Howard Assembly Room May – July 2016
Howard Assembly Room
Welcome to spring and summer at the Howard Assembly Room!
JAZZ STANDARD: South African, American and UK jazz greats in 21st century explorations of jazz standards spanning styles, generations and continents. APOCALYPSE: Wagnerian film scores and spoken word bring the apocalypse to life, accompanying Opera North’s complete Ring cycle. YORKSHIRE FESTIVAL PRESENTS THE SONGLINES SERIES: Welcoming the Yorkshire Festival to the Howard Assembly Room with a jointly-programmed clutch of five exceptional shows.
FIND OUT FIRST, FAST AND FREE We are very grateful to the Emerald Foundation whose support enables us to offer such a varied and eclectic programme of performances and events.
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Xiu Xiu, October 2015 Photographer Amy Charles
JAZZ STANDARD Music Wednesday 4 May 7.45pm £20 Save 20%
Courtney Pine with Zoe Rahman
Song (the Ballad Book)
With his latest project, drawn from his 16th studio album, the great British jazz musician Courtney Pine plays the most intimate shows of his long and celebrated career. He takes to the stage playing bass clarinet, drawing magic from its ‘low-register purrs and ship’s-timber creakings, lustrous mid-tones and whistling upper range’ (The Guardian). He is joined by fellow Mercury nominee and MOBO Award-winning pianist Zoe Rahman, whose subtle and highly individual collaboration makes a perfect pairing in this celebration of timeless ballads.
‘Nothing short of breathtaking’ The Telegraph
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Box Office: 0844 848 2727 Book online: howardassemblyroom.co.uk
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Music Thursday 12 May 7.45pm £20
‘Sparkling pop gems and sobering country ballads’ Rolling Stone
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Teddy Thompson with Kelly Jones Support: Sunny Ozell On their debut album Little Windows, Teddy Thompson and American singer Kelly Jones give audiences views of the joys and sorrows of love and the vagaries of the human heart. The songs that they have written together capture complex emotions with simple honesty. You can hear the give and take, the beguiling imperfections, the depths of the human soul in their performances. After their first London show sold out in eight minutes and their Celtic Connections concert in Glasgow had to transfer from a small theatre to the 2,000 capacity Royal Concert Hall, Teddy and Kelly are looking forward to their first national tour together.
Box Office: 0844 848 2727
JAZZ STANDARD Music Saturday 14 May 7.45pm £14 Save 20% ‘...a powerful, slick and raucous new brand of funk.’ Jazzwise Magazine
Cory Henry
The Revival Project Multi-instrumentalist Cory Henry has a back catalogue worthy of a man twice his age and has recently stepped firmly into the limelight with Grammy Award-winning jazz-funk band Snarky Puppy. Known for harmonically rich organ playing, he seems to capture the breadth of the jazz and gospel idioms and produce something altogether new. He has worked with a host of stars, including P. Diddy, Kenny Garrett, Bruce Springsteen and Robert Glasper. His third album The Revival, an ode to the New York sound, was released in March. In association with Band on the Wall
Book online: howardassemblyroom.co.uk
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Music
Kronos Quartet
Tuesday 17 May 7.45pm £22.50
Over 40 years, San Francisco’s Grammy Award-winning Kronos Quartet has revolutionised the musical potential of the string quartet; innovating, collaborating and commissioning music from every corner of the globe. In their first ever performance in Leeds, they play a trademark range of exciting new music. The programme includes Terry Riley’s One Earth, One People, One Love, the world premiere of a new piece by Martin Green of Lau, commissioned by Kronos after they saw him in Lau-Land, works by Laurie Anderson and Komitas, and arrangements including The Who’s Baba O’Riley. It’s an honour to have the Kronos at the Howard Assembly Room for the most intimate date of their short national tour.
