CLOSE UP: MUSIC FOR CURIOUS YOUNG MINDS

Aga Serugo-Lugo & Ensemble 360

Wigmore Hall, London
Thursday 20 March 2025, 11.00am

Tickets:
£5

Past Event
Musicians from Ensemble 360
Home› What's on› CLOSE UP: MUSIC FOR CURIOUS YOUNG MINDS

A lively schools concert, presented by Aga Serugo-Lugo and featuring five wind musicians (flute, clarinet, oboe, bassoon and horn). Together they breathe life into the wondrous world of chamber music.

They’ll play well-known classical favourites from Britten and Debussy to Haydn and Holst, alongside more recent works such as Anna Meredith’s playful portrait of a moth and Valerie Coleman’s celebratory Kwanzaa dance. Perfect for 7-11 year olds, this is a lively and interactive concert.

About the Artists

Aga Serugo-Lugo

As a clarinettist, saxophonist and singer, Aga has had the opportunity to explore many different styles including: classical, jazz, soul, soul and funk. Aga also has a keen interest in theatre, especially music theatre, writing and producing his own musical ‘Celebrity’. Professionally, his style of choice has been jazz, which Aga has played across London with an eclectic mix of groups; this accompanies his private tuition and workshop leading. Improvisation and composition play a major part in his music making and workshops. Aga has done much work with Sing-up, the national singing strategy, allowing him to work with a variety of age groups and diverse levels of ability.

Ensemble 360 musicians

Ensemble 360

Ensemble 360 has gained an enviable reputation across the UK for the quality and integrity of their performances. Formed in 2005, eleven musicians of international standing came together to take up residency in South Yorkshire with Music in the Round, establishing a versatile group comprising five string players, five wind players and a pianist.  Get a glimpse of them in performance here.

The Ensemble 360 musicians share a passion for the music which radiates through each performance. Their enthusiasm, drive and musicality captivate audiences both through the quality of their playing and their engaging spoken introductions. Due to the flexible nature of the group’s line-up the repertoire possibilities are enormous; anything from baroque duos, through classical quartets to new commissions for all eleven players. 

 

CLOSE UP: MUSIC FOR CURIOUS YOUNG MINDS

Aga Serugo-Lugo & Ensemble 360

Wigmore Hall, London
Sunday 23 March 2025, 3.00pm

Tickets:
Children £10
Adults £12

Past Event
Musicians from Ensemble 360
Home› What's on› CLOSE UP: MUSIC FOR CURIOUS YOUNG MINDS

A lively family concert, presented by Aga Serugo-Lugo and featuring five wind musicians (flute, clarinet, oboe, bassoon and horn). Together they breathe life into the wondrous world of chamber music.

They’ll play well-known classical favourites from Britten and Debussy to Haydn and Holst, alongside more recent works such as Anna Meredith’s playful portrait of a moth and Valerie Coleman’s celebratory Kwanzaa dance. Perfect for 7-11 year olds, this is a lively and interactive concert.

About the Artists

Aga Serugo-Lugo

As a clarinettist, saxophonist and singer, Aga has had the opportunity to explore many different styles including: classical, jazz, soul, soul and funk. Aga also has a keen interest in theatre, especially music theatre, writing and producing his own musical ‘Celebrity’. Professionally, his style of choice has been jazz, which Aga has played across London with an eclectic mix of groups; this accompanies his private tuition and workshop leading. Improvisation and composition play a major part in his music making and workshops. Aga has done much work with Sing-up, the national singing strategy, allowing him to work with a variety of age groups and diverse levels of ability.

Ensemble 360 musicians

Ensemble 360

Ensemble 360 has gained an enviable reputation across the UK for the quality and integrity of their performances. Formed in 2005, eleven musicians of international standing came together to take up residency in South Yorkshire with Music in the Round, establishing a versatile group comprising five string players, five wind players and a pianist.  Get a glimpse of them in performance here.

The Ensemble 360 musicians share a passion for the music which radiates through each performance. Their enthusiasm, drive and musicality captivate audiences both through the quality of their playing and their engaging spoken introductions. Due to the flexible nature of the group’s line-up the repertoire possibilities are enormous; anything from baroque duos, through classical quartets to new commissions for all eleven players. 

 

FAMILY CONCERT: GIDDY GOAT

Ensemble 360

Junction, Goole
Saturday 7 June 2025, 2.00pm

Tickets:
£7

Past Event
Giddy Goat family concert image
Home› What's on› FAMILY CONCERT: GIDDY GOAT

Being a mountain goat is no fun when you are scared of heights!

