MUSICAL MYSTERIES of MINIMALISM

Norman Warwick  is lost in

MUSICAL MYSTERIES of MINIMALISM

From experimental beginnings in California and New York loft and gallery spaces to its role as a mainstay of contemporary music, London Sinfonietta brings together seminal works of the minimalist movement from both sides of the pond.

A special concert recently celebrated the second year of London Sinfonietta´s (left, fifty years ago) programme in Enfield with pieces co-created by students from St Ignatius College and The Purcell School for Young Musicians and a new commission inspired by workshops in Edmonton sitting alongside classic minimalist works.

The programme included the exciting dancing textures created by pioneering multi-layered tape pieces such as Steve Reich’s Vermont Counterpoint, alongside richly complex patterns in Julia Wolfe’s East Broadway. London Sinfonietta looked to the British version of the movement with the weaving melodies in Anna Clyne’s Just As They Are and Gavin Bryars’ extraordinary Jesus’ Blood Never Failed Me Yet.

Other works inclkuded

Ryan Morgan/Nigel Kellaway  Untold Stories Edmonton film

Steve Reich  Vermont Counterpoint

Maddy Chassar-Hesketh and St Ignatius College  Mystery! (and Celebration)

Natty Purbrick, Boris Dring and St Ignatius College  ‘Play-Fight’

Edward Tait and St Ignatius College  Rhapsody for Sextet 

The London Sinfonietta is one of the world’s finest contemporary music ensembles with a reputation built on cutting-edge programming and virtuosic performances. 

In Town is their programme of engagement in the London Borough of Enfield – featuring work in primary and secondary schools, with the music service and wider community. “During our 2023-24 season we held our second residency at St Ignatius College and ran our Untold Stories workshops at Fore Street Library, Edmonton.”

The work of the London Sinfonietta is supported by Arts Council England and the John Ellerman Foundation.

Minimalism with the London Sinfonietta is kindly supported by the Garfield Weston Foundation. 

In Town is kindly supported by the Chapman Charitable Trust.