‘Exhilarating’ The Guardian
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Box Office: 0844 848 2727 Book online: howardassemblyroom.co.uk
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APOCALYPSE Words Wednesday 18 May 7.45pm £7.50
‘A writer of eloquence and passion.’ The Observer
George Monbiot
How Did We Get Into This Mess? George Monbiot is one of the most eloquent critics of today. In his latest book How Did We Get Into This Mess?, he brilliantly anatomises the state we are in: the devastation of our environment, the crisis of inequality, our obsessions with growth and profit, and the decline of the political debate over what to do. While his diagnosis of the problems in front of us is clear-sighted, he also develops solutions to challenge a politics of fear. Drawing from his latest work and his 2008 publication Bring on the Apocalypse, he both identifies and challenges the apocalyptic currents of contemporary times. Part of Liberty Lectures 2016, in association with the University of Leeds
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Box Office: 0844 848 2727
APOCALYPSE Film Friday 20 May 7.15pm £5* Unreserved seating Dir. Francis Ford Coppola, USA 1979, 153 mins. Cert 15. ‘Any opportunity to see it on the big screen should be gratefully grabbed’ The Telegraph *book both Apocalypse Now and Melancholia for £7.50 (not available online)
Apocalypse Now Apocalypse Now is Francis Ford Coppola’s stunning vision of man’s heart of darkness revealed through the madness of the Vietnam War. Captain Willard (Martin Sheen) receives orders to seek out a renegade military outpost led by Colonel Kurtz (Marlon Brando). Willard’s mission: ‘Terminate with extreme prejudice.’ An unforgettable, hallucinatory and harrowing depiction of men at war, the film is conceived on an epic visual scale, with legendary sequences set to music including Wagner’s Ride of the Valkyries. In surround sound. Introduced by Alan O'Leary, Director of Research and Innovation in the School of Languages, Cultures and Societies at the University of Leeds. DARE International Film Series in association with the University of Leeds
Book online: howardassemblyroom.co.uk
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APOCALYPSE Film Saturday 21 May 7.15pm £5* Unreserved seating Dir. Lars von Trier, Denmark/Sweden/ France/Germany 2011, 136 mins. Cert 15. *book both Apocalypse Now and Melancholia for £7.50 (not available online)
Melancholia A beautiful movie about the end of the world. Cannes Palme d’Or-winning Director, Lars von Trier, assembles a glittering Hollywood cast in his beautifully shot apocalyptic disaster movie, underscored by the prelude to Richard Wagner’s Tristan und Isolde. As Justine (Kirsten Dunst) arrives for her wedding reception in her sister’s mansion home, her big day reawakens a battle against her inner demons. At the same time Earth is threatened by an imminent collision with Planet Melancholia – whose presence becomes increasingly ominous as the film moves towards its truly spectacular finale. The film will be introduced by a guest speaker from the University of Leeds. DARE International Film Series in association with the University of Leeds
‘bold, visually enthralling, and emotionally seismic drama about the meaning of existence’
The Telegraph
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Box Office: 0844 848 2727 Book online: howardassemblyroom.co.uk
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APOCALYPSE
Events accompanying Opera North’s performance of Wagner’s epic Ring cycle at Leeds Town Hall. Installation Sunday 15 May –
Thursday 26 May Free, no ticket required
Room 700 in Leeds Central Library For opening times, see operanorth.co.uk
Box Office: 0844 848 2727 Book online: howardassemblyroom.co.uk For more information on Opera North's Ring cycle, visit ringcycle.co.uk
LEEDS CENTRAL LIBRARY
Words / Music
by Emma Critchley
Thursday 26 May 2.00pm – 5.00pm Free, tickets must be booked in advance
The water sinks down with them The water sinks down with them is a new film and sound installation by visual artist Emma Critchley, inspired by the opening bars of Richard Wagner’s Ring cycle. The installation acts as an immersive metaphor for the evolution of life itself, a journey from a pre-conscious golden age to conscious humanity. The film is set in the Rhine, the underwater space where Wagner chose to open and close his epic work. A timeless, unending yet ever-changing cosmos unfolds as the Rhine provides the fundamental rhythmic pulse of nature. Commissioned by Opera North Projects
Inside Opera: The Ring Few musical works loom as large in Western culture as Richard Wagner’s four-part Ring cycle. To accompany the performance of the complete cycle at Leeds Town Hall, Philip Kitcher, (Finding an Ending: Reflections on Wagner’s Ring) dives into the heart of the Ring. He draws out its philosophical significance in a subtle exploration of the problems of meaning and ending. He is joined by Dr. Martin Pickard, formerly Opera North’s Head of Music, who will explore the music of the Ring, with singers involved in the productions.
