September Songs

For September Songs renowned British composer Howard Skempton selects pieces from This Could Happen To You to act as a visual backdrop for a sequence of musical performances by Birmingham Contemporary Music Group soloists and mezzo-soprano Loré Lixenberg.

Best known for his stripped down, melodic compositions, at Ikon Skempton presents works written in the late 1960s–1970s. For Strings (1969) comprises just three words – Waves / Shingle / Seagulls – and the players are open to interpret this at will. Skempton directs these works and is keen for members of the audience with their own instruments to take part. September Songs also includes newly written pieces which continue his interest in short ‘miniatures’, for example his interludes written for cello and guitar.

Some performances are for solo, some are duets and some for a larger ensemble of soloists including percussion, horn and viola. Loré Lixenberg performs new songs by Skempton in which he sets music to definitions of words such as ‘debut’, taken from The Penguin Dictionary of Music.

September Songs takes place throughout Ikon, giving rise to chance encounters, demonstrating Skempton’s interest in allowing the music to unfold across the gallery’s interconnecting rooms. String players of any standard are invited to take part in performances of For Strings on Saturday 11 September. Contact BCMG on 0121 616 2616 or email info@bcmg.org.uk to register your interest, or bring your instrument to Ikon at 3pm on the day for a briefing by the composer.

Organised in collaboration with Birmingham Contemporary Music Group and presented during Artsfest.