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One
of Europe's most celebrated and innovative groups, Britten Sinfonia features
some of the finest chamber musicians. The orchestra is widely praised
for the quality of its performance and intelligent approach to concert
programming, which is centred around the development of its players. Uniquely,
it does not have a principal conductor or artistic director, but chooses
to work with a range of the finest international guest artists from across
the musical spectrum as suited to each particular project.
Britten
Sinfonia ’s ground-breaking projects have explored music by Frank Zappa,
Gil Evans, Miles Davis, Django Bates, John Zorn, Nitin Sawhney and Moondog.
Britten Sinfonia has premièred over 70 works by composers as diverse as
Sir John Tavener and Ray Davies of the Kinks.
Recent seasons have included
projects with Pierre-Laurent Aimard, Thomas Adès,
Angela Hewitt, Masaaki Suzuki, Pekka Kuusisto, Nitin Sawhney, James MacMillan,
Ian Bostridge, Joanna MacGregor, Gil Goldstein, the Michael Clark Company
and Henri Oguike Dance Company. In 2008/9, guest artists include
Mark Padmore, stage director Katie Mitchell, Dhafer Youssef and Paul Lewis,
and we continue our relationship with Imogen Cooper, Alina Ibragimova
and Polyphony with Stephen Layton.
In May
2007, the orchestra's innovative approach and groundbreaking achievements
were recognized as they won the Ensemble category of the Royal Philharmonic
Society Music Awards, regarded as the most prestigious in the field of
live classical music.
Britten
Sinfonia ’s pioneering BBC Radio 3 Lunch series visits London's Wigmore
Hall, Birmingham Town Hall, Cambridge's West Road Concert Hall, Norwich's
Assembly House as well as the Filharmonic Hall in Krakow. International
dates in 2007 included tours to Portugal, Poland, Argentina, Uruguay and
Brazil, with a tour in 2008 to Italy, and tours to Mexico and Italy planned
for 2009.
Committed
to introducing music to new audiences, Britten Sinfonia runs a substantial
programme of workshops, family music days, pre-concert activities, coaching
and pioneering community projects in schools, hospitals, prisons and community
centres.
Britten
Sinfonia ’s discography boasts a Gramophone Award-winning recording of
Strauss and a Grammy-nominated CD of Morten Lauridsen’s music, as well
as acclaimed recordings of Britten with Ian Bostridge and Mozart. The
latest release Poulenc's Gloria and Motets with Susan Gritton (soprano),
Polyphony, The Choir of Trinity College and Stephen Layton was Editor's
choice in Gramophone April 2008, and Hartmann's Concerto Funebre
with Alina Ibragimova was not only Editor's Choice in Gramophone
September 2007 but was also voted 'Disc of the Week' on BBC Radio 3's
CD Review (1 September 2007). Other releases include Sidewalk Dances (the
music of Moondog), MacMillan’s Seven Last Words and Lauridsen’s Mid-Winter
Songs.
For further information
about Britten Sinfonia please contact us on +44 (0) 1223 300795
or email info@brittensinfonia.co.uk
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