Boat to Row
Hello Blog Readers,
I'm delighted to announce that I have been invited to join up and coming Brummie band 'Boat to Row' on the drum kit for their UK tour in May. I had my first gig with them supporting Loch Lomond in Coventry on Monday and it was loads of fun. I've had a sneak peak at the dates booked in so far and there is some really good ones, and some very long drives!, but I'm not allowed to announce any yet though! As soon as it has all been confirmed
Heads Up
Hello Blog Readers,
A lot of stuff has happened in the last couple of months over my way. Too much to really elaborate on it all, but I'll start at the beginning.
During the late summer months I had to pleasure of being accepted as a Protection Racket Artist. Protection Racket make, in my humble opinion, the best soft cases for drums and percussion on the market. I have used their stuff for years and I'm delighted to make my endorsement of their products.You can check out my Artist profile on their website.
At the end of the summer I went on Tour with Jipsy to Mallorca. The band is the brainchild of my good friend and longterm musical collaborator Sarah Boughton. Like me she has caught the World Music bug and loves exploring sounds and rhtyhms from different places in the World in her own music. We did four gigs whilst we were over there on which I was playing Cajon and Percussion. We also had the opportunity to record four tracks for our new EP in the Rush Music studio and we even made a video for one of them on a boat (see photo). More information will follow!
Pretty much as soon as I came back from Mallorca I was straight back into teaching and acting (!) as part of the Macamu Show. Macamu is run by another longterm musical collaborator Hannah Rhodes. I did some sessions for the her album of Children's songs earlier on in the year and she invited me to play for the launch. Little did I know that would entail not just playing percussion but also acting, singing, playing guitar, dancing and playing ukulele. I had an absolute blast during the week though! You can see the trailer for the show below. We're scheduled to do another one in January.
Now order has returned to my life for a while and I've a few of my own projects which I'm looking forward to. Tomorrow I'm playing at Theatre Severn with my new quartet featuring Ben Thomas (tpt), Simon King (gtr) and Alex Phillips (bs) and in November Project Cuabno are returning for a reunion gig. I'm also delighted to announce I will be joining Hannah Fathers for her gig with Holliday Street supporting Joan Armatrading. Check out the gigs page for more info.
Thanks for reading,
Lydia.
Holliday Street meet Joan Armatrading
Hi Blog Readers,
It's been a hectic couple of months for me but with schools finishing for summer and holidays beckoning I have found a brief spot of quiet in my life. I've been really fortunate with my performance work of late, the Bonfire Radicals have nearly completed their first season of festivals across the UK, and I've had some really exciting projects like Interleave (see previous blog) and Jipsy who will be off to Mallorca in August (more about that another time). Anyway a few weeks ago Hannah, James and I from Holliday Street were invited up to Liverpool for a photo shoot with Joan Armatrading!
Interleave
Dear blog readers,
Over the past month or so most of my creative energy has been occupied with a new project called 'Interleave'. International jazz heros Tony Dudley-Evans and Mary Wakelam of Jazzlines commissioned (with a lot of help from PRSF) two innovative electronic musicians- Annie Mahtani (laptop) and Shelly Knotts (laptop)- to create a new piece of music with four jazz musicians- Percy Pursglove (bs), Lluis Mather (sx/fl), Sam Wooster (tp) and myself (dr). After spending a lot of time messing around with interesting effects and soundscapes, working on collective improvisation as well as duos and trios, waiting for computers to do their job properly and drinking tea we are beginning to merge into a six-headed improvising monster that can create pretty much any sound imaginable.
I have found the project a real challenge. Free improvisation is something that I have always loved and I was fortunate enough to have lessons on it with the late master of the art Tony Levin, however it is not something that I have done a whole lot of until now. One thing I have noticed is that with the freedom that I have within the group I am coming up time and time again against restrictions. Restrictions in my technique at the kit and my dynamic control, my own inhibitions and confidence/ lack of it and my pre-conceived ideas about how free improvised music should sound.
When we first began playing together I found everything enjoyable and was relatively uninhibited with my playing. I was really into finding out what Annie and Shelly could do with their laptops and loved hearing how they could affect my sound and me theirs. I was also really psyched to get to play with Percy, Lluis and Sam as they are all amazing musicians. We had a lot of fun experimenting in duos/ trios with the computers and working on different textures as well as just getting used to how everyone played.
I've found the project continually more challenging as it has progressed.
The Bonfire Radicals’ Summer Adventure
Hi Blog Readers,
Again far too much time has passed since I wrote in this space. I would say it was because I've been too busy but actually it's because I find it really hard to think of things to write that would be of interest to the rest of you. Anyway this time I am going to use the space to tell you about 'The Bonfire Radicals' Summer Adventure.'
