What's On

Manchester Collective join our 50th anniversary celebrations as one of our new Artists-in-Residence. From side-by-side initiatives and fantastic performances, they’ll work closely with our students, giving them unprecedented insight into one of the UK’s most innovative chamber orchestras.

No one can outrun the past.

Take a pinch of a romantic song cycle, stir in some studio theatre and a touch of jazz, then filter the whole thing through a hessian sack of deep, dark Central European folklore… and you might be somewhere in the region of ‘Bag of Bones’, Alice Zawadzki’s bewitching new project for Manchester Collective.

Leading a cross-breed ensemble comprising keys, accordion, and strings, Zawadzki has created a deeply personal piece of music theatre that grapples with the cultural history and inherited stories that run back through her life to her Polish roots.

There are no sweet jazz songs in this landscape, but somehow, lightness always finds a way through the dark. Brand new music sits alongside a set curated by Alice and the Collective – a set that will transport listeners to strange new lands.

The ink is not yet dry on this one. This is new music at its most thrilling, dangerous and cathartic.

Alice Zawadzki’s new work is supported by PRS Foundation’s The Open Fund for Organisations.

Programme to include:
Alice Zawadzki Bag of Bones

With musical interludes by:

David Lang Mystery Sonata No 1 ‘Joy’
Henryk Górecki String Quartet No 2 Op 64 ‘Quasi una fantasia’ (last movement)
Simón Díaz arr Mullov-Abbado Tonada de luna llena
Trad South American arr Mullov-Abbado Que Florezca La Luz
Andrea Tarrodi Miroirs

Alice Zawadzki voice
Rakhi Singh music director, violin
Charles Kieny accordion, synthesiser
Bruno Heinen keyboard
Simmy Singh violin
Carol Ella viola
Nick Trygstad cello

Tickets:
£9 (Under 26s and Students)
£18 (Full)

This programme has recently been updated.

This performance will last for approximately 70 minutes followed by an artist Q&A.