012, for their 40th anniversary, which led to the start of their hugely successful residency in the venue.
We very much hope you’re able to join us at a concert or two over the coming weeks to raise a glass to the Brodsky Quartet!
Wednesday 8th June 2022
CCM at The Proms!
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We are delighted to announce that Nicolas Hodges will return to the BBC Proms this year to give the world premiere of Betsy Jolas’ new work bTunes for Nicolas.
We’ve been told to expect surprises from this new work, as the Franco-American composer Betsy Jolas riffs on the 21st-century listening culture of playlists and downloads. Written especially for Nicolas, the world premiere takes place on the 5th September, at the Royal Albert Hall, under the baton of Karina Canellakis with the BBC Symphony Orchestra.
The work is bookended by Beethoven and Mahler and you can find out more information on how to book your ticket here: Proms 2022 Prom 66: Beethoven, Betsy Jolas and Mahler - BBC Proms - BBC
Monday 28th March 2022
Hodges returns to the LPO to give UK premiere
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Nicolas Hodges returns to the London Philharmonic Orchestra this week to give the UK premiere of Rebecca Saunders’ to an utterance, under the baton of Edward Gardner, at the Royal Festival Hall.
Hodges gave the world premiere of the work last September at the Lucerne Festival, with the Lucerne Festival Contemporary Orchestra conducted by Enno Poppe. Subsequent performances have included at the Berlin Festival, also with the Lucerne Festival Contemporary Orchestra and Enno Poppe, and at the Festival Milano Musica, at La Scala, with the Orchestra Sinfonica di Milano Giuseppe Verdi and Michele Gamba.
The work has been widely praised by the press, with Richard Morrison at The Times stating: "Written for virtuoso pianist (the peerless Nicolas Hodges, another Germany-based Brit) and orchestra, it is also a violently theatrical half-hour, full of
abrasive shocks though also with skittish moments and, at the end, eerie passages that sound as if soloist and orchestra have floated into outer space. It’s uncompromising stuff yet I loved it."
For more information on this week’s performance, please click here: Visions and Utterances | The London Philharmonic Orchestra (lpo.org.uk)
Tuesday 25th January 2022
The Brodsky Quartet at 50!
Throughout 2022/23, the Brodsky Quartet will be celebrating their 50th anniversary: a major milestone in anyone’s life, of course, but a remarkable achievement for a string quartet that started when its original members were just 10 years old! One of those original members, Jacqueline Thomas (cello), has written the below couple of paragraphs, which will appear in programmes around the world as the celebrations begin. Here at CCM, we wish the Brodsky Quartet the happiest of birthdays, and look forward to helping them celebrate over the coming weeks and months! Here’s to the next decade or two!
The Brodsky Quartet is celebrating its 50th anniversary in 2022, and we like to think we still look young enough for that to be almost unbelievable!
How has it been 50 years since we started this lifelong journey together? Looking back, I find it wonderful that 10- and 12-year olds we already infused with passion
and belief in the longevity that is now playing out. Two of us remain from the beginning, one joined as we turned professional 40 years ago, and our new fourth member has had her own similar path in the endlessly rewarding and fascinating life that is the String Quartet!
So many people have helped us along the way: from our parents, through teachers, agents, sponsors, record companies and promoters, we have a lot to be thankful for. Many concert halls worldwide have loyally supported all our projects - London's Kings Place to Sydney Opera House, too many to mention. From entire cycles of Schubert, Shostakovich, Beethoven, Zemlinsky, Bartok, to the more unusual things we've thrown at them; song cycles - with a Who's-Who line-up of collaborators - theatrical pieces, educational projects and grand spectacles. Like the 400-strong performance of Britten's Noye's Fludde at Wimbledon Festival, bringing back fond memories of our own childhood involvement back in Middlesbrough 1971, not long after the work was written. Crazy late-night marathons at our favourite summer school, Dartington, which we first visited as students in '74 then returned as professionals at least twenty times over the years. ANAM in Melbourne, where students rose to the challenge of our demanding Side-by-Side projects, to be repeated in Mexico, Holland, Scotland and, coming up this year, Dartington once more.
