New Sound World band

Following rehearsals held between December 2022 and last March, we are pleased to announce the formation of our new band. Also called Sound World, the group will be Bristol’s only professional contemporary music specialists and will perform their exciting brand of new music at concerts in Bristol and across the South West and beyond…

Sound World are:
George Blakesley – clarinet
George Owen – cello
Harriet Riley – percussion
Ricardo Brown Roger – violin
Alex Wilson – piano

Please CLICK HERE to order tickets online.

Composing Workshops

The first of this year’s composing workshops will take place at Bristol Grammar School on Sunday 19th March.

Our workshops are an opportunity for the next generation of musicians to have their work performed and recorded by professional musicians with guidance from leading composers. These inspiring events provide provide invaluable, high-level guidance to the region’s brightest young musical talents.

We are delighted to have players from the Bristol Ensemble with us on the day and our own Sadie Harrison leading..

SoundWorld auditions

We are currently auditioning some of the region’s most talented young musicians for our new, contemporary music ensemble. A big thank you goes to all those who played for us and to composer Michael Ellison who joined fellow composers Sadie Harrison (Chair of the Sound World trustees) and Julian Leeks (Sound World Director) for the auditions.

Thanks also to Bristol University Music Dept. for hosting.

A second round of auditions will take place in the spring, with an announcement coming shortly after.

Hinrichsen Foundation funding

More good funding news comes courtesy of the Hinrichsen Foundation who will be supporting our 2023 programme. Many thanks to the Hinrichsen trustees for their faith and generosity!

Funding news from VWF

We are delighted to announce that the Vaughan Williams Foundation (formerly RVW Trust) will be supporting our 2023 programme. We are hugely grateful for this and their ongoing funding of Sound World/NMSW over the past decade. Thank you!

Applications open for spring workshop series

Sound World is now taking applications for our spring 2023 composition workshop series. The workshops provide participants (aged from 14 to 18) with the chance to have their music performed/recorded by professional musicians under guidance from a leading composer.

There are usually 5 or 6 performers and a typical line up would be flute, clarinet, percussion, piano, violin and cello. Each participating pupil will get ½hr during which their piece will be performed “as presented”, discussed with the performers and w/s leader and then performed/recorded incorporating any developments that arose during the discussion.

The best pieces will be considered for inclusion in the Sound World Group’s 2023 concert tour, alongside new commissions and contemporary classics.

Applications should generally be made through school music depts. to info@sound-world.org.

W/S series and concerts cancelled

We are very disappointed to announce that the workshop series planned for this spring along with the associated concerts has been cancelled. Unfortunately some of the participating schools still have concerns in relation to COVID and having external visitors to the school sites.

Because the two sides of the project (the workshops and the concerts) are mutually dependent it’s an all or nothing situation and we have had to cancel everything.

Huge apologies go to all the young composers who had been working towards these workshops, to the performers and to the audience members.