The Bangor Music Festival is a unique opportunity to explore space, planets, stars and galaxies through the medium of music and science that will be an inspiration to the whole family. The Music of the Spheres will resound during Zubin Kanga’s concert, that also includes festival commissions by Maja Palser and Claire Victoria Roberts together with two iconic pieces by George Crumb and Patrick Nunn.
Live electronic sounds led by Scott Wilson will take centre stage at the Electroacoustic Wales and Birmingham Ensemble for Electroacoustic Research concert at Theatr Bryn Terfel, with additional acousmatic music by Jo Thomas.
Throughout the day the other events are placed within various locations within Pontio that presents us with an exploration of the Planetarium, music for young children with Marie-Claire Howorth and creating electronic sounds from the BEER website. Audiences will be captivated by the performance of student compositions performed by the Bangor New Music Ensemble and local instrumentalists are encouraged to improvise with the Bangor University Fusion Ensemble. Other activities include a piano masterclass and stargazing opportunities on the Friday.
Piano Masterclass with Zubin Kanga2 February 4:00pm – 6:00pm Mathias Hall, School of Music
£15 (participants) £3 (observers)
Renowned contemporary pianist Zubin Kanga will give a masterclass and an introduction to extended piano techniques. This masterclass is in collaboration with Canolfan Gerdd William Mathias, Gwasanaeth Cerdd Ysgolion Gwynedd a Môn and Bangor University.
2 February Sessions between 6:30pm – 11:30pm Convene at Foyer, School of Music
Free (Booking required)
Interested in astronomy? Want a closer look at the night’s sky? Why not try this fantastic opportunity to gaze at the moon, planets and stars with a powerful telescope with the expert guidance of Andrew Newsam (Liverpool John Moores University).
3 February 10:00am – 11:00am / 11:00am – 12:00pm Level 0, Pontio
Free (Booking required)
Marie-Claire Howorth will present a fun music workshop for children aged 4 – 7 years old, using songs and games to introduce the children to the basic components of music.
Suitable for children aged 4 – 7 years old with parent/guardian supervision.
3 February 10:00am – 11:45pm Co-Working Public Space, Level 5, Pontio
Tŷ Cerdd’s Annual General Meeting, open to TC members only
3 February 10:00am – 12:00pm (Every half an hour) Lecture Room 2, Pontio
Free (Booking required)
Suitable for children 10+
3 February 12:00pm – 1:00pm Level 2, Pontio Free
A sound installation of an iconic piece by David Bedford, Great Equatorial diffused through speakers in Pontio’s impressive public spaces.
3 February 1:00pm Studio, Pontio
£12, £10 (Senior), £5 (Students & Children)
Leading contemporary pianist Zubin Kanga will present a wide range of music that has been inspired by space and astronomy.
3 February 2:15pm – 3:00pm Bar Ffynnon Stage, Pontio Free
Fusion Ensemble – a series of free improvisations inspired by the moon.
3 February 3:00pm – 4:00pm / 4:00pm – 5:00pm Lecture Room 2, Pontio
Free (Booking required)
Under the leadership of Scott Wilson, participants of all ages ar able to experiment with the new BEER website that enables the manipulation of electronic sounds online.
3 February 3:00pm – 4:00pm / 4:00pm – 5:00pm Bar Ffynnon, Pontio Free
Come and join in the improvisation with members of the Bangor University Fusion Ensemble. Suitable for any ages and musical ability. Bring your own instrument with you!
3 February 5:00pm – 6:00pm Level 2, Pontio Free
New compositions by Music Students at the School of Music, Bangor University inspired by distant galaxies, also to include a piece by Murphy.
3 February 6:00pm Lecture Room 2, Pontio Free (Booking required)
3 February 7:30pm Theatr Bryn Terfel, Pontio
£15, £12 (Senior), £5 (Students & Children)
This performance by the Birmingham Ensemble for Electroacoustic Research (BEER), created in collaboration with the Art@CMS project at CERN in Switzerland, involves the real-time sonification of data streams from the Large Hadron Collider.