Delfina Entrecanales, Neil Rackham, Patrick Fahey are amongst the generous friends who have helped us along the way, sponsoring concerts, acquiring instruments, funding recordings. Marjon Koenekoop, Maria Angeles de Scals amongst the many agents who have put in tireless work on our behalf, culminating in our long-term soulmate and fifth member, the wonderful Sarah Trelawny Ford.
We still gain a huge amount of pleasure in the endlessly fascinating vocation we have made our lives' work. Rehearsals can delve with manic intensity into the minute detail of our craft, as much now as when we were young and finding our collective voice. The passion remains in our hearts and, we hope, will still manage to thrill our audiences as we set off on this anniversary season!
If you’d like to read more about the history of the Brodsky Quartet, you might be interested to note that Paul Cassidy’s latest book, Got Beethoven, which details his time in the group, is to be released at the end of February: Got Beethoven - Troubador Book Publishing
Monday 5th July 2021
Cambridge Creative Management and The Yehudi Menuhin School announce new external engagements partnership!
A new partnership between the international classical music agency Cambridge Creative Management (CCM) and the world-renowned Yehudi Menuhin School (YMS) will offer the school’s exceptionally talented pupils the opportunity to perform on the world’s major stages through a new approach to the school’s management of external engagements.
Founded in 1963 by the celebrated violinist Yehudi Menuhin, the specialist music school provides a place for musically gifted children from around the world to develop their talents to the highest level within a nurturing and stimulating academic environment. In the first relationship of its kind for the school, Cambridge Creative Management will act as agent to the school’s outstanding young musicians, seeking professional-level external engagements for them throughout the UK, Europe and around the globe. Building on the performance opportunities already on offer to the pupils at the world-renowned Menuhin Hall, CCM will endeavour to develop new partnerships and increase the number of external engagements for the 80 exceptional
exceptional pupils, aged from 11 to 19, giving them a heightened taster of the careers already forged by a remarkable list of alumni which includes Nicola Benedetti, Tasmin Little, Alina Ibragimova and Melvyn Tan. Initial performance projects will include developing the school’s orchestral touring programme, focusing on its biannual visit to the Gstaad Festival; increasing the visibility of the annual Leavers’ Concert through further performances of the programme on offer; collaborations with YMS Qingdao, due to open in September 2022; and exploring further ways to celebrate the school’s 60th anniversary in 2023.
Ever forward-thinking in its approach, the school has recently announced a new collaboration with the London-based record label Orchid Classics, providing pupils with a further glimpse into the life of a professional artist. The school’s first album, due for release in 2022, will comprise performances by a selection of exceptional talents from the school’s international cohort.
Ashley Wass, Director of Music at The Yehudi Menuhin School, comments “I am delighted that CCM will be working with YMS to develop further concert opportunities for our wonderfully talented pupils. It goes without saying that performance is a key part of any young musician’s education, and this has been brought into sharp focus during the pandemic, when playing before the public has become such a rarity. YMS is undergoing a period of exciting change as we set about diversifying our pupils’ education such that every child who studies here leaves fully prepared for life as a 21st Century musician, and we see it as vitally important that the work we do is accessible to all. The partnership with CCM will help ensure that our pupils have the opportunity to perform for new audiences, encounter different cultures, get a taste of life as a touring musician and gain experience which will serve to be of great value in their future careers.”
Director of Cambridge Creative Management, Sarah Trelawny Ford, welcomes the new collaboration as an exciting development in the short life of the agency so far. “CCM was born out of a loyalty and dedication to artists and classical music during an exceptionally difficult year for many in the industry,” she says. “It’s an absolute honour to be asked to work with some of the world’s finest young musicians, securing a future for this incredibly important performance medium, and I am personally so excited to be working with those at the beginning of their careers. It feels a real privilege to be a part of the start of the creative process.”
Monday 14th June 2021
Danish Radio debut for Sofi Jeannin!
This week sees conductor Sofi Jeannin making her debut with the Danish Radio Vokal Ensemblet at the DR Konserthuset in Copenhagen.
