UYO collaboration receives funding from the PRS for Music Foundation

» 21 April 2011

UYO collaboration receives funding from the PRS for Music Foundation

The Ulster Youth Orchestra has joined forces with the national youth orchestras of Scotland, Wales and Ireland to commssion a new work by composer Judith Bingham. The new work is one of 9 which have attracted funding from the PRS for Music's Beyond Borders scheme. The new commission will be performed by each orchestra as part of their programme's in 2012/2013

Details of the full press release are below:

Nine Musical Commissions Combine the Creativites of the UK Nations

Nine collaborations which will result in the joint commissioning of new music across different regions of the UK have received support from PRS for Music Foundation’s Beyond Borders scheme. Developed alongside Creative Scotland, Arts Council of Northern Ireland and Arts Council of Wales and with partnership support from Colwinston Trust, Beyond Borders is a unique funding programme which encourages music organisations to share resources and work together on the commissioning of new work by a UK-based composer. £110,000 was awarded, shared between the nine successful projects which involve a total of 21 commissioning partners and 13 music creators. Every commission is guaranteed a performance in at least two different venues in different parts of the UK, from Rhossili Bay to Belfast.

The nine successful collaborations are:
• Joe Acheson and Ancience commissioned by Distil (Scotland), Sidmouth Folk Festival (England), Trac (Wales), Edinburgh International Harp Festival and William Kennedy Piping Festival (Northern Ireland).
• Judith Bingham commissioned by National Youth Orchestra of Wales, National Youth Orchestra of Scotland, Ulster Youth Orchestra (Northern Ireland) and National Youth Orchestra of Ireland.
• Stephen Deazely commissioned by St Magnus International Festival (Scotland), Deal Festival of Music and Arts (England), The Sage Gateshead (England), Welsh National Opera, Down Arts Centre (Northern Ireland) and Scottish Chamber Orchestra.
• Geraint Ffrancon commissioned by National Trust England and National Trust Wales.
• Orlando Gough commissioned by Glyndebourne (England) and Scottish Opera.
• Phil Keiran and White Noise Sound commissioned by Oh Yeah Music Centre (Northern Ireland), Swansea Creative Hub (Wales) and Welsh Music Foundation.
• Soweto Kinch commissioned by Cathedral Arts Quarter Festival (Northern Ireland) and Nu Century Arts (England).
• Evan Parker commissioned by Sonorities Festival of Contemporary Music (Northern Ireland), Dialogues Festival (Scotland) and Sound Scotland.
• Pwyll ap Sion commissioned by Galeri Caernarfon Cyf (Wales) and European Union Chamber Orchestra (England).

Vanessa Reed, Executive Director of PRS for Music Foundation said:
“The diverse range of organisations and music creators selected for Beyond Borders demonstrate how the commissioning of imaginative new music can be shared through partnerships which work across traditional funding boundaries, within and beyond the music sector. We are delighted to be leading this initiative in collaboration with our Scottish, Welsh and Northern Irish colleagues and look forward to joining audiences across the UK to enjoy the results of these inspired collaborations.”

Fiona Matthews, of commissioning organisation Local Journeys, said:
“We are thrilled to have received the Beyond Borders grant, which will enable Local Journeys to commission locative aware music compositions for two National Trust sites, Brean Down in England and Rhossili in Wales. Sunday walks are set to enter a whole new dimension! As visitors walk around these beautiful landscapes, they can access different musical zones through the headsets of the latest gps-enabled mobile phones, so that each individual enjoys a bespoke musical experience that enhances his or her enjoyment of the natural setting.”

Belfast techno legend Phil Keiran, who will be creating new music with Welsh psych-rockers White Noise Sound, commented:
“I am very confident that we will find endless amounts of common ground and similar musical influences. Even though on paper we look to come from different musical backgrounds, I think our musical taste will be surprisingly similar. It is very exciting already.”

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