prof_lofi

aka prof_lofi

WWW.BILLTHOMPSON.ORG

Mercury Over Maps 23

By

I’m pleased to announce Mercury Over Maps #23 at Hill Station Cafe and Venue!

The evening features 3 sets –  a solo by Mandhira de Saram, a duo between John McGrath and Benedict Taylor and a trio between Regan Bowering, Rachel Musson and myself.

Please join us!

More information: http://billthompson.org/aka_prof_lofi/mercury-over-maps-22

 
Mercury Over Maps 23
Kitto Rd, London, SE14 5TW 
Tuesday, Jan 13th
Doors 730/Music 8pm
£10/£5 (students) Cash/Card at the Door
 

Mercury Over Maps #23

MANDHIRA DE SARAM – Violin and Electronics

Mandhira is happiest bringing her playful energy and creativity to a breadth of projects across the less trodden paths of contemporary music, working with the likes of Anna Meredith, Laura Jurd and Shabaka Hutchings, and now increasingly as a solo artist.

Having left the Ligeti Quartet (Songbooks Vol. 1, 2021) – the plucky band of musical buccaneers she founded to explore the outer reaches of chamber repertoire – Mandhira’s recent creative ventures include a commission by the Ligeti Quartet, a collaboration with the cross-cultural Australian Art Orchestra (debuting in Melbourne and HCMF) and working with Jasmin Kent Rodgman on the soundtrack to the feature film ‘Bawa’s Garden’. 2019 saw her commissioned to write a site-specific piece for the Barbican’s Sound Unbound.

Equally at home leading orchestras in the world’s most prestigious concert venues, recording film soundtracks at Abbey Road and improvising at Cafe Oto, her other projects include improvising duos with Steve Beresford and Benoit Delbecq (Spinneret, 2019) and regular appearances with Riot Ensemble and London Contemporary Orchestra.

She currently plays a 1735 Sanctus Seraphin violin kindly loaned to her by Derek Clements-Croome.

https://mandhira-desaram.squarespace.com/
https://emergentidioms.bandcamp.com/album/the-council-of-two 

JOHN MCGRATH AND BENEDICT TAYLOR
 
JOHN MACGRATH – Guitar and electronics
 
John McGrath is a Dublin-born guitarist and academic based in London.
 
His music explores the boundaries of the ancient and modern as traditional elements meet improvisation and experimental tendencies. McGrath’s compositions (available from Crooked Stem Recordings) have been featured in The Wire, RTE Radio 1, BBC Radio, aired on several television programmes, and sounded at Tate Modern and FACT. John has performed in ensembles with Dustin Wong, Mark Roberts (PiL), Darren Hayman (Hefner), Simon Stafford (Longpigs), Sharon Gal, Cavalier Song, History of Harry, Black Snow Rodeo, Rhys Chatham, Howard Skempton and the aPAtT Orchestra. Recent session work includes two records with The Unattached (Gare du Nord) and a live improvisation on Cafe Oto’s Otoroku label.
 
McGrath has been commissioned to write for the IMMIX ensemble and performed new music alongside large arrangements of his work with the group. As a solo performer John has performed at various festivals and has supported Richard Dawson, Gwenifer Raymond, Laraaji and Sun Araw. Recent appearances include a solo set at King’s Place, London and improv lineups at Cafe Oto.
 
https://www.johnmcgrathmusic.com/
 
BENEDICT TAYLOR – Viola
 
 
Benedict Taylor is a leading figure within contemporary composition, modern string performance and improvised music in the British and European new music world. The central focus of his work is in new composition for live performance, film, theatre, contemporary dance, art installation and electro-acoustic composition. In performance, he predominantly works within improvisation, new composition and 20th/21st century music.
 
Described as a virtuoso violist, through his performance work there is a focus on solo performance as a creative and investigative process. In 2012 he initiated an ongoing commission series and solo label Subverten (For Viola Solo). The first works premiered in autumn 2013 and continue several times each year.
 
https://benedicttaylormusic.com/about
 
 
RACHEL MUSSON, REGAN BOWERING and BILL THOMPSON
 
RACHEL MUSSON – Saxophone
 
 
A UK-based saxophonist, improviser and composer UK, Rachel has spent over a decade immersed in improvised music, and is now gradually introducing composed elements into her work, drawing on text, field recordings and processing sounds. Rachel is involved with a variety of improvisation projects, featuring on several releases (577 Records, Babel Label, Two Rivers Records), performing with musicians such as Pat Thomas and Mark Sanders, and a recent improvised collaboration with the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra. Her recent album, Ashes and Dust Earth and Sky, blends compositions, improvisations and field recordings, and her solo performances have evolved to incorporate these sounds in a live setting. Rachel is a current (2024-2027) recipient of the prestigious Paul Hamlyn Composer award.
 
‘Musson tells stories with a cohesive precision while shifting back and forth between folk-melody, contemplative sax and raw, overblown sonic textures using a varied range of extended technique.’ Selwyn Harris, Jazzwise
 
 
REGAN BOWERING – percussion and electronics
 
 
Regan Bowering is a percussionist, improviser and sound artist based in London. Her solo work explores various combinations of drums and percussion, objects, amps, speakers, and feedback. Her debut album “Solos for _ _ _ _ Spaces” (Dec 2023 on Bezirk Tapes) was described as “a play of contrasts, contradicting voluminous expressions with confined phrases, taming resounding feedback with faint percussive flutters, but one that feels driven by the desire to craft electrifying drama rather than pure autotelic dissonance.” (The Quietus). She is one third of a collaborative project with Li Song and Conal Blake, with two releases: “2 Movements” (Feedback Moves, 2024) and “Music for Snare Drums and Portable Speakers” (Infant Tree, 2023). She also regularly collaborates with saxophonist Sue Lynch and is currently doing a practice-based PhD at Goldsmiths, University of London.
 
www.reganbowering.com

BILL THOMPSON – Moog guitar and Electronics


Bill Thompson is a sound artist and composer. He performs regularly as a soloist as well as in a number of groups including The Seen, zerøspace, and Airfield (with Ian Spink), and duos with Ian Stonehouse, Phil Durrant, and Yoni Silver. Past collaborations include performances with Keith Rowe, Faust, EXAUDI and others.

Although originally trained as a guitarist, Thompson has worked with live electronics for the better part of 15 years. In recent years he has returned to guitar using one built by Moog combining it with electronics with miscellaneous tabletop devices, found objects, flashing lights, and the occasional vibrator.

He has earned numerous awards and commissions including the PRS for New Music ATOM award, the GAVAA visual arts award, a PRS for New Music Three Festival commission, the 2010 Aberdeen Visual Arts Award, and was nominated for the Paul Hamlyn Award.

www.billthompson.org 
https://burningharpsichordrecords.com

…

Mercury Over Maps is an extended residency by Bill Thompson featuring performances, installations and talks with various collaborators and guest artists.