Meet Avant Garde Dance Director Tony Adigun

Hi Tony! Could we start by asking you to tell us a little bit about your background?  How and when did you get into dance, and what does dance mean to you?

I was born in Bristol, but grew up and still live in Hackney. My mum was a dancer in Nigeria, so as a family we were always dancing. It was second nature and now I have taken it on and made a career out of it. In primary school I had two passions, football and dance. Every Wednesday there was a student assembly and there would be an opportunity to present something. Each week without fail, I would come up with a new routine, rehearse all week and present it. I was having fun, but now I realise that I was choreographing from a young age to Vanilla Ice, Salt n Pepper, MC Hammer. I was hugely inspired by Michael Jackson and learnt all the moves from watching him on TV.

I went to study computer science at university but instead of making computer programmes, I was more interested in listening to music and going to the studio to make moves. I dropped out, kept teaching myself, and then got recruited to choreograph Mel B’s world tour. I founded Avant Garde Dance in 2001 and I have not looked back.

Dance is my output for my passion for music. Music is the driving force and dance is the way that I show my appreciation.

How would you introduce Avant Garde Dance to audiences who are unfamiliar with your work?

We use hip hop at our core but we deliver it in a contemporary package. The movement is theatrical, abstract and focuses on musicality. There are no typical street dance formations here. We are constantly playing with styles and genres, and have developed a unique approach to what we produce. We strive to create fresh and exciting work that moves forward. We embrace new concepts, challenge conventions and break boundaries.  I really enjoy challenging myself and our audience, and have worked with circus, chinese pole, clowning, theatre, film, projection and unusual sites in my dance shows.

How would you describe your choreography for Monteverdi Ballets? What should we expect?

I usually work with beats, finding the musicality and quality of the sound, which then informs the choreography. In opera it’s the vocal that creates both the musicality and the structure, so this is a new challenge for me. We are attempting a collaboration between dance and opera. We do not want to just dance in front of the orchestra and singers. We are working with Thomas Guthrie (music & dramaturgy advisor) to really understand the relationship between the music and vocal, researching the context of the opera, what is being said and the story of the characters. We are also watching how the orchestra move when they are playing the music. The musicians become at one with the music and the instrument is translated in their bodies, similar to how the dancer becomes at one with the music. We want the vocal to translate in the body – this is what is inspiring the movement. The choreography will be daring and stem from those that are singing and playing.

Monteverdi’s Il combattimento di Tancredi e Clorinda was written in 1624. How have you and Avant Garde Dance approached working with such an old piece of music? Have you had to try different ways of working?

Music is always key to my work – the difference is that the vocal is creating the rhythm so we want to respect the vocal and marry the movement to it. We are analyzing the vocal musicality, analyzing the speech patterning and in addition, are taking into consideration the translation. I’m constantly asking, ‘What are the core moments of the narrative and how can we stay true to that?’ We are aware there are audiences that know the music, so we want to stay true to the meaning somewhat, but move it on.

And finally, what do you enjoy about working with live music and how often do Avant Garde Dance get the opportunity to do so? What are you looking forward to most about working with Christian Curnyn’s Early Opera Company?

I love live music. When I went on tour with Liberty X (in 1999), it was the first time I danced to a live band and it was incredible.  The energy and vibe you get from another human playing a live instrument right next to you is amazing. Every night was different and that was so exciting. Working with dance and live music brings my two worlds together, so I am really excited to be working on this. It’s a palpable energy that is incredible.

Avant Garde Dance have only worked with live music about three times. We are a large company, and with a live band we would need much bigger budgets, so to have the opportunity to do this is really enjoyable. Like I said, this is a collaboration but it’s pretty tricky to do over email and skype, as we do not have too much time in the rehearsal studio together (dancers, singers and orchestra). I want to try and integrate all of the performers into the story, modernise the way that they all move in this opera.

Monteverdi Ballets will take place on Monday 17 June at Village Underground from 6.30pm-7.30pm and 8.30pm-9.30pm. Ticket prices vary from £5 to £15, and can be purchased via our website.

