London Sinfonietta launches Enfield residency

Florence Lockheart
Wednesday, April 26, 2023

From 22 to 25 May players of the ensemble will work alongside the college’s students offering the opportunity to gain insight on the inner workings of a professional ensemble

'This is just the start of what we plan to be a project that reaches many more people in the borough in future.’ The Sinfonietta will continue to deepen its relationship with the London Borough ©Monika S Jakubowska
'This is just the start of what we plan to be a project that reaches many more people in the borough in future.’ The Sinfonietta will continue to deepen its relationship with the London Borough ©Monika S Jakubowska

Contemporary music ensemble London Sinfonietta will next month embark on a residency at St Ignatius College in Enfield. From 22 to 25 May players of the ensemble will work alongside the college’s students offering the opportunity to gain insight on the inner workings of a professional ensemble.

The Ensemble will run a week of creative workshops, collaborative projects and open rehearsals with the students and with the 2023 cohort of the London Sinfonietta Academy. These initiatives will lead up to the ensemble’s concert centering around the theme of Fireworks at the Southbank Centre’s Queen Elizabeth Hall on 25 May where college students will be in attendance.

London Sinfonietta chief executive and artistic director Andrew Burke said: ‘We are excited to start a relationship with St Ignatius College and to deepen our engagement with Enfield Borough and Council. We passionately believe in the potential of new music to inspire young people and we trust our project will open up new sound worlds and creative confidence for them. This is just the start of what we plan to be a project that reaches many more people in the borough in future.’

Enfield is ranked the fifth highest most deprived London Borough and has been identified as a Priority Place by Arts Council England. Since 2019 London Sinfonietta has been working in schools with Enfield Music Service to offer its Sound Out musical outreach programme to local schools.

This new residency is the beginning of a longer-term partnership between the ensemble and the Enfield area, building on the organisation’s existing connection with the Borough. Now looking to expand its work in the area, the ensemble will consult with community groups, through an open rehearsal and ‘sharing session’ in collaboration with Shamisen player Hidejiro Honjoh.

St. Ignatius College music director Alan Duguid said: ‘This is a unique opportunity for the students to experience having a leading contemporary music ensemble on site which can hopefully help develop the composition skills and aspirations of the students studying Music at GCSE level and shift perceptions about contemporary music, which I think suffers from current views of irrelevance and distance amongst the student body.’