Joining the choir for a programme entitled ‘A Nordic Summer’, Sofi will conduct a gloriously seasonal programme to include works by Carl Nielsen, Edvard Grieg, and Hugo Alfvén, and more recent tones by Swedish-born Anders Hillborg and Karin Rehnqvist. Sofi will give two concerts with the choir at the Trinitatis Church, Copenhagen, as part of her debut project with the group.
To find out more about the choir and programme, click HERE.
On her return from Copenhagen, Sofi re-joins the BBC Singers in preparation for their Prom together on the 19th August at the Royal Albert Hall. For this Prom, experimental composer and turntablist Shiva Feshareki joins forces with Sofi and the
Singers for a choral playlist colliding the Renaissance with the present day. Works by Hildegard of Bingen, Byrd and Josquin are woven into a continuous musical sequence with pieces by Stravinsky, Feshareki, Nico Muhly and Roderick Williams. Old and new, acoustic and electronic, sacred and secular come together in this musical kaleidoscope.
For more information on the performance, and ticket prices and availability, click HERE.
Friday 4th June 2021
Brodsky Quartet new CD release!
We are very excited to announce that the Brodsky Quartet have released a new album on Chandos, Homage to Bach, a phenomenal disc comprising the premier recordings of Bach’s three violin sonatas (1720) arranged by Paul Cassidy.
“When I was about 14 years old and just getting properly hooked on classical music, I encountered for the first time, a bonafide musician – someone who actually made a living from playing the violin. He gave me his copy of Bach’s E Major Partita with the words: “There’s enough in there to keep you going a lifetime!”
And do you know what, he was right. I still have that music though I have since gone out and bought myself the complete set of Bach’s Six Solos for Violin. Indeed, not a day goes by that I don’t delve into their glorious depths.
For many years now, I’ve been harbouring the notion of arranging the 3 Sonatas for
string quartet, intrigued by the thought of filling out those bars and allowing them to unfold without the constant pressure of intense technical demands. Never seeming to have the time to undertake this challenge, the damned virus came to my aid. And so, towards the end of March 2020, I began my attempt at writing nearly 70 minutes of Bach. Despite being locked-down with my family, I don’t think they saw me for the next few months; once I’d embarked upon this crazy journey it became all-encompassing, frazzling my mind day and night. It was an incredible education though – hunting down renegade consecutive fifths and octaves, working and reworking chords till I felt I had the correct inversion etc. – trying as much as possible to compose Bach and not Vivaldi, Purcell or even Mendelssohn!
Then came learning the new arrangements with my patient and adorable colleagues and finally, committing them to disc – the whole process taking ten months to realise. Now, with the CD available, and life slowly adjusting to COVID-19, we can look forward to playing them in public; it’s like suddenly finding three new works by Bach… Happy Days.” – Paul Cassidy
To purchase a copy of the CD, click HERE.
To purchase a copy of the scores and parts, click HERE, or visit www.paulcassidy.org.
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Monday 22nd February 2021
Brodsky Quartet Announcement
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Gina McCormack has reluctantly decided to leave the Brodsky Quartet for family reasons. Her husband, Leif, is suffering from MND (Motor Neurone Disease) and she feels she cannot commit to the Quartet’s busy schedule when concerts start again.
"Our time together as a quartet was sadly far too short, but I leave with enough fabulous musical and culinary memories to last me a lifetime!"
The other members of the Quartet comment:
“We are immensely sad to be losing Gina. She and Leif will remain at the forefront of our thoughts as they strive to negotiate his illness.
“Our short time together was hugely productive, rewarding and immensely fun. Gina has left us with many memories and we shall miss her enormously.
“The current performance restrictions however, have allowed us the opportunity to consider our future without Gina. We three have decided to continue working together and are relieved and thrilled to have found a new colleague; the wonderful Krysia Osostowicz.
“Krysia has spent her professional life immersed in chamber music, including 25 years with the Dante String Quartet. Having known each other since student days, our similar journeys have converged with serendipity at this new phase in the Brodsky Quartet’s life as we approach our 50th anniversary season. Welcome Krysia.”