Stand poor Giddy on a mountain ledge and his head starts spinning and his knees turn to jelly… But can he find the fearless goat inside himself?

Based on the best-selling children’s book by Jamie Rix and Lynne Chapman with original music by Music in the Round’s children’s Composer-in-Residence, Paul Rissmann, this concert features instruments including strings, woodwind, and horn, presented together with storytelling and projected illustrations. Performed by the hugely engaging musicians of Ensemble 360, this concert is a great introduction to live music; full of wit, invention, songs and actions, and plenty of opportunities to join in.

About the Artists

Ensemble 360 musicians

Ensemble 360

Ensemble 360 has gained an enviable reputation across the UK for the quality and integrity of their performances. Formed in 2005, eleven musicians of international standing came together to take up residency in South Yorkshire with Music in the Round, establishing a versatile group comprising five string players, five wind players and a pianist.  Get a glimpse of them in performance here.

The Ensemble 360 musicians share a passion for the music which radiates through each performance. Their enthusiasm, drive and musicality captivate audiences both through the quality of their playing and their engaging spoken introductions. Due to the flexible nature of the group’s line-up the repertoire possibilities are enormous; anything from baroque duos, through classical quartets to new commissions for all eleven players. 

 

CLOSE-UP: MUSIC FOR CURIOUS YOUNG MINDS

Ensemble 360 & Aga Serugo-Lugo

Crucible Playhouse, Sheffield
Saturday 24 May 2025, 11.00am

Tickets:
£12 
£7 UC, DLA & PIP 
£5 Under 16s 

Past Event
Musicians from Ensemble 360
Home› What's on› CLOSE-UP: MUSIC FOR CURIOUS YOUNG MINDS

Become musical detectives in the wondrous world of chamber music!

This specially created concert for young audiences combines some of the most well-known music ever written, alongside playful storytelling in Berio’s entertaining Opus Number Zoo.

With thrilling musical adventures told through music, cheeky characters and epic heroes, this concert of marvellous musical games is perfect for children aged 7 – 11.  

Programme includes excerpts from:

ASTOR PIAZZOLLA – Libertango (2’30)
SCOTT JOPLIN – New Rag for Wind Quintet (3’30)
ALEXANDER VON ZEMLINSKY – Humoresque (3’30)
LUDWIG VAN BEETHOVEN – Bagatelle Op. 119 No. 3 (2’)
PER NØRGÅRD – Whirl’s World (2’)
ANTON REICHA – Wind Quintet in D (3’30)
CARL NIELSEN – Wind Quintet (3’)
EMILY DOOLITTLE – ‘Bobolink’ from Woodwings (4’)
AUGUST KLUGHARDT – Wind Quintet Op. 79 (2’30)
LUCIANO BERIO – Opus Number Zoo (3’)

Save 20% when you book for 10 or more Music in the Round concerts in one transaction.  
Save 10% when you book for 5 or more Music in the Round concerts in one transaction. Find out more. 

PIAZZOLLA Astor, Libertango (extract for Close Up)

Let’s get our concert off to a dancing start! Libertango is a fun mix of tango and jazz, full of energy and rhythm. Close your eyes and imagine dancers moving quickly—sometimes fast, sometimes slow, but always exciting! It was written by Astor Piazzolla, a musical rule-breaker from Argentina in South America, who loved to take the traditional dance music of the tango and twist it into something new and thrilling

JOPLIN Scott, New Rag arr. for Wind Quintet (extract for Close Up)

A happy, bouncy ragtime tune that makes you want to tap your feet! It’s like a musical puzzle full of repeating patterns. American composer Scott Joplin, is sometimes called ‘the King of Ragtime’. He mostly wrote dancing piano music which you may have heard without knowing it: his music was used in Tom and Jerry cartoons and also in The Lego Movie.

ZEMLINSKY Alexander Von, Humoresque (extract for Close Up)

A musical joke full of skips and hops! Alexander Zemlinsky was an Austrian composer who loved drama and fairy tales, and this piece is like a mischievous character darting around, surprising us with funny twists.  Who might they be? How are they moving? What do they look like and what, most importantly, are they up to?

BEETHOVEN Ludwig Van, Bagatelle Op.119 No.3 (extract for Close Up)

Short but sweet and sounding like a musical smile: this cheerful piece was written by Ludwig van Beethoven, a German composer who changed music forever, writing huge symphonies for massive orchestras and tiny musical gems like this one.  Like the Scott Joplin piece, this was first written for a piano (which you can hear in the clip on this page) but takes on its own character when played by five wind musicians. How does changing the instruments but playing the same notes change this lovely piece?

