Close-up – Studio6 – Leeds

Close-up is the result of a close collaboration between Richard Barrett and the Serbian Ensemble Studio6 which began in April 2013. Each of its six parts explores a different angle on the relationship between pre-composed and spontaneous musical actions, whilst the electronic part explores a range of degrees of flexibility from fixed media to a completely “instrumental” approach.

While not being in any way programmatic or illustrative, many aspects of close-up derive from a contemplation of natural and biological phenomena, and in particular of the ephemeral interventions into the natural world embodied in the sculptures of Andy Goldsworthy, conceiving musical materials as something analogous to the leaves, icicles, thorns and stones which Goldsworthy selects from the natural environment and then returns to it in such a way that the viewer sees them differently from that point on.

Ensemble Studio 6 gathers internationally acclaimed soloists and performers of contemporary composed and improvised music. The ensemble encourages an open dialogue between listening, interpretation and creation in contemporary artistic practices.

Clothworkers Centenary Concert Hall, School of Music, University of Leeds