Thursday 21st January 2021
Hodges in Basel & Helsinki
Pianist Nicolas Hodges is in Basel this week performing alongside the Basel Sinfonietta. Conducted by Ilan Volkov, Hodges is giving the world premiere of Christian Wolff’s Mountain Messengers with further repertoire on the programme to include Tania León’s Ácana and Linda Catlin Smith’s Memory Forms. Due to the current circumstances, the concert will be performed without an audience, however it will be broadcast online via video livestream thanks to Radio SRF 2 Kultur at 7pm CET on Sunday 24th January.
In the first week of February, Hodges is also travelling to Helsinki to perform Simon Steen-Andersen’s Piano Concerto alongside the Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra. Conducted by André de Ridder, the performance also features Edgar Varèse’s Deserts and Four Tributes to 4am by Anna Meredith. Although it is
unlikely that the performance will be able to go ahead with an audience, it will be livestreamed online via the Finnish Broadcasting Company’s website, areena.yle.fi, as well as through their app services at 19:00 EET on Thursday 4th February.
For more information about the concert in Basel, click HERE.
For more information about the concert in Helsinki, click HERE.
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Wednesday 2nd December 2020
CCM at St John’s Smith Square!
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CCM is delighted that several of our artists are performing at St John’s Smith Square’s 35th Christmas Festival.
This Friday, 4th December, pianist Martin Roscoe is performing a recital for advent alongside contralto Jess Dandy. Featuring a programme packed with works by a number of different composers, including Britten, Rodrigo, Ravel and Poulenc to name a few, their performance takes place at 7.30pm, and will also be available to stream online on Sunday 13th December at 7.30pm.
This December also sees a performance of the Brodsky Quartet at St John’s Smith Square, who are performing Mozart’s String Quartet No. 19 in C major, K465 ‘Dissonance’ followed by Mendelssohn’s String Quartet in F minor, Op.80, in a concert titled ‘From the Darkness Comes Light’. The Quartet’s performances take place at 3pm and 6pm on Sunday 20th December, with the latter performance of the two available to be streamed live on the day.
As we edge even closer to Christmas, conductor Stephen Layton is directing a performance of vocal ensemble Polyphony for a seasonal a cappella celebration of English Christmas music. Taking place at 3pm and 6pm on Tuesday 22nd December, the concerts feature works throughout the ages, from medieval plainchant up until the present day, with the second performance available to watch live online.
For more information and links to the online performances, please see the St John’s Smith Square website HERE.
Monday 23rd November 2020
Roscoe CD wins Limelight Magazine ‘Chamber Recording of the Year’!
Pianist Martin Roscoe has won Limelight Magazine’s ‘Chamber Recording of the Year’ for his recording alongside violinist Jennifer Pike released in July 2020 on Chandos. The duo were praised by the magazine for their original violin and piano version of The Lark Ascending as well as their pairing of the under-recorded violin sonatas by Elgar and Vaughan Williams.
“A benchmark recording of the two sonatas by Yehudi and Hephzibah Menuhin is highly expressive, but Yehudi’s intonation is neither as secure nor his tone as pure as Pike’s, while Roscoe is the more imaginative pianist. This new recording is a must.”
Congratulations Martin!
For more information on the award, please click HERE.
Friday 6th November 2020
Autumn Highlights!
CCM artists have had a busy start to the new season with several managing to head abroad and around the UK for concerts.
Pianist Martin Roscoe enjoyed a busy October, performing in several venues across the UK with Tai Murray, Tasmin Little, Jennifer Pike and Fenella Humphreys at venues including Snape Maltings, Stoller Hall, Royal Festival Hall, Wigmore Hall and Beverley Chamber Music Festival. Martin appeared alongside Tasmin Little on BBC Radio 3 as part of Tasmin’s farewell concert, which is still available to listen to HERE and certainly not one to be missed! Martin has also been doing some small scale recordings with the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra which we cannot wait to hear.
On Monday 2nd November, CCM had not only one, but two artists on BBC Radio 3’s In Tune programme with Katie Derham! The Brodsky Quartet performed live in the
studio ahead of their recent concerts at King’s Place and later in the programme pianist Nicolas Hodges phoned in to talk about his new album A Bag of Bagatelles released on 6th November, which includes works by Beethoven and Sir Harrison Birtwistle. If you missed the programme live, it is still available to listen to HERE.