In conversation with Illustrator Joanna Moore

Joanna Moore‘s evocative illustrations convey a strong sense of space and history. A lover of exploring, Joanna is fascinated by the stories cities tell. She has also illustrated this years Winter Festival brochure! We caught up with Joanna to find out more about her online persona The Town Mouse, her illustrations, and her love for the city.

Niharika Jain: Who is the Town Mouse?

Joanna Moore: When I started blogging anon-mously, the Town Mouse seemed a suitable personification of my actions: scampering around street corners, exploring, drawing, feeling small in the Big Smoke.

The Town Mouse – Joanna Moore

NJ: What do you most enjoy about being an illustrator?

JM: The discipline of a brief and a deadline, new challenges, working with interesting people, access to exciting places, the smell of fresh ink, seeing my work published, and being paid to draw! The list is endless!

NJ: Your work often focuses on Shoreditch, and Spitalfields – are you inspired by East London?

Christ Church by Joanna Moore

JM: I’ve lived, worked and been a student in the east end for the last year. It’s a world away from my suburban upbringing and the streets never fail to surprise me. I love the ‘old’ and ‘new’ clashing together, and cultures that live happily alongside each other. [We love East London too!]

NJ: When and how did you discover your passion for drawing?

JM: I have an early memory of my teacher at infant school being impressed that I drew a chair in perspective, aged five! It’s always made me extremely happy. I went for a few years without drawing – studying and then working in an office – looking back I was incomplete.

NJ: So what is your favourite medium to work with and why?

JM: It’s a bit like choosing food; it utterly depends on my mood. I work in lots of different mediums, sketching in charcoal pencil and wash is speedy, pen and ink for the fiddly details, monoprinting in ink for expression and mood, printing to create something wholesome.

Inside the Globe by Joanna Moore

NJ: Do you find drawing relaxing or do you think of it as work?

JM: Both. But it is also energising. I go a little bit crazy if I haven’t drawn in a while. But there are times when it feels dutiful, whether working on an illustration or being driven by the need to record something accurately before the moment has passed.

NJ: What do you most like about London?

JM: When you walk through it you can feel the history seep through your pores and skin.

Tower Bridge by Joanna Moore

NJ: Other than the city, who or what inspires you?

JM: I have old-fashioned tastes. I like the war artists and early-to-mid-century illustrators: Ravilious’s gentle tones, Ardizonne’s fluidity, Bawden’s structure and line, David Jones for dreams. As for artists: Rembrandt as master of tone and movement across a picture; Degas and Sickert as incredible draughtsmen who proved that it’s not about capturing realism, but distilling it into something so much more vivid.

I have a Victorian ancestor, Thomas Grylls, who designed stained-glass windows located all over the country. Every time I see one of his designs it makes me feel strong to know that I have art running through my genes.

NJ: Is there a particular town you would like to become the ‘Town Mouse’ of, or will London always be your home?

JM: I was born in London, but raised in the suburbs which means that the city will always seem somewhere big, often intimidating, but always exciting! I can’t imagine being anywhere else; but then again, I have fallen for several other cities, Liverpool and Glasgow spring to mind for their mixture of beauty with rough edges. [We wouldn't want you to be away from Spitalfields for too long though!]

St John Bread and Wine by Joanna Moore

NJ: Currently there is an exhibition of your work at the Prince’s Drawing School – could you tell us more about the exhibition and how you came to decide what to submit for it?

JM: It’s a small selection of favourites from a busy year. I wanted to include my night drawings, a collection created over many cold winter nights, done with fingerless gloves and hipflask to hand. And monoprints, a technique that new to me but really enjoyable, one of Christ Church in Spitalfields, which felt like an expressive turning-point from the year. And another of chefs, I’ve been really lucky to draw lots of live-action chefs at work, and its real privilege to record another creator and craftsman at work.