NØRGÅRD Per, Whirl’s World (extract for Close Up)

Sometimes, like a thrilling story or film, what makes music exciting, also makes it strange and scary… This piece is like being inside a spinning top! Full of fast, twirling sounds, it’s magical whirlwind of strange, darkness. Like a real-life tornado is starts slowly, becomes furiously fast, and collapses back into silence. Per Nørgård is a Danish musical explorer, who loves creating music that feel like galaxies, storms, or even buzzing insects. This piece, he has described as “a water-world of ripples and bubbles”. Can you hear what he means?

REICHA Antón, Wind Quintet in D Op.91 (extract for Close Up)

This piece is like a musical chase! The flute, oboe, clarinet, horn, and bassoon take turns playing fast, playful tunes, as if they’re chatting like musical friends. The composer, Antón Reicha, loved puzzles and games—and you can hear it in how the instruments weave together in clever ways.

NIELSEN Carl, Wind Quintet (extract for Close Up)

A musical conversation where each instrument has its own personality! Sometimes they agree, sometimes they argue—but it’s always fun. This section is a type of composition called a ‘theme and variations’ in which the Danish composer Carl Nielsen took a beautiful hymn tune he knew from church and used his imagination to change it a bit more each time we hear it, making something new out of something he found. It’s like musical recycling!

DOOLITTLE Emily, Bobolink (extract for Close Up)

A bubbly, chirpy piece that sounds like a bird singing in a meadow! Emily Doolittle is a modern composer writing music today who loves nature, and her music often brings the outdoors to life.  Lots of composers have been inspired by birds: some have created musical pictures of them flying or getting up to adventues, others have tried to write down their beautiful song as if it were human music and get the instruments to do their best bird impressions. What sort of bird music do you think Emily Doolittle is writing here?

KLUGHARDT August, Wind Quintet Op.79 (extract for Close Up)

Bright and lively, this music is like a game of tag between the instruments! August Klughardt was a Romantic composer who turned music into storytelling—full of excitement and emotion.  Sometimes his work told stories using actors, singers and huge orchestras, sometimes it was inspired by myths and legends. This piece treats our wind players like five characters. What sort of story are they telling?

BERIO Luciano, Opus Number Zoo (extract for Close Up)

Luciano Berio was a musical inventor who loved turning everyday sounds into music. This is the last part of his ‘musical zoo’ where each section is a different animal! In this piece, our wind players have to use different sorts of musical voices: speaking as well as playing.  It’s like a musical cartoon of a pair of Tom Cats. How do they instruments bring the fighting cats to life?And what do you think happens in the end?

About the Artists

Ensemble 360 musicians

Ensemble 360

Ensemble 360 has gained an enviable reputation across the UK for the quality and integrity of their performances. Formed in 2005, eleven musicians of international standing came together to take up residency in South Yorkshire with Music in the Round, establishing a versatile group comprising five string players, five wind players and a pianist.  Get a glimpse of them in performance here.

The Ensemble 360 musicians share a passion for the music which radiates through each performance. Their enthusiasm, drive and musicality captivate audiences both through the quality of their playing and their engaging spoken introductions. Due to the flexible nature of the group’s line-up the repertoire possibilities are enormous; anything from baroque duos, through classical quartets to new commissions for all eleven players. 

 

Aga Serugo-Lugo

As a clarinettist, saxophonist and singer, Aga has had the opportunity to explore many different styles including: classical, jazz, soul, soul and funk. Aga also has a keen interest in theatre, especially music theatre, writing and producing his own musical ‘Celebrity’. Professionally, his style of choice has been jazz, which Aga has played across London with an eclectic mix of groups; this accompanies his private tuition and workshop leading. Improvisation and composition play a major part in his music making and workshops. Aga has done much work with Sing-up, the national singing strategy, allowing him to work with a variety of age groups and diverse levels of ability.

RELAXED CONCERT: APPALACHIAN SPRING

Ensemble 360 & Members of the Elias Quartet

Crucible Playhouse, Sheffield
Tuesday 20 May 2025, 2.00pm

Tickets:
£5 / carers free

Past Event
Musicians from the Elias String Quartet
Home› What's on› RELAXED CONCERT: APPALACHIAN SPRING

BARBER Adagio from String Quartet Op.11 (9′) 
BARBER Canzonetta Op.48 (8′) 
COPLAND Appalachian Spring (30′)  

For this ‘Relaxed’ concert of American music featuring Barber’s much-loved Adagio and Copland’s joyful Appalachian Spring, doors will be left open, lights raised, a break-out space provided and there will be less emphasis on the audience being quiet during the performance. People with an Autism Spectrum, sensory or communication disorder or learning disability, those with age-related impairments and parents/carers with babies are all especially welcome. 