Nicolas Hodges recently returned from Norway where he performed Simon Steen-Andersen’s Piano Concerto with the Bergen Philharmonic and conductor Edward Gardner, following which next week he will be performing Philippe Manoury’s Passacaille pour Tokyo for piano and ensemble in Porto’s Casa da Música alongside the Remix Ensemble and conductor Peter Rundel.
Whilst it’s a difficult time for the music industry at the moment, promoters and venues have been doing everything they can to ensure that we are able to continue to enjoy performances, and we are all exceptionally grateful to them and the artists for keeping us entertained.
Wednesday 21st October 2020
Brodsky Quartet return to the stage!
The 31st October sees the Brodsky Quartet return to Kings Place, where they are Artistic Associate, to begin the completion of their late Beethoven cycle which they began in early 2020. On Saturday 31st, the quartet will give three performances of Beethoven’s String Quartet Op. 135, followed by the Grosse Fugue Op. 133, and interspersed by Mendelssohn’s Fugue from Four Pieces, Op. 81. The three performances will take place at 2pm, 4pm, and 6pm, with the 4pm concert being live-streamed on the Kings Place website.
On 6th November, the Brodsky Quartet will complete the cycle with two performances of Beethoven’s String Quartet No. 13 in Bb, Op. 130 coupled with Purcell’s Chaconne in G minor. These performances will take place at 6pm and 8pm, and there are a number of tickets still available for the later performance – please click HERE for more information on how to book.
The quartet’s final Kings Place project of the year will be a performance of Vaughan Williams’ On Wenlock Edge with the tenor Daniel Norman and pianist Sholto Kynoch. The concert will include the award-winning accompanying shadow-play film, produced by the puppeteer Jeremy Hamway-Bidgood who will live edit the film during the performance. You can find out more about this very special event, part of Nature Unwrapped at Kings Place, HERE.
Thursday 15th October 2020
Hodges in Bergen & Berlin
Pianist Nicolas Hodges is in Bergen this week for performances with the Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra. Conducted by Edward Gardner, Nicolas is performing the Norwegian premiere of Simon Steen-Andersen’s Piano Concerto at Bergen’s Grieghallen on Wednesday 14th, Thursday 15th and Friday 16th October. The concerts begin with a fitting talk by brain scientist and bestselling author Professor Stefan Kölsch named “What happens in our brains and our bodies when music surprises us?”, followed by the concerto and conclude with Beethoven’s Symphony No. 7.
There will be a livestream of Thursday’s concert HERE on 15th October at 19:25 CEST (18:25 BST), which will also be available to watch until Sunday 18th October.
Following this, Nicolas is heading to Berlin for a concert alongside pianist Michael Wendeberg at the Pierre Boulez Saal, featuring a programme of works by Debussy, Boulez and Ravel. To find out more about Nicolas’ concert in Berlin, please click HERE.
Saturday 10th October 2020
MBE for Stephen Layton
Cambridge Creative Management is delighted to announce that the conductor Stephen Layton has been awarded an MBE for services to classical music.
Layton is often described as the finest exponent of choral music in the world today, and his groundbreaking approach has had a profound influence on choral music over the past 30 years. He is regularly invited to work with the world’s leading choirs, orchestras and composers. His interpretations have been heard from the Sydney Opera House to the Concertgebouw, from Tallinn to São Paolo, and his recordings have won or been nominated for every major international recording award. Layton has two Gramophone Awards (and a further ten nominations), five Grammy nominations, the Diapason d’Or de l’Année in France, the Echo Klassik award in Germany, the Spanish CD compact award, and the Limelight Recording of the Year in Australia.
Founder and Director of Polyphony, Layton is also Fellow and Director of Music at Trinity College Cambridge and Music Director of Holst Singers. His former posts include Chief Conductor of the Netherlands Chamber Choir, Chief Guest Conductor of the Danish National Vocal Ensemble, Artistic Director and Principal Conductor of the City of London Sinfonia, and Director of Music at the Temple Church in London.