Record number of new works to be performed.

Birmingham Contemporary Music Group will present five premieres in one concert this January, the most ever attempted by the group.

The UK Firsts concert on 31st January will see three UK and two world premieres, all conducted by Frank Ollu, considered an expert in contemporary and French classical music.

The concert will begin with the premiere of a new work by the Swedish composer Ivo Nilsson, commissioned by BCMG as part of its Sound Investment crowdfunding programme. The group will go on to perform Doppler Wobbler, a concerto for viola, bassoon and ensemble also composed by Nilsson.

UK Firsts also includes new work by the noted French composers Marc-André Dalbavie, Pascal Dusapin, Frédéric Durieux and Allain Gaussin.

Stephen Newbould, BCMG Artistic Director, commented: “BCMG is known around the world for pushing the boundaries of contemporary classical music. It is rare for any music group to present five premieres in one concert and I’m confident that this will be a night to remember, particluarly as one of the new works has been commissioned by our own Sound Investment scheme, so many of the audience members will have directly contributed to the creation of the piece.”

Sound Investment is BCMG’s crowdfunding scheme, which began in October 1991. Classical music fans can ‘invest’ set sums of money, which allows BCMG to commission composers to create new pieces of music. The Sound Investors are then invited to hear the premiere of their works as well as visit rehearsals and meet the composer and performers.

Pic: Frank Ollu (c) Astrid Ackermann
Front page pic: BCMG (c) Chris Keenan