Resonate: October 2023
Welcome to your October 2023 edition of Resonate.
It’s wonderful to have all of our students and staff back at the RNCM after the summer break, and to have already welcomed so many of you through our doors to experience the start of our autumn events programme.
This month we’ve got news about our new The Future is Green initiative, awards nominations, competition wins, and a roundup of our landmark anniversary last year.
Read on to see how your support has been shaping the RNCM, and what we’ve got coming up over the next month and beyond.
RNCM Young Explorers: Halloween Spooktacular
Sun 15 Oct // 2pm
Our Young Explorers concerts are the perfect way to introduce children to live orchestral music. Relaxed and engaging, these performances are specially designed to keep everyone entertained.
You’ll be enchanted by our live orchestra as we bring to life music from The Addams Family, Harry Potter, Caspar the Friendly Ghost, and more!
Cassandra Miller in Focus
Thu 19 Oct
Our In Focus series invites trailblazing composers to the RNCM. Behind the scenes they work closely with our staff and students, culminating in a compelling day of performances.
This Autumn, we’re delighted to welcome Dr Cassandra Miller, who is renowned for creating deep listening experiences with her music. Join us as our students bring Cassandra’s works to life across three special performances:
1.15pm // Thursday Lunchtimes
6pm // Warblework
8pm // RNCM Brand New Orchestra
The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari (1920): Film Screening with Live Accompaniment
Wed 25 Oct // 7.30pm
The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari is silent cinema’s original horror film. Born out of the German Expressionist movement, you’ll find yourself immersed in an eerie world of betrayal and bloodshed.
Providing the dramatic backdrop, organist Darius Battiwalla performs a live improvised soundtrack as this spine-tingling story unfolds.
RNCM Symphony Orchestra: John Adams’ Harmonielehre
Fri 3 Nov // 7.30pm
A rarely performed masterpiece, John Adams’ Harmonielehre takes listeners on a harmonic expedition, exploring the sonic landscape of late Romanticism through the lens of minimalism.
As we reflect on climate change and the natural world this year (see more below), we’re also delighted to feature Tansy Davies’ re-greening – a playful work focusing on the essence of spring and the cycles of forest life.
There’s plenty more to see over the next month, including our ever-popular Monday Lunchtimes and Thursday Lunchtimes, featuring recitals by our students and ensembles, including the RNCM Brass Band (12 Oct), Brahms Trio for Violin, Horn and Piano (26 Oct) and RNCM String Quartet Studio and Friends (2 Nov). Visit our What’s On page for full listings.
Did you know that RNCM Members get free tickets to our weekly lunchtime concerts, as well as a host of other great benefits? Join today for only £35 per year at www.rncm.ac.uk/membership.
The Future is Green
Music and Sustainability at the RNCM
The RNCM is a community that cares about the future of music, and sustainability is high on our agenda.
Through a string of public performances this year, we’ll be bringing a focus to climate change and the natural world through our The Future is Green initiative, providing opportunities for students, staff, audience members and the wider community to learn with us, and understand and think about the role we all play.
We’ll also be highlighting what goes on behind the scenes, including the important work within our curriculum and across our estate.
To support the RNCM’s commitment to music and sustainability, we have established the RNCM Green Fund. All donations to the fund will help us to build on our existing work in this area, and support initiatives including sustainable building improvements, environmentally conscious touring, carbon literacy training for staff, and student-led projects tackling climate change.
With your help, we can continue to support our students and alumni who are looking to tackle climate change in their field and build on our aims to become a self-sufficient conservatoire, with sustainability at the forefront of our decision-making.
Find out more about the RNCM Green Fund here.
May Payne
RNCM Student Wins Inaugural Casio Competition
Congratulations to fourth year Popular Music student May Payne, one of two multi-talented singer-songwriters to win Casio Music UK’s Casio Sessions competition.
16 singer-songwriters participated in the inaugural event, performing original music for a panel of industry experts and a live audience, in a bid to secure a Casio PX-S7000 digital piano and £500.
May, whose song was the powerful I Hate It When You Touch Me, said: ‘It’s a huge honour to win the very first Casio Sessions! Thank you to Casio for the wonderful opportunity. To have the chance to play and be recognised for a song that is deeply personal to me was an unforgettable experience.’
Multiple Award Nominations
I Love MCR, Times Higher Education and Manchester Culture Awards
Following our incredible 50th anniversary year, we are delighted to have been shortlisted for Most Loved Cultural/Arts Venue in this year’s I Love MCR Awards. We’re also proud to share that 17-year-old Alex Bridgeman, an integral member of many of our programmes for young people, has been shortlisted for Young Person of the Year.
We’re thrilled to have been shortlisted for two Times Higher Education Awards in the Outstanding Entrepreneurial University and Outstanding Contribution to Environmental Leadership categories, which highlights the RNCM’s commitment to innovation and sustainability, empowering students to push the boundaries of traditional music practices and drive the industry of tomorrow.
The RNCM has also been shortlisted for two Manchester Culture Awards: Best Performance (Bernstein’s Mass at The Bridgewater Hall) and Young Creative of the Year (Fehintola Charis, an inspirational RNCM Young Artists mentor).
Annual Impact Report & Annual Review
RNCM50: A Year in Review
Between September 2022 and July 2023, we celebrated our 50th anniversary with a series of special concerts, events, projects and initiatives that cemented our position as one of the world’s most progressive and forward-thinking conservatoires.
As we begin our next chapter, we’ve put together a snapshot of an incredible milestone year in our Annual Review.
You can also take a look at our 2022-23 Annual Impact Report to see just how much we were able to do, and how many young people we were able to support, thanks to the generous philanthropic giving of our wonderful family of supporters.
3 October 2023