Participate Saturday 28 May 10.30am, 11.45am & 1.30pm £4 (£3 with a library card) Duration: 45 mins
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HOWARD ASSEMBLY ROOM
LEEDS CENTRAL LIBRARY
Gold, Gods and Giants Interactive music and storytelling workshop for families.
Around an imagined campfire we invite families into our specially-made indoor tent, to explore the stories and music from Wagner’s magical Ring cycle. 15
Music Friday 27 May 7.45pm £10 Save 20%
Laraaji
Day of Radiance Visionary ambient musician and composer Laraaji performs his Brian Eno-produced 1980 classic Ambient 3: Day of Radiance live on stage to coincide with the record's recent reissue on Glitterbeat Records.
‘At once contemplative and joyous...Day of Radiance established a template for the emerging New Age scene.‘ Uncut
Laraaji began playing music on the streets in the 1970s. Brian Eno saw him play one night in Washington Square Park and invited him to record an album. An uncharted synthesis of resonating zither textures, hammered rhythms and sound treatments, Day of Radiance pushed open many musical doors. Mining the ethereal spiritualism of late 70s New Age music, the album combines harmonic and rhythmic repetitions of minimalism with traditional sounds from India and Javan gamelan.
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Box Office: 0844 848 2727
JAZZ STANDARD Music Saturday 28 May 7.45pm £20
‘Masekela remains a musician of phenomenal grace and power; intricate and fiery on flugelhorn and still blessed with a voice that can strip the leaves from the trees’ The Independent
Hugh Masekela and Larry Willis Iconic South African musician Hugh Masekela is one of jazz’s great lyrical brass players, with the ability to tug at the heartstrings and feed the soul with music that ranges from jazz standards to his own era-defining songs. 2013 marked the release of a sumptuous series of duets with master pianist Larry Willis, that they perform together in Leeds, revisiting a friendship stretching back to 60s New York and through Masekela’s years of exile during apartheid.
Book online: howardassemblyroom.co.uk
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Music Wednesday 8 June 7.15pm £15 Save 20% ‘...chamber music royalty’ The Sunday Times Part of the Out of the Shadows Festival from ‘Performing the Jewish Archive’
The Nash Ensemble Music in the Terezín Ghetto
Described as perhaps the most ‘polished, stylish, characterful chamber group on the planet’ (Herald Scotland), The Nash Ensemble presents music from the Terezín ghetto by Gideon Klein, Viktor Ullman, and Hans Krása, alongside Smetana’s The Bartered Bride Overture, which was frequently performed in Terezín. The Czech town of Terezín (Theresienstadt) gained notoriety as a World War II Nazi holding camp for Jewish prisoners, mostly destined for the death camps. Despite horrific conditions, the large number of musicians, actors and artists imprisoned there gave rise to an extraordinary cultural life for a few short years, marked in this programme for piano, flute, clarinet and string quartet.
Music Thursday 9 June 7.45pm £12.50 Save 20% ‘Fairfield's music seems inexorably real and entirely necessary’ Pitchfork
Frank Fairfield and Alasdair Roberts Frank Fairfield is a sensation: a banjo picker, guitarist and fiddler like no other. His soaring ballads, ranging from arcane, rambling hillbilly melodies to dark, murderous folklore, are delivered in his distinctive reedy tenor with an utterly irresistible American Primitive quality. Having taken a break from the international touring scene, we are honoured to see Frank return to Leeds with a unique show. Paired with Frank, the inimitable Scottish folk singer and gifted collaborator Alasdair Roberts brings his very different take on the epic and mythic in traditional song from Scotland and its isles. This unique and specially curated show of epic story ballads is not to be missed.
