Desks and Toys and Things that make Noise

11th June 2018 @ 7:30 pm - 11:00 pm

‘Desks and Toys and Things that make Noise’
The Crescent, York
Monday 11th June, 7.30pm
Tickets are £3 in advance and available from the venue in person, from our friends at Earworm Records or online via See Tickets.

This performance premieres two collections of Contemporary Music.

A Collection of Pieces for Toy Instruments is a suite of recordings for toy pianos, slide-whistles, plastic accordions, melodicas, and a miniature brass band. Investigating the infirmities and deficiencies intrinsic to the rinky-dink nature of these instruments’ construction, the work explores the playthings’ potential, rather than asking them to imitate music composed for their ‘better relations’ – the orchestral instruments which give them their form.

The Tiny Desk Songbook meanwhile, showcases a work for eight performers sat at individual wooden desks. Performed and devised in collaboration with ‘The Assembled’ (an inimitable ensemble based at the University of York) this collection explores popular song, and encompasses pieces for portable radios, pocket synthesisers, minor-tonality harmonicas, and functional objects.

With each collection sandwiched in between the other, expect a fleet-footed exploration of new, and occasionally experimental music for non-orchestral instruments, incorporating elements of theatre, improvisation, and the absurd.

Tickets are £3, and available on the door, with half of the proceeds being donated to the ‘Desks for Schools’ initiative – a charity providing functional desks for schoolchildren in rural Kenya.