Kammer Klang presents Plus-Minus performing a new work by Alexandre Schubert, and Kit Downes performing Moondog's organ works on a Hammond organ.

PROGRAMME:

Alexander Schubert - Sensate Focus (2014)
Peter Ablinger - Instrumente und Rauschen (1995-6)
Jennifer Walshe - Everything You Own Has Been Taken To A Depot Somewhere (2013)

Plus-Minus Ensemble
Aisha Orazbayeva
Vicky Wright
Tom Pauwels
Mark Knoop
Roderick Chadwick
Newton Armstrong
Matthew Shlomowitz
Joanna Bailie

Moondoog
Logrundr 11
Für Fritz
Barn Dance
Oasis
Log in B
Log 23 in G
and a few Rounds from Round the World of Sound

Kit Downes, Hammond organ

**



PLUS-MINUS

Plus- Minus is an Anglo/Belgium octet committed to presenting new work alongside landmark modern repertoire. Formed in 2003 by Joanna Bailie and Matthew Shlomowitz, Plus-Minus is distinguished by its interest in avant-garde, conceptual, and experimental open instrumentation pieces such as Stockhausen‘s 1963 classic, from which the group takes its name. Plus-Minus has been broadcast on BBC Radio 3 and London’s http://www.resonancefm.com/" Resonance FM and has performed at the Borealis, Huddersfield, SPOR, Transit and Ultima festivals, as well as the Cutting Edge series in London. Plus-Minus has also performed in London at the Bethnal Green Working Men’s Club, Whitechapel Gallery and South Bank Centre as the resident ensemble at Rational Rec, a multidisciplinary arts platform.

Composers who have written pieces for the group include Bernhard Lang, Laurence Crane, Bryn Harrison, Stefan Van Eycken, David Helbich, Michael Finnissy, James Saunders, Joanna Bailie, Trond Reinholdtsen, Damien Ricketson, Øyvind Torvund and Erik Ulman.




ALEXANDER SCHUBERT

Alexander Schubert was born in 1979 in Bremen and studied bioinformatics in Leipzig and Multimedia Composition with Georg Hajdu and Manfred Stahnke in Hamburg. During his studies he has worked as a musician and composer in a variety of different environments. In addition, Schubert worked at the ZKM (Centre for Art and Media) in Karlsruhe for one year. Since 2011 he’s a PhD student in Hamburg and teaches live-electronics at the conservatory in Lübeck.

Schubert’s interest explores cross-genre interfaces between acoustic and electronic music. The most characteristic feature of his work is the combination of different musical styles (like hardcore, free jazz, popular electronic music, techno) with contemporary classical concepts. He incorporates these influences based on his personal experience rather than theoretically approaching the topic. Schubert has participated in his youth and early career in all above-mentioned genres both in groups and as a solo artist.

Furthermore performance pieces are a major focus in his work. The use of the body in electronic music and the transportation of additional content through gestures are key features in his pieces, which aim at empowering the performer and at achieving a maximum of energy. The constant aim to pursue the search for the highest intensity in a musical performance is a driving force in his work - and this always in a subjective and barely ever conceptual way. This also leads to the regular questioning of the border between notated and improvised music. Several pieces can be understood as highly structured improvisations.

Since 2009 he focuses on sensor-based gestural composition in both his writing and research activities (as a PhD student). In this work field he is contributing to international conferences and researches with various institutes worldwide. The combination of aesthetic, technical and scientific aspects of this interdisciplinary approach have encountered a very positive reception. His technical training as a computer scientist is the basis for a fearless dealing with technology in general and sensors in particular.

Apart from working as a composer and solo musician Schubert is also a founding member of ensembles such as “Decoder“. He has contributed to a variety of different projects as a musician, composer and programmer (e.g. Wiener Festwochen, Staatsoper Berlin, SWR), curated a festival for contemporary electronic music for several years and runs the contemporary music label Ahornfelder. He’s an organizing member of the VAMH - a collective maintaining a broad network for contemporary music and organizing an annual two-week long festival. He’s been a jury member of conferences and competitions (e.g. SSSP Conference, JTTP competition), jury head (ICMC) and held composition workshops (e.g. Mexico City, Stockholm). He’s a teacher at the conservatory in Lübeck and the technical head of the electronic studio.




KIT DOWNES

Kit Downes is a composer, pianist and organist living in London. Kit has his own group 'Tricko' that he writes for and tours with, as well as working with 'Wedding Music' and many other musicians, composers, artists, organisations and instrument-builders.