BARBER Samuel, Adagio for Strings

It’s an amusing accident of history that Barber’s Adagio, one of the totems of American music, was composed in Austria (where Barber was spending the summer and autumn with Gian-Carlo Menotti) and first performed on 14 December 1936 at a concert in Rome (as the slow movement of the String Quartet Op.11). Barber was delighted with this movement, describing it to his friend Orlando Cole as ‘a knockout!’ While finishing the whole quartet, he arranged the Adagio as an independent movement for string orchestra and this was first performed in 1938 in a broadcast concert in New York given by the NBC Symphony Orchestra conducted by Arturo Toscanini. Barber’s fellow composer Aaron Copland spoke about the piece in 1982 for a BBC radio programme, praising ‘the sense of continuity, the steadiness of the flow, the satisfaction of the arch … from beginning to end. It’s gratifying, satisfying, and it makes you believe in the sincerity which he obviously put into it.’

Nigel Simeone 2014

BARBER Samuel, Canzonetta for Oboe & Strings Op.48

Originally composed for oboe and string orchestra, and here presented in a new chamber arrangement by Ensemble 360’s oboist, Adrian Wilson, Samuel Barber’s Canzonetta for Oboe and Strings was meant to be the slow movement of an oboe concerto commissioned by the New York Philharmonic. However, soon after starting work on the piece (in 1978) Barber was diagnosed with cancer. The other two movements of the concerto were never completed, and this was to be the composer’s final work (Barber died in 1981). The piece was orchestrated posthumously by Barber’s longtime friend and former student, Charles Turner, and was premiered on December 17th, 1981, at Avery Fisher Hall in New York, with the New York Philharmonic conducted by Zubin Mehta. Principle oboist of the New York Philharmonic (and a former classmate of Barber’s at the Curtis Institute of Music), Harold Gomberg played the solo part. 

In many ways, the Canzonetta is typical of Barber’s style, with a tendency towards vocal lyricism and neo-romantic tonality. In this regard, Historian and Barber specialist Barbara Heyman calls the Canzonetta an “appropriate elegy to the conclusion of Barber’s career.” The work, like others in Barber’s oeuvre, combines elements of post-Straussian chromaticism with what we might think of as a typically American lyrical simplicity. A simple, meandering melodic line is at times presented in a strictly diatonic context, and at others with a highly chromatic harmonisation. Throughout, the oboe’s melody floats above the string texture, seemingly weightless with Barber showing the instrument at its best. Indeed, Turner quotes Barber (in the preface to the 1993 edition of the work for oboe and piano) as having said, “I like to give my best themes to the oboe”. 

Dr. Benjamin Tassie

COPLAND Aaron, Appalachian Spring

It was the patron Elizabeth Sprague Coolidge who commissioned Aaron Copland to compose a new ballet for Martha Graham’s dance company in 1943, for performance in the Coolidge Auditorium (named after her) at the Library of Congress in Washington D.C.. Copland was delighted with the idea, particularly after Graham sent him the first version of her scenario concerning a young married couple in rural Pennsylvania. The ballet went through various titles during the composition process, and Copland’s manuscript was simply headed ‘Ballet for Martha’, but Graham settled on ‘Appalachian Spring’ just before the premiere, taking the title from a poem by Hart Crane. One of the attractions for Copland was the challenge of writing for an ensemble of 12 instruments (the largest group that could fit into the very small pit in the Coolidge Auditorium), and the result was described in a review of the first performance by the ballet critic John Martin as ‘a score of fresh and singing beauty. It is, on its surface, a piece of early Americana, but in reality, it is a celebration of the human spirit.’ Copland himself was typically self-effacing, admitting that ‘people seemed to like it, so I guess it was all right.’ In 1945 he made a very successful arrangement for large orchestra, but the sound of the original has a beauty and intimacy all its own. Copland decided quite early on to use the Shaker tune ‘Simple Gifts’ (written in 1848), and this melody is woven through much of the score, notably in the set of variations. But while the score perfectly matches the ‘local’ elements of the story, it also transcends them to become a piece of universal appeal: Copland’s great achievement in Appalachian Spring is to have created a quiet and heartfelt vision of hope in troubled times.

