Some of the diverse projects we’ve had the pleasure to work on
Body And Soul
Sonic Cinema teamed up with the London-based jazz composer and musician Peter Edwards and the Nu Civilisation Orchestra Ensemble to present a new, BFI-commissioned score to this groundbreaking drama. In his screen debut, Robeson delivers an electrifying performance as an escaped convict trying to pass as a local preacher in the Deep South. Body and…Read more Body And Soul
CTI Revisited
It’s the Nu Cool Revolution with Nu Civilisation Orchestra playing music from the celebrated CTI record label. CTI was famed for popularising jazz in the 70s through laying soulful acoustic grooves and elegant string and horn arrangements by Don Sebesky over popular songs and chart hits played by the top jazz musicians of the time,…Read more CTI Revisited
Duke Ellington’s ‘Sacred Music’
Jazz, showbiz swagger and spirituality come together as never before in Duke Ellington’s spectacular Sacred Concerts. With Monty Alexander, Carleen Anderson and the UK Vocal Assembly, BBC Singers and tap dancer, Annette Walker and conducted by Peter Edwards. Described by Ellington himself as ‘the most important thing I have ever done’, these sacred revues, blending…Read more Duke Ellington’s ‘Sacred Music’
Firebird
A programme of work exploring musical paths that converge at the crossroads of jazz and classical music, where Charlie Parker meets Igor Stravinsky, Wayne Shorter meets Jean Sibelius and Steve Williamson meets Arnold Schoenberg. Firebird features new original works by our composer-conductors – Peter Edwards, Binker Golding and James McKay – inspired by the work…Read more Firebird
Hejira
Joni Mitchell’s album, Hejira blends folk, jazz and pop influences, and uses the Prophet Muhammad’s Hijra as a jumping-off point to tell stories of personal journeys, figuratively and literally. New arrangements of Mitchell’s tracks were commissioned for large ensemble by Tomorrow’s Warriors from their alumni Cassie Kinoshi, Max De Lucia and Peter Edwards. Premiered at Royal Festival Hall,…Read more Hejira
Parallel
The Nu Civilisation Orchestra presents a sonic and visual tribute to Joe Harriott, the free form Jamaican jazz genius who settled in London in 1952. A Bebop player at heart, Harriott fused the influences of Charlie Parker with his own Jamaican musical sensibility to create his unique sound, in which his Caribbean roots were always…Read more Parallel
Polyhymnia
Commissioned by Tomorrow’s Warriors from British-Bahraini trumpeter/composer, Yazz Ahmed (pictured) for an all-female edition of Nu Civilisation Orchestra in March 2015, Polyhymnia is inspired by the lives of six influential and incredible statements of womanhood – individuals who inspired fundamental change in norms and attitudes, changed the course of history or who quietly, each day become more powerful sources of inspiration. Polyhymnia…Read more Polyhymnia
Population
A heady mash up of jazz, poetry and live soundscapes exploring the themes of the cosmos, human advancement and Darwinism, originally commissioned by Southbank Centre for their July 2010 Festival of Science and Arts: See Further celebrating 350 years of the Royal Society. The poetry is written and performed by Southbank Centre Artist in Residence,…Read more Population
The Black Saint And The Sinner Lady
It’s all about sex! Described in The Guardian by music writer, Richard Williams as ‘…one of his most enthralling works. The album (with liner notes shared between Mingus and his psychiatrist) modifies the traditional blues and folk materials of jazz by bold, rhythmic variations, stark contrasts between dense, low-end harmonies and […] soaring alto sax,…Read more The Black Saint And The Sinner Lady
The Harlem Suite
We collaborated with the BBC Concert Orchestra on a performance of Duke Ellington’s A Tone Parallel To Harlem (Harlem Suite) conducted by Keith Lockhart on 24 March 2013 at Queen Elizabeth Hall, Southbank Centre as part of the Hidden Voices concert (part of The Rest Is Noise Festival), broadcast on BBC Radio 3 on 17 April 2013.
