On the weekend of 24th and 25th August, Music Arran present two concerts. On Friday night the Portuguese pianist Joana Gama and violinist Sandie Bishop will play at the High School in Lamlash, and on Saturday night the jazz group Swing 2018 will play in Whiting Bay, accompanied by vocalist Seonaid Aitken.
Friday 24th August
Joana Gama is a Portuguese pianist who performs both solo and with collaborations in the fields of cinema, dance, theater, photography and music. In 2016, with the support of the Portuguese classical radio station – Antena 2, Joana produced SATIE.150 – A celebration in the shape of an umbrella, which marked the 150th anniversary of the birth of the French composer Erik Satie. As part of this celebration she performed seventeen piano recitals in Europe, gave lectures in schools and coordinated the edition of Embryons dessechés, a special edition of Satie’s score which was released on the day of the composer’s birthday.
In 2017 she premièred three projects: Nocturno, a piece about the night in the children’s world, a co-creation with choreographer Victor Hugo Pontes with original music by João Godinho, for piano, electronics and ensemble. She also performed: I LOVE SATIE – a new solo recital and I really like Mr. Satie, a commented recital for children. In the beginning of 2018 she made an uninterrupted 14 hour performance of Vexations by Erik Satie at Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation.
After Joana’s highly successful concert on Arran last December we are delighted to welcome her back – this time she will give a commented recital on works by her beloved Satie, as well as John Cage, Arvo Part and others. As well as being an astonishing and passionate pianist Joana has developed a great love of Arran, and we are delighted that this time her sister and father are coming too.
Sandie Bishop
Sandie studied at the Royal College in London and is a freelance violinist specialising in solo and chamber music. She has performed at numerous music festivals in Scotland and England including the Glasgow Merchant City Festival and the West End Festival. Performances include numerous solo Bach events al fresco in and around Glasgow. Sandie also teaches in Glasgow City council schools, having well over one hundred pupils a week and in addition coaching two orchestras. Like Joana she loves Arran and last year thrilled audiences in Whiting Bay and Lochranza with performances of Massenet’s meditation on Thais and Brahm’s Hungarian dances.
She loves camping in Glen Rosa and can sometimes be spotted cycling around Arran with her violin on her back. At the concert in Arran on Friday 24th August Sandie will be playing the Beethoven Opus 3 No 1 violin Sonata in A, and Bartok Romanian Dances.
Please click here to download the poster for this event.
Saturday 25th August
Seonaid Aitken with Swing 2018
Hailing from Fife, Seonaid Aitken is an accomplished vocalist, pianist, composer and arranger. She is known for being a versatile musician and is much in demand as a session recording artist in Scotland. Seonaid received the Leonard Friedman Violin Award from the Mendelssohn on Mull Music Festival and is a recipient of a Danny Kyle Award for her performance at Glasgow’s Celtic Connections.
After graduating from the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London, Seonaid toured the world with the Canadian dancing fiddle show Barrage, and completed residencies in Japan and in Las Vegas.
As well as performing and recording with her Glasgow-based gypsy/swing jazz band Rose Room, Seonaid tours the UK and records with Scottish folk singer and former Idlewild front man Roddy Woomble. She is a regular violinist with the orchestra of the Scottish Opera and also plays with Western Swing band Stretch Dawrson and the Mending Hearts. She has a solo album entitled ‘Souvenir’ and will soon release a live DVD of her show ‘Stage & Screen’.
She is currently orchestrating the music by composer Tim Phillips for a National Theatre of Scotland production which will premiere at the Citizens Theatre, Glasgow, then tour the UK and China. Her next arranging project is for a BBC adaptation of Roald Dahl’s ‘Esio Trot’ which will feature Dame Judi Dench and Dustin Hoffman.
Please click here to download the poster for this event.