On 12 March 150 young musicians came together to perform for an audience of nearly 400 at the Corn Exchange. The incredibly talented young performers treated their audience to a festival in one night, with acts ranging from samba, a ukulele group, string ensemble and indie bands to a solo flute, electronic dance music and modern jazz.
Chris Stones, Education Officer at Glyndebourne & SoundCity Board member said, ‘What an amazing diversity of talent on show… there is real support in the room for all the acts.’
Many SoundCity partners put forward and supported acts including Unified Rhythm, Audio Active, SPECTRUM, Rhythmix, Brighton & Hove Music & Arts and over half of the city’s special and secondary schools. Many partners also worked collaboratively to create original perfromances for the event, including an exciting all-male vocal group made up of students from Blatchington Mill, Cardinal Newman and Longhill schools. The boys worked with vocalist Kushal Gaya (from the band Melt Yourself Down) to create a new piece and performed to great acclaim on the night.
‘It’s really cool to see so many male singers,’ said Sian Carey, student representative on the Brighton & Hove Music Trust, who also gave the opening address.
The annual SoundCity showcase is now a well-established event in the music hub’s performance calender and each year innovative and creative performances are programmed together to make a memorable musical experience for all invovled. For the first time this year, a massed finale involving 60 players provided an electric climax to the evening – with composer Joe Browne leading the premiere of ‘C Song’, a new work created with the young musicians.
The whole event was also live streamed by the excellent team from City College and if you missed the show you can catch up on all of the performances online:
http://brightondome.org/extras/live_streams/live_stream_soundcity_4/