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The music composed for video games has come a long way. Once limited to simple tunes generated by early synthesizer chips, it now encompasses complex musical scores written for full orchestra. Video game music is now also considered a key access point to orchestral music among young people, and concert venues around the world are seeing new and diverse audiences attend live performances of gaming soundtracks. This could a development the classical music world will seek to build upon. A study by League of of American Orchestras suggests audiences for concerts have dropped by 26% since 2020, with young people being the minority of attendees. But the genre's not always been embraced by classical music lovers. In this episode, we'll hear about the origins of music written for video games; speaking to composers and orchestras who are embracing new audiences and exciting musical works. And we'll go backstage before opening night of a concert tour showcasing music from a major video game franchise. (Image: Gaming Prom – From 8-Bit to Infinity, The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Robert Ames, in the Royal Albert Hall, on 1 August 2022, as part of the BBC Proms.)Presented and produced by Sean Allsop
Henrietta Smith-Rolla, known professionally as Afrodeutsche, gives Caro C insights into her musical journey, from her introduction to the music industry in Manchester, finding her sound, getting signed to Skam Records and becoming a BBC 6 Music DJ with a prime-time Friday evening slot.Chapters00:00 - Introduction01:22 - BBC 6 Music04:05 - Becoming A Musician06:40 - Getting Signed To Skam10:11 - Equipment Used On Debut Album13:59 - Using Synth Pads16:19 - More Recent Projects18:19 - Creating Sample Packs For Spitfire20:11 - Working With The Kyma27:09 - Being Productive32:30 - Balancing Different ProjectsAfrodeutsche BiogAFRODEUTSCHE (Henrietta Smith-Rolla), is a British born Ghanaian/Russian/German artist, composer, producer, and DJ based in Manchester, UK. Her polyrhythmic compositions integrate a wide array of musical genres, including Afrofuturistic electro and techno, classical solo piano and Detroit legacy house; all memorable journeys into deep, abstracted sound.Praised by the Guardian for enacting a new wave of club music, named by Dummy Mag as one of 2019's most exciting artists, Afrodeutsche's spectacular debut album ‘Break Before Make' was released on the legendary Skam label in 2018, followed in 2019 with the debut release on Eclair Fifi's label River Rapid and a much praised remixes for artists as diverse as Marie Davidson (Ninja Tune), Joep Beving (Deutsche Grammophon) and Nathan Fake (Cambria Instruments).AFRODEUTSCHE has written and performed scores for films and documentaries including the BAFTA nominated ‘Kamali' about a young girl skateboarder in India, and a live re-score of renowned Earth documentary ‘Baraka' at The Royal Northern College of Music.The soundtrack for ‘Kamali' was released by SA Recordings in September 2020, alongside a sample library for Spitfire. The audio library illuminates much of Henrietta's writing process as a self-taught musician and composer. Inspired by her work with the Kyma sound design environment, it's a set of tools for composition based around colour. Her aim is to offer a new perspective and a sense of freedom for those delving into the library, no matter their level of experience.In the summer of 2022 she scored Bottega Veneta's SS2023 collection runway show, during Milan Fashion Week working, closely with head designer Matthieu Blazy throughout the process.In 2023 she premiered a new string ensemble commission for MIF at the prestigious new Factory International venue. Henrietta lent her own vocals and piano playing alongside a sting ensemble from the Manchester Camerata, arranged and conducted by Robert Ames.After years hosting a regular radio show ‘Black Forest' on the renowned NTS, AFRODEUTSCHE now leads BBC 6 Music's Friday night schedule with the Peoples Party, a peak time show that entrances listeners with her idiosyncratic combinations of crate dug party tunes from any point in the last 50 years, acid, rave, electro, breaks, footwork, ghetto tech and jacking house. In 2022 she has regularly presented BBC 6 Music live coverage of festivals at Glastonbury and Cardiff. At the end of the summer she curated the 6 Music stage for London festival ‘All Points East'. Her DJ style is a synthesis of Drexciyan and Underground Resistance-inspired selections, intercut with a variety of forward thinking UK techno such as Bola and Lego Feet. Forever evolving a fully live hardware show, AFRODEUTSCHE debuted it at the opening of CTM Festival at Berghain in February 2020, integrating classical piano and hardware along with visuals. https://linktr.ee/afrodeutscheCaro C BiogCaro C is an artist, engineer and teacher specialising in electronic music. Her self-produced fourth album 'Electric Mountain' is out now. Described as a "one-woman electronic avalanche" (BBC), Caro started making music thanks to being laid up whilst living in a double decker bus and listening to the likes of Warp Records in the late 1990's. This 'sonic enchantress' (BBC Radio 3) has now played in most of the cultural hotspots of her current hometown of Manchester, UK. Caro is also the instigator and project manager of electronic music charity Delia Derbyshire Day.URL: http://carocsound.com/Twitter: @carocsoundInst: @carocsoundFB: https://www.facebook.com/carocsound/
Jess Gillam and conductor Robert Ames share some of the tunes they love, with music by Philip Glass, Hildur Guðnadóttir, Makaya McCraven, Pauline Oliveros and J.S. Bach.Playlist: Philip Glass – Aguas da Amazonia - Madeira River [Uakti] Abel Selaocoe – Voices of Bantu Hildur Guðnadóttir - For Petra [London Contemporary Orchestra, Robert Ames] Tchaikovsky – The Tempest, Op. 18; VI. Andante non tanto [BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, Alpesh Chauhan] Makaya McCraven – In These Times Camille Saint-Saens – Le lever de la lune Pauline Oliveros / Stuart Dempster / Panaiotis - Suiren J.S. Bach – Aria from Orchestral Suite No. 3, BWV 1068 "Air on a G String" (Arr. Leopold Stokowski) [BBC Philharmonic, Matthias Bamert]
Galya Bisengalieva, Robert Ames, Actress and Claire M Singer discuss how instruments can affect composition, collaboration, and the relationship between music and its visual identity.Born into a musical family in Almaty, Kazakhstan, Kazakh-British musician Galya Bisengalieva won a music scholarship to study music in London, where she now lives. A classically trained violinist, composer and electronic musician, she released her debut solo EP in 2018, and debut album Aralkum in 2020. Her collaborators include Steve Reich, Laurie Spiegel, Sigur Rós, the National, Terry Riley and Thom Yorke, and she currently leads the London Contemporary Orchestra. She recently released her second album, Polygon.British conductor, composer, arranger and violist Robert Ames is the co-founder and artistic director of the London Contemporary Orchestra. His collaborators include Frank Ocean, Imogen Heap, Belle and Sebastian, Vivienne Westwood, DJ Shadow, Anna Meredith, Radiohead and Foals. His debut album, Change Ringing, came out in 2021.Innovative British electronic musician Actress released his debut single in 2004, and his debut album, Hazyville, followed in 2008. He recently released his seventh studio album, LXXXVIII, which he regards as the culmination of his career to date. Claire M Singer is a composer and performer of acoustic and electronic music, film and installations, known for her experimental approach to the organ. Her work draws inspiration from the dramatic landscape of her native Scotland. She released her debut album in 2016, and recently put out her fourth album, Saor.