Winter Festival leaflet – illustrated by Joanna Moore

Our Winter Festival leaflet as pictured above was illustrated by Joanna Moore, if you would like to read more about Joanna and view her beautiful illustrations, click here. You can also follow view ‘sketches by a small creature in a big city’ on The Town Mouse blog.  Joanna’s work will be on exhibit at The Prince’s Drawing School until 21st October 2011.

Sacred music, Christmas and Kodō drumming – Gabriel Crouch in conversation

Gallicantus will be making their Spitalfields debut this Winter so we sent Marketing & Communications intern Niharika to chat with Gabriel Crouch, the Director of Gallicantus and find out a bit more about how the group was formed, plans for the future and what makes him tick.

Gallicantus (From Left to Right: William Gaunt, Mark Chambers, David Allsopp, Gabriel Crouch, Nigel Short and Christopher Watson)

Niharika Jain: How did the idea of forming Gallicantus come into being?

Gabriel Crouch: My memory is slightly hazy on this, as I was convalescing from a rather nasty car accident at the time (early 2008) and was on some potent medication. I think it was my friend Nigel Short who persuaded me to get the group going – in my state I was too weak to resist. Not that I’m complaining – I’m incurably smitten with the process of researching, rehearsing and performing this music – and I’m lucky enough to have some friends who feel the same way.

NJ: So what do you most enjoy about performing as a group?

GC: The feeling of a small vocal ensemble whose singers are locked in to each other – it beats any solo singing, as far as I’m concerned. We’re all involved in so many other projects that we don’t get to work together as much as we’d like, so we’ve learnt to value those moments and keep striving for them.

NJ: It’s great that you are all together again this year at the Winter Festival where Gallicantus will be making their debut at Spitalfields – can you tell us more about ‘Dialogues of Sorrow’ and what the music represents?

GC: ‘Dialogues of Sorrow’ is the title of a partially lost work by the composer Robert Ramsey, composed as a lament on the death of Prince Henry in 1612. Henry was the eldest son of James the First, and though still a teenager he was seen as a monarch-in-waiting who would restore the pride of Elizabethan England. ‘Dialogues…’ was just one work in a huge body of music – madrigals, sacred works and solo songs, by composers familiar and forgotten – written in memory of the young prince; no other figure in British history has attracted such an outpouring. It is a fascinating moment in our music history, distilling fashionable melancholy and a bit of continental melodrama, and the music is absolutely ravishing.

NJ:You lecture at Princeton University (USA) – what do you most enjoy about teaching?

GC: Being able to set a musical agenda which is driven solely by the quality of the music, and not by the need to sell it. Also I must put in a plug for the American ‘Liberal Arts’ system of teaching undergraduates – I wish I had been through it myself because I was in no fit state to specialize as an 18-year-old (and consequently made the bizarre decision to pursue a degree in Geography). I’m constantly surprised by how much nicer, more engaged and more cooperative my students are than I was at that age.

NJ: You have been singing since a very young age, how would you say you and your music have changed over the years?

GC: As a boy treble at Westminster Abbey I’m told I was known as ‘the robot’. I’m sure I was having fun somewhere deep within, but I struggled to show it. The only thing I really cared about was getting the notes right. I hope I have a better perspective on things now.

NJ: What do you most like your audience to take away from your performances?

GC: I can remember as a student getting so inspired by the sheer commitment of the performers at a Kodō drumming concert that I stood on my chair to applaud (the traditional standing ovation seemed inadequate at the time). That might be a bit of a stretch for Gallicantus, but if we can communicate what we find compelling about the music, its story and its context – perhaps it will resonate and linger, like my favourite concerts have done for me.

NJ: Do you get to attend a lot of music performances in America? Do they have a different style of performance in comparison to English ensembles?

GC: In the world of early music ensembles, there aren’t many in the USA, and I think some that do exist get a bit tangled up with trying to emulate a ‘British’ sound. There are sensational choirs here though – they have a bigger sound than English groups, especially at the top end, and I must say that they are often more adventurous commissioners of new music.

NJ: Other than the Kodō performance you mentioned before, what is the best music performance you have attended?

