Ensemble Scratch the Surface

	October 22 2010, Hall One, Kings Place, London A spectacle of music and video bringing together the hitch and glitch of failed technologies with the humour and romance of love songs. Contemporary voice trio juice present the English premier of specially commissioned songs by artists including Gavin Bryars, Micachu, Anna Meredith, E.laine, Errollyn Wallen and Jim Moray. They are joined by Ensemble Scratch the Surface who feature, amongst others, an audiovisual performance for modified piano by pianist extraordinaire Leon Mitchener, a [re]construction of hybrid pianos by 'better known as' aka Lemon Drizzle the alter egos of composer Claudia Molitor and pianist Sarah Nicolls, and films by visual artist Aura Satz and the art collective Flat-e. Performance begins 8pm Tickets: http://www.kingsplace.co.uk/music/weekly-themes/love-songs-for-broken-machines
	August 2010, Kempton, Germany We are off to Germany for a performance amongst the ruins of the Kempton’s Roman baths, Kleine Thermen. We will be premiering specially commissioned works by Simon Katan, Amber Priestly and Alywnne Pritchard. Performing with us are vocalist Loré Lixenberg, composer, artists and vocalist Mikhail Karikis , oboist Chris Redgate and composer and pianist Claudia Molitor.
	July 16 2010, Soundwaves Festival, Brighton We have put together an all exclusive percussion performance featuring two of the UK’s hottest rim-tapping, cymbal clashing percussionists. Adam Clifford and Manny Arciniega pursue careers as soloists as well as orchestral musicians. Adam has worked with the Colin Currie Group, the London Symphony Orchestra and the Scottish Chamber Orchestra. He has performed solo recitals at the Wigmore Hall to much acclaim. Manny’s percussion skills vary from performing Table with the group Tablature, to playing with the London Sinfonietta. He is a recipient of the Leverhulme Mentor Fellowship. This performance promises to be an adventurous, energetic escapade into the percussion repertoire with music from Luciano Berio, John Lely, Philip Cashian and Globokar amongst others.
	May 2010, Kings Place, London Co-curated with vocalist and composer Mikhail Karikis, this performance promises to offer our signature remix of genres and styles. We premier Nunhead Harmony for violin, viola, clarinet and double bass by James Weeks. A fantastically rhythmic and energetic work drawn from his abiding interest in rudimentary musical materials. Claudia Molitor has featured regularly at Kings Place. Her new work looking and hearing and seeing and listening (and doodling and playing) is as lop-sided and anarchic as ever. We are also featuring the work of Ireland's award winning composers, Jonathan Nangle and Donnacha Dennehy. Nangle’s Particle for clarinet and electronics was inspired by the strange and counter intuitive alignment of stable and unstable elements found in the Periodic Table whilst Dennehy’s Clips and Static is a humorous nod to the glitches which invade audio technologies and disrupt our listening experiences. Our guest performer, vocalist Loré Lixenberg, will perform Technical Knockout by Neil Luck and this night of no moon by Bent Sørensen and Mikhail Karikis himself is also expected to make an appearance.
	May 13 2010, Sallis Benney Theatre, Brighton Fringe Festival [im]possibility An evening of performances based on the notion of exploring the possibility of impossibilities. We are collaborating with cutting edge vocal trio JUICE and visual artist Monica Ross for a performance of the second act from Mikhail Karikis’ new opera XENON. We will also be returning to a favourite of ours, Blips, Clips and Ghettoblasters by Donnacha Dennehy and a work by London based composer Neil Luck. His Technical Knockouts is a piece for singer and microphone manipulator. The singer’s voice is filtered through the constant re-arrangement and adjustment of the amplification chain, which in turn provides aural cues for the sung pitches, generating a live feedback loop. Doors open at 7pm and the performance begins at 7.30pm. Tickets can be bought through Brighton Festival Box Office or at the door.
	May 10 2010, Kings Place, London We a planning a really exciting performance at Kings Place, London for the premier of two new works by James Weeks and Claudia Molitor specially written for ensemble Scratch the Surface. James’ Nunhead Harmony is a fantastically rhythmic and energetic work scored for violin, viola, double bass and clarinet. Claudia is writing for the same line up with the addition of a ‘performing composer’ , who will incorporate real time composition into the score. The piece is titled looking and hearing and seeing and listening (and doodling and playing). We are also featuring works by Jonathan Nangle for clarinet and electronics and a work for ghettoblasters by Donnacha Dennehy. We are also delighted to be working once again with Mikhail Karikis, who will premier excerpts from his forthcoming opera XENON. Concert starts 8pm. Tickets can be purchased online HERE, or at the door. Jonathan Nangle Donnacha Dennehy Mikhail Karikis Claudia Molitor James Weeks
	November 2008 We are travelling about Ireland in November with some really exciting programmes. Benedict Schlepper-Connolly is working on a new commission, we will also be revisiting some familiar works such as Linda Buckley’s Nikuda and Donnacha Dennehy’s Glamour Sleeper. We have also commissioned German/English composer, Claudia Molitor to write a piece for us. The tour will feature the funky New York Counterpoint by Steve Reich and the wittily ironic Case History by Roderick de Man. Of course we wouldn't be ourselves without some rather unusual video and choreographic work which really adds a musical sauce to our programming. So do check it out! November 12th Arts Tech Amergin 8pm Tickets available from www.techamergin.com November 14th Mermaid Arts Centre , 8pm Tickets available from www.mermaidartscentre.ie November 16th Hugh Lane Gallery 12noon Admission Free, arrive early for best seats. www.hughlane.ie
	July 2 2008 The Warehouse, Waterloo , London . An evening of music by Irish and English composers in association with Association of Irish Composers. The performance features our usual mixture of electronics and live performance. Concert starts at 7.30pm. Doors open 7pm. Tickets at the door £8/ £6 concession. www.thewarehouselondon.co.uk
	June 25 2008 ensemble Scratch the Surface will be performing in the Sallis Benney Theatre, University of Brighton as part of Soundwaves Festival. The concert features new music by Conall Gleeson, Linda Buckley and Donnacha Dennehy. Performance begins at 7.30. Tickets available through Brighton Dome Box Office. www.soundwaves-festival.org.uk
	June 21 2008 Musée des Beaux-Arts at Nimes have invited ensemble Scratch the Surface to curate a performance for the World Music Day - Fête de la Musique. The ensemble has commissioned composers from several European nations to respond to the recent installation and intervention at the museum, Tête-à-Tête , through the medium of sound, music and its relations to visual forms. The evening promises to be a truly international affair. www.fetedelamusique.culture.fr
	2008 May 15 The Aesthetics of Failure - The performance draws upon a collection of works dating from the 1960s to the present day which expose the inherent fallibilities of modern technology and performance practices. Included in the programme will be the infamous Failing, a very difficult piece for Double Bass performed by Corrado Canonici. Steve Reich's Pendulum Music aesthetises the 'error' of feedback, whilst performances of rattling snares, broken computer scanners, hybrid radio-organs, prepared piano and six channel live cello demonstrate the creative potential of interference patterns, noise, twisted electric circuits and magnetic fields.