Esta semana, en un nuevo capítulo de Rebelión Sónica, destacamos “ÁTTA”, el flamante disco de la banda islandesa Sigur Rós y el primero que publican en una década. Lanzado en plataformas de streaming el 16 de junio por el sello BMG y pronosticado en formatos físicos para el 01 de septiembre, “ÁTTA” es el octavo álbum de la agrupación, integrada actualmente por el cantante y guitarrista Jónsi, el bajista Georg Holm y el reintegrado tecladista Kjartan Sveinsson. El sucesor de “Kveikur” de 2013, fue anunciado solo unos días antes de su publicación, cuando el 12 de junio se compartió el video para el single ‘Blóðberg’. Grabado entre varios continentes (en el estudio Sundlaugin de la banda en Islandia, en el legendario Abbey Road en el Reino Unido y en varios estudios de Estados Unidos), “Átta” cuenta con la participación de la Orquesta Contemporánea de Londres, dirigida por Robert Ames, junto a los metales interpretados por sus antiguos colaboradores islandeses de la Brassgat í bala. “Sólo queríamos tener una batería mínima y que la música fuera realmente escasa, flotante y hermosa”, explica Jónsi. “Nos estamos haciendo mayores y más cínicos, así que yo sólo quería emocionarnos para que sintiéramos algo’”. Sveinsson está de acuerdo: “Queríamos permitirnos ser un poco dramáticos y llegar lejos con estos arreglos. El mundo necesita eso ahora mismo. Es difícil de describir, pero para mí todo está siempre abierto a la interpretación. La gente puede pensar y sentir como quiera”. “Es lo que la música pedía y hablaba por sí misma", revela Hólm. "Este disco suena como un álbum de Sigur Rós, pero es más introvertido que antes. Es muy expansivo con este sonido de cuerdas, pero mira más hacia dentro que hacia fuera”.
Kai Bird is the executive director and distinguished lecturer at the CUNY Graduate Center's Leon Levy Center for Biography. The author of best-selling books such as The Good Spy: The Life and Death of Robert Ames and The Outlier: The Unfinished Presidency of Jimmy Carter, Kai spoke with us about the Pulitzer Prize winning book he co-authored with the late Martin J. Sherwin, American Prometheus: The Triumph and Tragedy of J. Robert Oppenheimer.
Agents Scott and Cam welcome screenwriter F. Scott Frazier to the podcast to talk about bringing Vin Diesel back into action for xXx: Return of Xander Cage. He also shares stories about writing a fourth entry in the franchise, as well as adapting Kai Bird's 2014 book The Good Spy: The Life and Death of Robert Ames for the big screen. Become a SpyHards Patron and gain access to top secret "Agents in the Field" bonus episodes, movie commentaries and more! Pick up exclusive SpyHards merch, including the new "What Does Vargas Do?" t-shirt by @shaylayy, available only at Redbubble Social media: @spyhards View the NOC List and the Disavowed List at Letterboxd.com/spyhards Podcast artwork by Hannah Hughes.
Join us for a discussion with the New York Times bestselling author of The Gatekeepers, on his new book The Spymasters as we get a a remarkable, behind-the-scenes look at what it's like to run the world's most powerful intelligence agency, and how the CIA is often a crucial counterforce against presidents threatening to overstep the powers of their office. Chris Whipple tells the story of an agency that answers to the United States president alone, but whose activities—spying, espionage, and covert action—take place on every continent. The Spymasters resonates with themes from today's headlines. It is the story of how CIA directors have stood up to rogue presidents, from Richard Nixon to Donald Trump. It was Director Richard Helms's refusal to carry out the Watergate coverup that brought down Nixon; in the scandal over President Trump's shakedown of Ukraine's president, it was a CIA whistleblower who brought Trump to the verge of being removed from office. Most important, in times of national crisis, including deadly pandemics, the CIA director must be the president's, and the nation's, honest broker of information. Chris Whipple is one of the most accomplished multimedia journalists of our era: a writer, documentary filmmaker, and speaker. He is a multiple Peabody and Emmy Award–winning producer at CBS's 60 Minutes and ABC's Primetime. Kai Bird is an author and columnist who has written on numerous topics and won a Pulitzer Prize for his biography on Oppenheimer. His books have received critical acclaim and popular success, including The Good Spy: The Life and Death of Robert Ames, which was a New York Times best-seller. His memoir, Crossing Mandelbaum Gate: Coming of Age Between the Arabs and Israelis, was a finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Award and the Dayton Literary Peace Prize. To RSVP for upcoming events, visit our events page at: https://www.thecommongoodus.org --- This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app
In this month’s edition of the Ninja Tune Podcast, we sat down with London Contemporary Orchestra ahead of their most recent collaboration with Actress at the Barbican. Formed in 2008 by co-artistic directors Robert Ames and Hugh Brunt, the LCO has collaborated with a wide array of musicians, working with everyone from Radiohead to Frank Ocean, as well as recording scores for a host of films by directors such as Paul Thomas Anderson and Ridley Scott. We cover their previous work, what’s to come and their new collaborative album with Actress ‘LAGEOS’, which is out now. Please remember to rate and subscribe wherever you get your podcasts.