Nigel Simeone 2024

About the Artists

Ensemble 360 musicians

Ensemble 360

Ensemble 360 has gained an enviable reputation across the UK for the quality and integrity of their performances. Formed in 2005, eleven musicians of international standing came together to take up residency in South Yorkshire with Music in the Round, establishing a versatile group comprising five string players, five wind players and a pianist.  Get a glimpse of them in performance here.

The Ensemble 360 musicians share a passion for the music which radiates through each performance. Their enthusiasm, drive and musicality captivate audiences both through the quality of their playing and their engaging spoken introductions. Due to the flexible nature of the group’s line-up the repertoire possibilities are enormous; anything from baroque duos, through classical quartets to new commissions for all eleven players. 

 

Musicians from the Elias String Quartet

Members of the Elias Quartet

Donald Grant violin, Simone van de Giessen viola & Marie Bitloch cello

The Elias String Quartet take their name from Mendelssohn’s oratorio, Elijah, of which Elias is its German form, and have quickly established themselves as one of the most intense and vibrant quartets of their generation. The Quartet was formed in 1998 at the Royal Northern College of Music in Manchester where they worked closely with the late Dr. Christopher Rowland. They also spent a year studying at the Hochschule in Cologne with the Alban Berg quartet. Between 2005 and 2009 they were resident String Quartet at Music in the Round as part of Ensemble 360, taking over from the Lindsay Quartet. They are now ensemble in residence at the RNCM and regularly go back there to teach and perform. Read more.

FAMILY CONCERT: GIDDY GOAT

Ensemble 360 & Lucy Drever

Crucible Theatre, Sheffield
Saturday 17 May 2025, 11.00am

Tickets:
£12
£7 UC, DLA & PIP
£5 Under 16s 

Past Event
Giddy Goat family concert image
Home› What's on› FAMILY CONCERT: GIDDY GOAT

Being a mountain goat is no fun when you are scared of heights! Stand poor Giddy on a mountain ledge and his head starts spinning and his knees turn to jelly. But can he find the fearless goat inside himself in time to rescue little Edmund, the sheep? 

This family concert based on the best-selling children’s book by Jamie Rix and Lynne Chapman features original music by Music in the Round’s Children’s Composer-in-Residence, Paul Rissmann, for strings, wind and piano. Presented together with story-telling and projected illustrations from the book, it’s a great introduction to live music for children aged 3 – 7 and includes plenty of opportunities to join in! 

 

Save 20% when you book for 10 or more Music in the Round concerts in one transaction.
Save 10% when you book for 5 or more Music in the Round concerts in one transaction. Find out more. 

About the Artists

Ensemble 360 musicians

Ensemble 360

Ensemble 360 has gained an enviable reputation across the UK for the quality and integrity of their performances. Formed in 2005, eleven musicians of international standing came together to take up residency in South Yorkshire with Music in the Round, establishing a versatile group comprising five string players, five wind players and a pianist.  Get a glimpse of them in performance here.

The Ensemble 360 musicians share a passion for the music which radiates through each performance. Their enthusiasm, drive and musicality captivate audiences both through the quality of their playing and their engaging spoken introductions. Due to the flexible nature of the group’s line-up the repertoire possibilities are enormous; anything from baroque duos, through classical quartets to new commissions for all eleven players. 

 

Lucy Drever

Lucy Drever is a presenter, workshop leader and narrator. She regularly presents and leads workshops with some of the leading orchestras, arts venues and music charities in the UK including the Philharmonia Orchestra, Wigmore Hall and the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra of which she is Associate Artist. She has recently narrated concerts for Lambert Jackson at the London Palladium and is the Head of Creative Learning at the Benedetti Foundation. Furthermore, she was recently appointed trustee of the Samuel Gardner Memorial Trust.

Lucy works in a variety of settings including arts venues, schools, Early Years spaces, hospitals, conservatoires and prisons. As well as education consultancy she works across various industries, helping people with their presenting and public speaking skills.

Read more.

BACH IN THE ROUND

Ensemble 360

Upper Chapel, Sheffield
Saturday 22 February 2025,

10.30am – 12.30pm
3.30pm – 6.00pm

Free entry, donations welcome
No need to book, just turn up

Classical violinist Benjamin Nabarro from Ensemble 360
Home› What's on› BACH IN THE ROUND

Step inside the music of Bach, up-close and reimagined, in this specially created surround-sound installation running alongside Benjamin Nabarro’s recitals in the tranquil setting of Upper Chapel.  