We have been fortunate enough to be invited to play at a number of festivals this year and it will be our first ever tour. There are lots of great events in store but I am particularly looking forward to Notting Hill Mayfest on the 18th of May, where we make our London debut. We have the opportunity to play acoustically in the beautiful surroundings of St John's Church, which will be a rare treat for us. I will also have the pleasure of playing in the new project of my old friend and collaborator Sarah Boughton- Jipsy- who will be supporting us on the night.
Please check out the dates on the above poster and come along if you can. You will find more details on my 'Gigs' page and on The Bonfire Radicals' website. If you want to know about stuff to do with the band on a regular basis be sure to check out our Facebook, Twitter and Soundcloud pages.
To whet your appetite for what is in store here is a video of us playing our epic new song inspired by Ivo Papasov.
Kudos to Rachel Darke for the Artwork on the poster and Gordon Dipple for the video.
New Year Plans
Hi Blog Readers,
As yet another new year has begun I decided it would be apt to fill you in on some of the things I've been upto and some of my plans for the year ahead.
It has been a busy time for recording recently. At the end of 2011 I was in the studio with Hannah Rhodes, in between her hectic performance schedule with the RSC and Pegasus Theatre, laying down some percussion tracks for her children's album. As always it was a pleasure to work with Hannah as she is a true professional and her songs were gorgeous. It is also a joy to have enough time in the studio to experiment and layer multiple percussion parts, which is something I couldn't do live unless I acquired some extra hands! I can't wait to hear it when it is finished. She is launching her album at Pegasus Theatre in Oxford on Sat 15th Sept at 1.30pm and 6pm and Sun 16th Sept at 11am. Keep an eye out if you've got small children!
The new year has brought on a time of intense activity for the Bonfire Radicals. We are delighted to announce that we have started working with Colin Whitehouse who will be helping us to manage and promote the band. We hope that this will be the start of a long and productive relationship with Colin who has a lot of business experience. At the moment we are focusing on honing our playing as a band which is proving challenging but highly rewarding. We have some new material which will really show of the individual skills of the musicians and develop our overall sound world.. We've also been invited to play at a string of festivals in the summer, look out for us at The Beltane Bash, Nottinghill Mayfest, Lakefest, Eadale Folk Festival, The Lunar Festival, The National Forest Folk Festival, Sea Fest and Cropton Folk and Roots Festival. We will be lucky enough to play alongside artists such as Martin Carthy, The Levellers, Jim Moray, 3 Daft Monkeys, Toploader, Peatbog Faeries, Goodnight Lenin, Reef and The Old Dance School to name a few! If you can't wait until May, fear not! You can see us for free at The Brighthouse pub in Birmingham. As always all events are listed on my 'Gigs' page.
Recently the talented Hannah Fathers of Holliday ST has secured a slot for herself and one other HS member to support the legendary, Grammy nominated, Joan Armatrading on her upcoming UK tour.
Website Overhaul
Hello and welcome to the new and improved lydiaglanville.com!
If you've visited my site recently you may have noticed that change was afoot. The good news is that it has all now been updated. You can find out about and listen to all the new groups that I am involved with via the 'Projects' page , see an up to date gigs list (not surprisingly) on the 'Gigs' page and read my most recent biography on the 'About' page. If you click onto the 'Media' page then select 'Video' at the top you can see some new videos, which includes performances from the Harmonic Jazz Festival and The Horsedrawn Camp.
If you've got any comments about the site or any other enquiries please get in touch via the 'Contact' page.
Hope to see you at a gig soon.
Lydia
The Bonfire Radicals
Hello Blog Readers,
Yet again I have let well over a month slip by without updating you on my recent musical activity. The blog is entitled 'The Bonfire Radicals' as the band have been my main musical occupation and obsession of late. First we had the photos with Colin Whitehouse back in March which I believe I mentioned in my last post. They were a great success and you can view them on our Facebook page.
On the 11th and 12th of April we recorded 4 tracks for our new Ep which is due to be realeased in the late summer/early autumn. We recorded percussion, guitars and a live take of 'I Wish' on the first day and added the strings, woodwind and stomping on the second day. It was all a great success and I was impressed with the standard of musicianship from the band and the quality of sound that the technicians recorded. Initially I thought that we weren't going to get everything recorded as it took a while to get all the percussion mics set up but luckily we all sailed through our parts in only one or two takes. We were fortunate to have our photographer Colin Whitehouse at hand on the first day, he got some great photos from the shoot which can be viewed on our Facebook page but I will post a taster below of some of the Radicals on a quick tea break.
Another cup to tea.
As well as recording we had a couple of successful gigs over the bank holiday weekend with dates at the Midland Arts Centre and the Urban Fox Folk Club. As always it was so much fun to play with everyone on stage and the performances were well received by the audience. We got a live recording from the night which will be uploaded onto Soundcloud soon so watch this space. If you can't wait til then we found this video of us playing at the MAC to keep you busy.
At the moment we are gearing up for upcoming dates at a Gypsy festival near Henley-in-Arden on the 19th of June and Moseley and Edale Folk Festivals in September. More details about dates for the Bonfire Radicals can be found on our band Facebook page or on the gigs section of this site.