We discuss biographies this episode.Their power resides in their place in history. New facts emerge, new understandings reshape our understandings of the person. Biographies remind us the ways the present influences the past. Biographies we mentioned in this episode“Steve Jobs, Insanely Great” by Jesse Hartland“Jonas Salk, A Life,” by Charlotte DeCroes Jacobs“Daughters of the Samuri: A Journey From East and West and Back” Janice P. Nimura“Phillis Wheatley: Biography of a Genius in Bondage,” Vincent Carretta“A Good Spy: The Life and Death of Robert Ames,” by Kai Bird“The Bully Pulpit,” Doris Kearns Goodwin “Bolivar: Aerican Liberator” by Marie Arana“The Devil's Chessboard: Allen Dulles, the CIA, and the Rise of America's Secret Government,” by David Talbot“Crazy Rich: Power, Scandal, and Tragedy Inside the Johnson & Johnson Dynasty,”by Jerry Oppenheimer“Sons of Wichita: How the Koch Brothers Became America's Most Powerful and Private Dynasty” by Daniel Schulman“King of the World: Muhammed Ali and the Rise of an American Hero,” David Remnick“Catharine the Great: Portrait of a Woman,” Robert K. Massie
Aug. 30, 2014. Kai Bird appears at the 2014 Library of Congress National Book Festival in Washington, D.C. Speaker Biography: Award-winning author and journalist Kai Bird is best known for his biographies of political figures. Recognized with fellowships from the Thomas J. Watson, Alicia Patterson Journalism and Guggenheim foundations, Bird also co-wrote the Pulitzer Prize-winning biography "American Prometheus: The Triumph and Tragedy of J. Robert Oppenheimer." In his latest work, "The Good Spy: The Life and Death of Robert Ames" (Crown/Random House), Bird uncovers the legacy of a remarkable operative in the CIA who held influential and effective intelligence on the Middle East. Bird emphasizes Ames's key role by highlighting how his strategies of building strong relationships with Arab intelligence created the potential for lasting peace in the Middle East. "The Good Spy" ultimately describes the life of Ames and recounts his tragic death during the bombing of the American Embassy in Beirut. Bird's narrative leaves readers asking where U.S. relations with the Middle East might be today if Ames's strategies had been pursued. For transcript, captions, and more information, visit http://www.loc.gov/today/cyberlc/feature_wdesc.php?rec=6464
Pulitzer Prize- winning biographer Kai Bird gives the inside story of his compelling portrait of the remarkable life and death of one of the most important operatives in CIA history, Robert Ames. Through Bird’s personal connection to Ames’ family, he gained access to his personal correspondence and range of contacts. Eventually more than forty retired CIA and Mossad officers told Bird their memories of Ames. Those seasoned spies all seemed to feel that they had been waiting for someone to tell the incredible story of Bob Ames, and how he carefully cultivated his ten-year relationship with Ali Hassan Salameh, Yasir Arafat’s intelligence chief. This highly clandestine relationship between the CIA and the PLO planted the seeds for the Oslo peace process. Get the book: http://www.spymuseumstore.org/the-good-spy-book.html#.Vz3puPkrIdU