Music of Today: How Forests Think

Programme

Wu Wei is an innovative and world-renowned master of the sheng, a Chinese mouth organ. He joins members of the Philharmonia Orchestra in a piece for sheng and ensemble by leading Australian composer Liza Lim. How Forests Think explores how forest organisms such as trees and fungi create communication networks and influence each other. The members of the ensemble must become just as connected, responding to each other’s sound and to each other’s breathing. From the delicate sound of raindrops, created by dropping dried peas onto a drum, experimental instrumental effects build up into what Lim describes as ‘a tsunami of sound’.

Anna Thorvaldsdottir’s music is full of instrumental colour, combining intricate detail with a sense of expansiveness. Shining through the complex textures of Entropic Arrows are long sustained notes that the composer asks players to think of as ‘a fragile flower that you need to carry in your hands and walk the distance on a thin rope without dropping it or falling.’

This free Music of Today performance is part of Southbank Centre’s acclaimed SoundState Festival.

Free, ticket required.