To make this innovative, multi-speaker installation, fragments of Ben’s performance of Bach’s Sonata No.1 in G minor were recorded, layered, looped and transformed. Played through eight loudspeakers, visitors will be enveloped in Bach’s life-affirming music, reworked in this unique and immersive sensory experience.  

About the Artists

Ensemble 360 musicians

Ensemble 360

Ensemble 360 has gained an enviable reputation across the UK for the quality and integrity of their performances. Formed in 2005, eleven musicians of international standing came together to take up residency in South Yorkshire with Music in the Round, establishing a versatile group comprising five string players, five wind players and a pianist.  Get a glimpse of them in performance here.

The Ensemble 360 musicians share a passion for the music which radiates through each performance. Their enthusiasm, drive and musicality captivate audiences both through the quality of their playing and their engaging spoken introductions. Due to the flexible nature of the group’s line-up the repertoire possibilities are enormous; anything from baroque duos, through classical quartets to new commissions for all eleven players. 

 

FAMILY CONCERT: GIDDY GOAT

Ensemble 360 & John Webb

Royal Spa Centre, Leamington Spa
Sunday 2 March 2025, 11.30am

Tickets:
£9 children 
£15 adults
£42 family ticket

Past Event
Giddy Goat family concert image
Home› What's on› FAMILY CONCERT: GIDDY GOAT

Based on the colourful children’s book, this family concert tells the story of Giddy, a young mountain goat who is scared of heights. A tale of facing fears and making friends, it’s a brilliant way to introduce children to classical music, with visuals from the book and plenty of chances to join in!

Perfect for 3 – 7 year olds and their families!

About the Artists

Ensemble 360 musicians

Ensemble 360

Ensemble 360 has gained an enviable reputation across the UK for the quality and integrity of their performances. Formed in 2005, eleven musicians of international standing came together to take up residency in South Yorkshire with Music in the Round, establishing a versatile group comprising five string players, five wind players and a pianist.  Get a glimpse of them in performance here.

The Ensemble 360 musicians share a passion for the music which radiates through each performance. Their enthusiasm, drive and musicality captivate audiences both through the quality of their playing and their engaging spoken introductions. Due to the flexible nature of the group’s line-up the repertoire possibilities are enormous; anything from baroque duos, through classical quartets to new commissions for all eleven players. 

 

FAMILY CONCERT: GIDDY GOAT

Ensemble 360 & Caroline Hallam

Cast, Doncaster
Saturday 16 November 2024, 11.00am

Tickets:
£6 children 
£11 adults
*Box office charges may apply

Past Event
Giddy Goat family concert image
Home› What's on› FAMILY CONCERT: GIDDY GOAT

Based on the colourful children’s book, this family concert tells the story of Giddy, a young mountain goat who is scared of heights. A tale of facing fears and making friends, it’s a brilliant way to introduce children to classical music, with visuals from the book and plenty of chances to join in!

Perfect for 3 – 7 year olds and their families!

About the Artists

Ensemble 360 musicians

Ensemble 360

Ensemble 360 has gained an enviable reputation across the UK for the quality and integrity of their performances. Formed in 2005, eleven musicians of international standing came together to take up residency in South Yorkshire with Music in the Round, establishing a versatile group comprising five string players, five wind players and a pianist.  Get a glimpse of them in performance here.

The Ensemble 360 musicians share a passion for the music which radiates through each performance. Their enthusiasm, drive and musicality captivate audiences both through the quality of their playing and their engaging spoken introductions. Due to the flexible nature of the group’s line-up the repertoire possibilities are enormous; anything from baroque duos, through classical quartets to new commissions for all eleven players. 

 

THE MONSTER IN THE MAZE

Music-Makers of Sheffield

Crucible Theatre, Sheffield
Saturday 2 November 2024, 11.00am / 3.00pm

Tickets 
£5 for everyone  
Carers free 

Past Event
Silhouette of a Minotaur head
Home› What's on› THE MONSTER IN THE MAZE

DOVE The Monster in the Maze (50’)

An opera production for the people of Sheffield and with the people of Sheffield.

Music: Jonathan Dove
Libretto: Alasdair Middleton
Music Director: John Lyon
Director: Rosie Kat
Theseus: Anthony Flaum
Mother: Camille Maalawy
Daedalus: Robert Gildon
King Minos: Paul Hawkyard

Featuring ENSEMBLE 360, CONSONE QUARTET, BRIDGE ENSEMBLE, SHEFFIELD MUSIC HUB SENIOR STRINGS, SHEFFIELD YOUTH CHOIRS featuring JUNIOR VOICES, YOUTH VOICES & CONCORDIA and SINGERS FROM SHEFFIELD

“Here they are – the children of Athens!
The hope of Athens, the future of Athens!
Deep in the maze, the monster, already
paws the sand and tosses his horns…”

      - libretto, Monster in the Maze

King Minos has a labyrinth in his palace. Inside there lurks a Minotaur. This monster, half man and half bull, feeds on human flesh.  

