Christmas has always been a good time for catching up with friends and spending time with your family. My son Chris is home after his first term at University, so it’s great to have everyone here. Yesterday I thought it would be fun to record a family version of the Coventry Carol (always a favourite of mine), so here it is, with me on violins and synth bass, and Brenda, Chris and Jenny on handbells!! Coventry Carol
Brenda bought the handbells for use in workshops and other events, and they’ve already proved to be excellent value. They’re colourful metal and plastic affairs aimed at children but well worth having around.
I’m now looking ahead to 2009, after an exceptionally busy 2008, and hoping to have time for some exciting collaborations and possibly even another CD! The No-Man live CD and DVD should be released in the spring. I’m also working on new solo repertoire, and duo partnerships with a variety of wonderful musicians – more on this soon….
2009 is Ely Sinfonia’s 10th anniversary season, and I’m excited to be conducting all sorts of repertoire with them, from Rimsky-Korsakov’s amazing “Scheherezade” to the Mozart “Requiem” and Beethoven’s fifth symphony!
It promises to be a fulfilling year.
Whoever you are and wherever you are, please accept my sincere best wishes for 2009.
Friday saw me playing with the band No-Man in their first live gig for 15 years, and my first gig with a ‘rock’ band.
- L to R: Mike Bearpark, Steven Wilson, Pete Morgan, Tim Bowness, Andy Booker, Steve Bingham, Stephen Bennett (photo: Lisa Smith)
Bush Hall, in West London, was full to capacity, plus recording engineer and film crew (the gig was being recorded for a live CD and DVD film).
- (photo: Lisa Smith)
- (photo: Chris Bingham)
The first song in the set was the haunting ‘Only Rain’, vocals and violin alone, and starting with a minute or so of solo violin live loops: 400 fans, some of whom had waited 15 years since they last heard the band live, eager to hear their heroes Tim Bowness and Steve Wilson perform – and the first thing they get is me! I have to admit to being a little nervous….
But all started well, and at the end of the evening I don’t think that any of the fans were disappointed:
A mixture of songs from old and new albums made for an interesting and varied set. I await the live CD and DVD with interest, but meanwhile we’re off to Europe on Tuesday for repeat performances in Holland and Germany. There are more photos from the London gig here.
Email news arrived yesterday of the release, by Bohemian Productions, in collaboration with Sony, of their Jeff Beck tribute CD – entitled ‘El Becko’ (was that a groan I heard?) – to which I contributed a cover of the song ‘Scatterbrain’. I hope to have some copies of the CD available on the shop soon, but the track will also appear on my ‘Ascension’ solo CD (when I get it finished!).
Exciting concerts coming up include working for the excellent band No-Man, in London, Germany and Holland. I’m also taking part in a looping festival in Norwich and am conducting Ely Sinfonia in a major orchestral concert in Ely Cathedral.
OTHER NEWS:
I’ve recently posted a new video of the title track from my ‘Ascension’ CD onto YouTube. This goes alongside the two I posted from my looping recital in Norwich in March. All three are available on YouTube. Please do check them out, and leave a comment or rate them (5 stars please!!)
My “Ascension” track, available for download from my downloads page, is a loop-based piece of mine which has now become the title track of my new CD: The CD has recently gone through a bit of a transformation. It was originally going to be a CD ’single’ of about 20 minutes, but various friends urged me to do a full length CD and also to include the recent cover versions I’ve recorded of Led Zeppelin and Jeff Beck tracks. So it will now be a full CD! I’m also recording some extra Bach and a couple of new pieces. You can pre order your copy here at a special discount price of £8!!
February 2008 saw the release, by New York guitar label ‘Bohemian Productions’, of a Led Zeppelin homage CD called ‘Get The Led Out’. This has covers of many Led Zeppelin songs, and some origiinal material by Jimmy Paige, and includes my own multi-tracked version of ‘The Battle Of Evermore’, which will also feature on my new ‘Ascension’ CD. A must for all you Led Zeppelin fans! Here’s a small excerpt to whet your apetites!
I’m delighted to announce that I’ve just been appointed as Artistic Director of Ely Sinfonia. I’ve been working with this excellent amateur orchestra – in both a leading and conducting role – for a few years now. This appointment will see me working closely with them on concert planning and artistic development. One major date for the diary already is a concert of British music in Ely Cathedral on October 4th. I’ll be conducting this concert and it will feature internationally-renowned cellist Raphael Wallfisch playing the Elgar Cello Concerto. Other works include an exciting organ concerto by David Briggs, and pieces by Vaughan-Williams and Arnold.
See the new gear page for details of all my instruments and electronics, including my newest electric instrument – a 5-string violin by Ulrich Schwabe.
Finally; my friend Phil Toms has reworked the central photo montage from my Duplicity CD, so here it is:
Some of the players relax after the recording of the 40-part motet ‘Spem In Alium’!!!