Even more excitingly we are all set to embark on a video project with Director and Producer Desmond Crowe. Desmond is better known for his work as an Art Director on productions such as Spielberg's 'Band of Brothers' and Branagh's 'Frankenstein' so we are delighted that he has taken on the task of making us a music video. The aim is to shoot the video in early December and try to get three tracks recorded. He has some very exciting ideas for the film but they shall remain top secret for the moment! As always the results will be posted on here when it is finished.
Now then, I think it is high time I stopped writing and got myself ready for my gig tonight in South Wales. The gigs section of the site has been updated again so have a look and hopefully see you somewhere soon.
Lydia
Spring Antics.
Hello all,
Looking back over the last month or so it feels like a lot has happened in a small amount of time.
A lot of energy has been going into getting 'The Bonfire Radicals' of the ground. We had our first gig on the 4th of February at a Lunar Society event at the Hare and Hounds. Thankfully we were very well received and the gig was a sell out. As a result of that success we will be playing at the MAC on the 1st of May, Urban Fox Folk Club on the 2nd of May, Moseley Folk Festival on the 3rd of September and at Edale Folk Festival which runs from the 9th-11th of September. It would be lovely to see some friendly faces at any of these dates but if you can't wait until then you can hear the best bits of our last gig on Soundcloud.
A couple of weekends ago all of us Radicals ventured out to the back streets of Brum for a photoshoot with Colin Whitehouse. We were all quite nervous about the day- not being sure whether we would find good locations to shoot or whether our outfits were quite right- but Colin did an absolutely brilliant job and put us all at ease. In-fact it seems that some members of the band were clearly cut out to be models and career changes are in order! At the moment we are busy preparing for our first proper recording session with Sal Broughton on the 12th April. To be the first to see/hear the results why not follow us on Twitter or Facebook?
Last Friday the David Garside Band had a final rehearsal with Raphael Mann- our producer and the brain behind Frizz Records- in preparation for our recording over at Gizzard Studios in Bow on the 8th of April. The aim is to get all of the rhythm tracks finished so as everything else can be recorded on top. As usual Raph had a lot of helpful things to say and I came away with completely new drums parts to try and remember!
Aside from The Bonfire Radicals and David Garside things have been very busy at school and in my life as a freelance musician. Last week three of the classes that I teach had concerts all of which were a great success. As a teacher you can never underestimate the amount of inspiration you can take from your students. I was so proud to see them play and my love of performing was renewed by watching the joy and concentration on some of their faces. I have also been enjoying playing some jazz recently with a few gigs at Theatre Severn, some teaching at The Conservatoire Junior School and even venturing out to Hereford to play with Dave Price, Lee Goodall and Erica Lyons.
Last night I had a gig with Wildfire Youth Folk Ensemble- all the kids had come on a long way but I was particularly impressed with Rosie the percussionist who was the most confident I have seen her yet. It was a special treat for all as we were supporting the Urban Folk Quartet. It was great for everyone from Wildfire to see their leader Paloma Trigas play at her best and in my opinion they probably put on the most exciting live performance in the UK at the moment. If you have not heard them yet you should really check them out.
I will leave with a video of The UFQ live at The Cross in Moseley.
See you soon Lydia
The Big Chill
Hello readers,
For those of you who haven't noticed- it has been snowing. Personally it feels like I have taken a trip through the Wardrobe to the land of Narnia. Traffic lights are adorned with 6 inches of snow, there are meter long icicles forming on the houses on my street and the media are telling everyone that Christmas will have to be cancelled. For me it has been a welcome opportunity to go into hibernation in an attempt to rejuvenate for next year and to enjoy the irony that when we actually get a white Christmas, nobody wants it anyway.
Since last writing I have enjoyed playing on some dates on the Frizz Records Tour with David Garside and wrapped myself up for a couple of gigs with my quartet outside in the cold. Two perhaps more momentous events were the first two of my Primary classes to put on performances. The first was a Djembe class in Hertforshire, we performed a drumming piece and a song in Youruba, and I even got them to walk on and off and take bows together- a proud moment. The second was a general percussion class in Staffordshire that I take with a colleague which was also a success. The class performed several songs, demonstrated their new found technical prowess at snare drum and glockenspiel and finished with a rendition of 'Jingle Bells' at two different tempos simultaneously.
I realise in a few of my blogs I have mentioned an exciting new project that I have been involved in and promised to elaborate. Well here I am elaborating. We are an eight piece contemporary folk group called the 'Bonfire Radicals' we play original material inspired by folk traditions from across the globe- fused with influences from popular culture and jazz- with some wacky arrangements of traditional folk songs and tunes thrown in for good measure. HIRE US! We have our first gig on the 4th February in the stylish Hare and Hounds in Kings Heath thanks to everybody at The Lunar Society/Moseley Folk Festival.
I will leave you with this Frizz records thank you video.
Lydia