Minos decrees that the Athenians should provide a regular supply of their young people to be sacrificed to the monster. The Athenian hero Theseus steps in, determined to enter the maze and take on the monster at its heart…

Jonathan Dove’s ‘The Monster in the Maze’ receives its Sheffield premiere on the iconic Crucible stage. Our most ambitious project to date, this will be Music in the Round at its best: a bold collaboration, forged in the crucible of creativity that is our City of Makers. 

Commissioned and first performed in 2015 by the Berlin Philharmonic and London Symphony Orchestra with Simon Rattle, it was praised by the Financial Times as “an exhilarating, visceral take on the ancient Greek myth”.  

This amazing new production will showcase people of all ages coming together from across the city to perform alongside our professional resident artists and guests, highlighting the best of music-making in Sheffield. 

An epic story: millennia in the making and a fitting celebration for our 40th anniversary year! 

With thanks to our funders: Blakemore Foundation, JG Graves Charitable Trust, Music for All, Scops Arts Trust Sheffield Music Hub, Sheffield Mutual and individual donors.

View the brochure online here or download it below.

DOWNLOAD

Save £s when you book for 5 Music in the Round concerts or more at the same time. Find out more here. 

About the Artists

Theseus: Anthony Flaum

Anthony is a graduate of the Royal Academy of Music & the National Opera Studio. He has sung principal roles with many of the UK’s major opera companies – English National Opera, Scottish Opera, Grange Park Opera, Buxton Opera Festival, Northern Ireland Opera, Iford Arts, Nevill Holt Opera and Opera Della Luna amongst others. He began his career in the original Olivier award-winning production of La bohème as Rodolfo for OperaUpClose. In 2021, he made his acting debut to much critical acclaim in King Lear alongside Sir John Tomlinson & Sir Thomas Allen at The Grange Festival and The Soldier’s Tale at Edinburgh International Festival with Sir Thomas Allen. He is very active on the private function market, passionate about educational outreach in the arts and has sung with many celebrated orchestras such as the Royal Philharmonic. He recently founded his own opera theatre company Prologue Opera in his hometown of Hastings. He continues to broaden his work as a Producer with other music companies in the region and also in other genres…for example by recently playing Hillaire Belloc in Cautionary Tales – a new musical play (dir. Keith Warner). Most recently, he sang Cavaradossi in Becoming Tosca (Prologue Opera).

Mother: Camille Maalawy

Camille has achieved notable acclaim for bridging both musical and cultural divides. Born to a Coptic Egyptian father and English mother, her repertoire is as extensive as it is diverse, specialising in singing new music and often working directly with composers to incorporate elements of Arabic music.

Camille made her debut at Glyndebourne last autumn, playing Oma in Glass Human by Samantha Fernando. Recent highlights include ‘Weather Forecaster’ in The Water Diviner’s Tale for Opera North; presenting a group of newly written songs at Hull Jazz Festival as a Kickstart Commission Artist, and the premiere of Egyptian composer, Nahla Mattar’s Songs on Colloquial Arabic at the Royal Opera House Engender Festival. In addition, Camille completed a PRSF Resonance residency with Opera North, where she explored the diversity of her cultural heritage more deeply, co-creating a new song cycle, Mezzaterra (Meeting Point), which has been performed at Opera North and as part of the Tete-a-Tete festival.

Daedalus: Robert Gildon

Robert studied singing at Manhattan School of Music, New York, the Tanglewood Music Center, Aspen Music Festival (performing lead role in John Casken’s Golem) and the Britten Pears School. He was a recipient of the Garsington Opera Prize.

Work includes Orlando Gough’s Weather the Storm (Garsington Opera), Billy Budd in Billy Budd REimagined (ROH), Old Man in The Moon Hares (Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenmen), Scott Stroman’s new opera ‘The Weekend’, based on Michael Palin’s play, (Bloomsbury Theatre), Old Man in world premiere of The Old Man and the Sea (First Light Festival/Britten Pears Arts), Don Giovanni (Garsington Opera Lord Mayor/Education Project), Lord Cecil in Philip Cashian’s The Cumnor Affair (Tête à Tête), Compere in The Answer to Everything (Streetwise Opera/BFI), Head Fox in children’s opera Outfoxed at the Royal Festival Hall, Journalist in Jonathan Dove’s TV opera Man on the Moon (Channel 4) and Dave Brubeck’s cantata La fiesta e la posada (London Symphony Orchestra /Barbican).