GC: I won’t forget my first Wagner – it was Die Walkure in Stuttgart, and I spent the whole show gripping the seat in front with tears streaming down my face. I was convinced I would hate it, and spent the whole day grumbling about it beforehand. Closer to home, I never miss I fagiolini if I can help it – I love their approach to music-making.

NJ: How do you like to celebrate Christmas – will you celebrating it in the UK this year?

GC: I was always away (at choir school) as a child, so it feels important to go home. But this year I’m going to be in America for the first time ever and I haven’t told my mum yet. This is as good a way as any for her to find out…

NJ: What’s next for Gallicantus?

GC: 2012 is the 400^th anniversary of Prince Henry’s death of course, so it’s a big year for ‘Dialogues of Sorrow’ performances. Our next CD release is William Byrd – his Cantiones Sacrae of 1589 which reveal the anguish of the English Catholics with such passion and poignancy. I’m also amused to see that we are participating in an opera in Italy soon. Appropriately given our collective acting skills, we are playing the part of six trees.

Gallicantus will be performing Dialogues of Sorrow in Shoreditch Church on Thursday 15 December at 7.00pm. For more information and to book tickets click here. 

60 Seconds With…David Bates

Today we have the next installation of our feature ’60 Seconds with…’! Over  the coming weeks we will be posting quick and quirky interviews with the people behind the music at the Winter Festival. There’s no hard and fast rule with what we ask – most questions come from members of the team – though if you’d like to contribute, leave your questions in the comments section. Enjoy!

This week, La Nuova Musica director David Bates discusses pitch, trombones and marvellous madrigals!

Baroque pitch or modern pitch?
For Monteverdi’s vocal music, I love sound of ‘high pitch’, that is A=466. It adds a great deal to the dramatic quality of the music – especially where the madrigals of book seven and eight use voices and instruments as equals. The sopranos love this pitch – it really shows them off at their best!

Conducting or Singing?
BOTH! I love to direct my wonderful colleagues in La Nuova Musica. I love to play and sing with like-minded passionate and amazingly talented musicians.

Monteverdi: Madrigals or Vespers?
If push comes to shove I would have to plump for the Madrigals solely on the basis of volume.  The 1610 publication is truly ground breaking, fusing the old cantus firmus with new concerti and madrigal-esque style, but only lasts 2.5 hours (including the Missa in Illo Tempore) the Madrigals go on for days!!….

Why did you want to take part in the Winter Festival?
What a fabulous idea for an English festival to base their whole programme on the nine books of Monteverdi madrigals. With a keen interest in early 17th century vocal performance practice such a festival programme is too enticing to ignore.

What did you want to be when you grew up?
I was a trombone player at school.  At first I wanted to play in the pit orchestras of West End Theatres, then wanted to play in LSO, and then wanted to conduct LSO!! All pretty fanciful, really! I am told by my Mother that I used to pretend to conduct to the radio with my Grandpa when I was very little.

Where’s your favourite place in London?
I adore the stretch between Tower Bridge and Blackfriars Bridge – Shakespeare’s Globe, The Temple, St Paul’s Cathedral, Borough Market etc. etc.  I am lucky enough to live in the heart of this area – Bermondsey.

What’s the most played track from your MP3 player/CD collection?
This changes regularly – but at the moment it’s the first edits of a disc LNM recorded in the summer – Il Pastor Fido 1712 G F Handel – presently unrecorded!!!

What would you most like your audiences to take away from your performances?
We in La Nuova Musica adore singing and playing this wonderful music.  We hope that our enthusiasm, commitment, expertise and sheer joy come across loud and clear to our audience so that they feel compelled to explore further this repertoire with us and our fellow musicians.

See La Nuova Musica and David Bates in action in From Renaissance to Baroque on
Monday 13 December at 7.00pm

What Makes a Great Fable?

What do you think makes a great fable? We asked a whole host of people involved in Fables – A Film Opera (composers, directors, workshop leaders and members of our team) exactly that! This is what they said…

Discover more videos on our YouTube channel!