Free pre-show talk at 6.15pm: Creativity in Adversity with Dr David Fligg, ticket required. 18
Box Office: 0844 848 2727
Book online: howardassemblyroom.co.uk
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YORKSHIRE FESTIVAL PRESENTS THE SONGLINES SERIES
Words Friday 10 June 7.45pm £7.50 ‘Alibhai-Brown has opened up an overdue discussion about national pride, cohesiveness and the symbiotic connection, often overlooked, yet so necessary if we are to live in harmony on this island. For this reason alone, such a brave and optimistic book, with its effervescent style, must surely be celebrated.’ The Independent 20
Yasmin Alibhai-Brown Exotic England
England is a small country on a small island, but its inhabitants have always had a boundless curiosity about the world, enticed by other civilizations. While this appetite for adventure has often been tainted by aggression and exploitation, the English have also had a capacity to soak up ideas and weave them into life back home. Today, when England is not synonymous with Britain, and the question of how England relates to Europe and the world is ever more prominent, journalist for the Sunday Times and Radio 4 commentator Yasmin Alibhai-Brown offers an invigorating perspective on what ‘Englishness’ really means.
Music
Mbongwana Star
Wednesday 22 June 7.45pm £15
Rising from the ashes of the Congolese Band Staff Benda Bilili, Mbongwana Star formed in 2015 with a sound, and an album From Kinshasa, unlike anything that went before in the fertile Congolese music scene. Echoing rhythm patterns, heavily distorted vocals and feedback mix with gorgeous melodies and a distinctive Congolese lilt.
‘Astonishing’ The Independent
Parisian producer Liam Farrell, Coco Ngambali and Theo Nzonza have produced an album that pulls together traditional Congolese rhythms with a big fistful of European post-punk bass and electronics to glorious, unpredictable and uncategorisable effect.
Part of Liberty Lectures 2016, in association with the University of Leeds Box Office: 0844 848 2727
Book online: howardassemblyroom.co.uk
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YORKSHIRE FESTIVAL PRESENTS THE SONGLINES SERIES
Music Thursday 23 June 7.45pm £20
‘Rokia rocks, and it’s a fine and bracing thing to hear’ The Independent on Sunday
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Rokia Traoré Né So
Rokia Traoré’s first appearance at the Howard Assembly Room in 2013 was one of the most electrifying performances ever seen in the venue. Her highly anticipated return follows the release of her new album Né So, a follow up to 2013’s ecstatically received Beautiful Africa. Her music draws widely from West African music, rock and pop. Powerful riffs and unrelenting refrains mix with soulful ballads, a glorious voice and exhilarating stage presence. Currently living between Bamako, Brussels and Paris, Traoré’s artistic collaborators have included Kronos Quartet, Damon Albarn, Devendra Banhart, and John Paul Jones.
Box Office: 0844 848 2727
Music Friday 24 June 7.45pm £15 Save 20% ‘...some of the most chilling, bone-shiveringly beautiful compositions you’ll hear all year’ The Line of Best Fit on album Abandoned City
Hauschka
With special guests Known for his compelling live performances, Hauschka channels the spirit of John Cage’s prepared piano. Opening up his instrument, he playfully performs public operations on its innards using ping pong balls and gaffer tape in search of new colours and textures. Lately he has taken inspiration from house and techno and employed electronic processing to take these sounds even further from their acoustic origins. For his return to the Howard Assembly Room, the entrancing German experimental pianist brings together artists who are opening up different pathways through a new musical zone where electronica, ambient, post-classical and song meet.
Book online: howardassemblyroom.co.uk
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YORKSHIRE FESTIVAL PRESENTS THE SONGLINES SERIES
Music
A Hawk and A Hacksaw
Music
Wednesday 29 June 7.45pm £15
With support
Saturday 2 July 7.45pm £17.50
‘So ebullient and full of character that by the time it’s over you feel like you’ve caught a glimpse of the type of joyful festivity that always feels most rewarding after a long journey’ Pitchfork
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For the last 15 years A Hawk and A Hacksaw, a band from New Mexico, have immersed themselves deeply in the musical traditions of Eastern Europe, Russia and Turkey, resulting in a sound full of colour, grandeur and gut-wrenching romance. The richness of dance numbers featuring accordion and violin contrasts with eerie and finely balanced ballads and dulcimer-laden instrumentals. Accordionist and drummer Jeremy Barnes, who has spent the last two years touring with indie rock legends Neutral Milk Hotel, and violinist Heather Trost, come back together in 2016 with new material and tracks from their back catalogue, ahead of a new album.