King Minos: Paul Hawkyard

Paul has worked in an extensive range of acting roles from TV drama, Children’s TV, and West End Musicals and shows. Credits include Ghost Stories, War Horse, Old Jack’s Boat, The Railway Children and Emmerdale.

THE CHIMPANZEES OF HAPPY TOWN

Ensemble 360 & Lucy Drever

Palace Theatre, Mansfield
Wednesday 10 April 2024, 11.00am

Tickets

£8 Adults
£5 Children

Past Event
Home› What's on› THE CHIMPANZEES OF HAPPY TOWN

Celebrating the importance of love and happiness in everyone’s lives, Paul Rissmann’s much-loved musical retelling of Giles Andreae and Guy Parker-Rees’s best-selling picture-book returns.  

Meet Chutney the Chimpanzee who, with one small act of planting a seed, transforms the lives of the entire town of Drabsville, and teaches its inhabitants to celebrate their differences and make life more colourful along the way!   

With narration, visuals from the book and lots of music to introduce the musicians of Ensemble 360, this is a brilliant first concert for 3 – 7 year-olds. 

About the Artists

Ensemble 360 musicians

Ensemble 360

Ensemble 360 has gained an enviable reputation across the UK for the quality and integrity of their performances. Formed in 2005, eleven musicians of international standing came together to take up residency in South Yorkshire with Music in the Round, establishing a versatile group comprising five string players, five wind players and a pianist.  Get a glimpse of them in performance here.

The Ensemble 360 musicians share a passion for the music which radiates through each performance. Their enthusiasm, drive and musicality captivate audiences both through the quality of their playing and their engaging spoken introductions. Due to the flexible nature of the group’s line-up the repertoire possibilities are enormous; anything from baroque duos, through classical quartets to new commissions for all eleven players. 

 

Lucy Drever

Lucy Drever is a presenter, workshop leader and narrator. She regularly presents and leads workshops with some of the leading orchestras, arts venues and music charities in the UK including the Philharmonia Orchestra, Wigmore Hall and the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra of which she is Associate Artist. She has recently narrated concerts for Lambert Jackson at the London Palladium and is the Head of Creative Learning at the Benedetti Foundation. Furthermore, she was recently appointed trustee of the Samuel Gardner Memorial Trust.

Lucy works in a variety of settings including arts venues, schools, Early Years spaces, hospitals, conservatoires and prisons. As well as education consultancy she works across various industries, helping people with their presenting and public speaking skills.

Read more.

SIR SCALLYWAG AND THE GOLDEN UNDERPANTS

Ensemble 360

EM Forster Theatre, Tonbridge
Saturday 10 February 2024, 2.00pm / 4.30pm

Adult £12
Child £5
Family ticket (2 adults + 2 children) £30

Past Event
Home› What's on› SIR SCALLYWAG AND THE GOLDEN UNDERPANTS

When King Colin’s golden underpants go missing, it’s Sir Scallywag to the rescue! Brave and bold, courageous and true, he’s the perfect knight for the job … even if he is only six years old!

Original music by Music in the Round’s children’s Composer-in-Residence, Paul Rissmann, features instruments including strings, woodwind, and horn, presented together with story-telling and projected illustrations from the best-selling children’s book by Giles Andreae and Korky Paul.

Performed by the wonderfully dynamic and hugely engaging Ensemble 360 in conjunction with Music in the Round, this concert is a great introduction to live music for children. It’s full of wit, invention, songs and actions, and plenty of opportunities to join in.

For 3–7 year-olds and their families

About the Artists

Ensemble 360 musicians

Ensemble 360

Ensemble 360 has gained an enviable reputation across the UK for the quality and integrity of their performances. Formed in 2005, eleven musicians of international standing came together to take up residency in South Yorkshire with Music in the Round, establishing a versatile group comprising five string players, five wind players and a pianist.  Get a glimpse of them in performance here.

The Ensemble 360 musicians share a passion for the music which radiates through each performance. Their enthusiasm, drive and musicality captivate audiences both through the quality of their playing and their engaging spoken introductions. Due to the flexible nature of the group’s line-up the repertoire possibilities are enormous; anything from baroque duos, through classical quartets to new commissions for all eleven players.