Box Office: 0844 848 2727
Save 20% ‘...when Eliza Carthy is at her best there’s no one better. And this is Eliza Carthy at her best.’ fRoots
Eliza Carthy and The Wayward Band Her fiddle-playing soaring with visceral, intricate melody; her voice charged with deep soul and emotion; an eleven-piece band of living legends by her side: Eliza Carthy’s Wayward Tour has been a call-to-arms. She’s back, delivering a set of traditional material drawn from her stunning career and chart topping ‘Best Of’ double album, Wayward Daughter. Bursting with some of the finest players in recent times, The Wayward Band brings musicians together from Bellowhead, Mawkin, Blowzabella, Edward II, Emily Portman Trio, Peatbog Fairies, Dreams of Tall Buildings and Tyde.
Book online: howardassemblyroom.co.uk
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Tickets
The information in this brochure is published in good faith, but changes may occasionally be necessary. In the event of unforeseen circumstances Opera North reserves the right to change the performers or performance.
Box Office: 0844 848 2727*
Opening hours: Mon–Sat 10.00am–8.00pm howardassemblyroom.co.uk *Calls will cost 7p per minute plus your telephone company’s access charge.
All events have reserved seating unless otherwise stated. There is £1 charge for posting out tickets.
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Howard Assembly Room Entrance via Leeds Grand Theatre 46 New Briggate, Leeds LS1 6NU
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Photographs: Introduction, Xiu Xiu (pg 2 – 3) by Amy Charles, Kronos Quartet (pg 8) by Jay Blakesberg, Melancholia (pg 12 – 13) by Christian Gesinaes, The water sinks down with them (pg 14 – 15) by Emma Critchley, Laraaji (pg 16) by Liam Ricketts, The Nash Ensemble (pg 18) by Hanya Chlala / Arena PAL, Mbongwana Star (pg 21) by Florent de La Tullaye, Rokia Traoré (pg 22) by Danny Willems, Hauschka (pg 23) by Mareike Foecking. Supporter credits: Activities and performances for families supported by The Liz and Terry Bramall Foundation. Ring cycle 2016: Financially supported by the Opera North Future Fund, The Ring Fellowship 2016, Ring Circle.
Retired Over 60, Leeds Card Holders: 10% off 18 and under, Pension Credit, JSA, Income Support, Incapacity Benefit, Disabled People (essential carer free), Leeds Card Extra: 25% off Under 30, Full-Time Students: £3 off Join Opera North’s free Under 30s scheme and receive ticket offers and exclusive invitations to events. Sign up at: operanorth.co.uk/under-30s All discounts are subject to availability and do not apply to tickets of £7.50 or less. Only one discount per ticket. Cannot be used retrospectively. Proof of status must be shown. Not all discounts available online. Access: Howard Assembly Room is committed to improving access for our audiences and aims to ensure that disabled visitors have an enjoyable experience. We have an infra-red system for visitors with hearing impairments, wheelchair spaces and lift access through Leeds Grand Theatre. We also welcome guide dogs and hearing dogs. Please note that disability concessions and wheelchair spaces cannot be booked online - please call 0844 848 2727 or book in person so Box Office staff can advise on how we can meet your specific access needs. Times displayed are the actual start of the performance.
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Howard Assembly Room
May
Music 4 Music 12 Music 14 Music 17 18 Words 20 Film 21 Film 26 Words / Music 27 Music 28 Music
Courtney Pine with Zoe Rahman 7.45pm Teddy Thompson with Kelly Jones 7.45pm Cory Henry 7.45pm Kronos Quartet 7.45pm George Monbiot 7.45pm Apocalypse Now 7.15pm Melancholia 7.15pm Inside Opera: The Ring 2.00pm Laraaji 7.45pm Hugh Masekela and Larry Willis 7.45pm
June 8 Music 9 Music 10 Words 22 Music 23 Music 24 Music 29 Music
The Nash Ensemble Frank Fairfield and Alasdair Roberts Yasmin Alibhai-Brown Mbongwana Star Rokia Traoré Hauschka A Hawk and A Hacksaw
7.15pm 7.45pm 7.45pm 7.45pm 7.45pm 7.45pm 7.45pm
Eliza Carthy and The Wayward Band
7.45pm
July Music 2
Box Office: 0844 848 2727 howardassemblyroom.co.uk Calls will cost 7p per minute plus your telephone company’s access charge Registered Charity No. 511726
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