The Fantasy Orchestra

Sticky8th October 2013Uncategorisedcoloursandsounds

The Fantasy Orchestra is a community project led by Jesse D Vernon, based in Bristol and also in Paris. The Orchestra (motto: ‘more is more’) brings together 40+ musicians, professional and amateur, to create a kaleidoscopic symphonic brigade.

Their eclectic repertoire covers film soundtracks (Morricone, Barry, RD Burman), rock and pop favourites (Hendrix, Beatles, Bowie), and some more obscure treasures. Think psychedelic loveliness, rousing choral noise, and some choice costumes.

‘I can’t remember having such an entertaining, fabulous evening in ages! … Incredible!’
Christina S, Keynsham Music Festival 2016

‘For all the fun-filled antics the Bristol Fantasy Orchestra is actually a seriously brilliant musical experience.’
Bristol247, Bristol Harbourside Festival 2015

More testimonials here.

Find and follow us on Facebook!

Here’s a playlist from some of our performances:

Le Fantasy Orchestra vous invite à une relecture généreuse et bricolée de la musique orchestrale des années 50-60, cette musique conçue pour faire voyager l’auditeur au moyen de sa chaine stéréo Hi-Fidelity. Les compositeurs de musique de film et d’easy-listening réussissent alors le pari fou de téléscoper jazz, psychédélisme, world music et mélodies irrésistibles. Du Western-Spaghetti d’Ennio Morricone au Bollywood de RD Burman en passant par Jimi Hendrix, le Fantasy Orchestra vous propose une aventure musicale inoubliable ! Voici un playlist youtube:

Len at the Lantern

8th July 2018Events, Videoscoloursandsounds

On 8 February 2018 we did Len again, this time to a sold-out Colston Lantern.

Our evening showcasing the songs of Leonard Cohen featured vocal guests including Jimmy Goodrich, Lady Nade, Billie Bottle, Nuala Honan and Emily Breeze.

Here’s our own Rich Green from the night…

…and Davide Ariasso…

Other stuff we did in 2017

3rd July 2018Events, Videoscoloursandsounds

We got up to a lot in the second half of 2017. Here are some of the things.

14 August: The kick-off of the 10th anniversary of Luke Jerram’s ‘Play Me I’m Yours’ public piano project, in the Galleries, Broadmead:

15-17 August: Kids’ workshops, Colston Hall, culminating in a concert in the main auditorium.

18-20 August: Green Man Festival. We played every day on the Solar Stage in Einstein’s Garden:

16 September: Priston Festival:

23 September: Plymouth Arts Fest

7 October: Colston Hall:

And a show in All Hallows, Easton in November, and a Christmas show or two, and so on…

Fantasy Youth Orchestra Summer Workshops 2018

15th June 2018Events, workshopscoloursandsounds

The Fantasy Youth Orchestra Workshop “Rhythms Of The World”

age range – 10-18yrs

location – The Trinity Centre
dates – 30th July – 3rd Aug 2018

concert 1 – 5th august Trinity Centre

concert 2 – 18 august Colston Hall

Fresh from a month traveling in India, the Fantasy Orchestra present a week of music workshops aimed at young people who play instruments and can read music to a basic standard.

The repertoire will bring together music from all over the world including African, Indian, Turkish, American and European pieces with an emphasis on different cultures.

The workshops take place Mon 30 July – Fri 3 August, 2-4pm
The cost will be £15 for the week or £3 per 2 hour session (with concessions available – please ask).

On Sunday the 5th august workshop participants will be joined by regular members of the
Fantasy Orchestra for a performance celebrating Rhythms Of The World. There will be a 2nd performance at The Colston Halls Hoo Haa event on Sat 18th August

here’s a link to sign up:

https://goo.gl/forms/t3IORmluqXzszSFf2

hope to see you there, do pass the message on!
best wishes,
Jesse and all the Fantasy Orchestra team

Just like 1967 again

17th November 2017Eventscoloursandsounds

To mark the 50th anniversary of the Summer of Love, we premiered a new set of arrangements of tunes from ’67, including music by the Velvet Underground, Buffalo Springfield, the Doors and The Association.

With the help of several friends from our Paris chapter, we took over Kings Weston House on 17 June for our big summer event, featuring oil projectors, floral outfits and several different mini-ensembles.

Besides our main outdoor set, there were plenty of mellow happenings within. It all came to a storming climax around midnight from prog rock maestros Asteroid Deluxe.

Winter and Spring 2017 – what we got up to

19th October 2017Uncategorisedcoloursandsounds

How’s your year gone so far? Go anywhere nice this summer? Right, we’ve got some catching up to do.

Our 2017 gigs started with ‘Love In Outer Space’ on 18 February at All Hallows Hall, Easton. We debuted some new arrangements of tunes by Sun Ra, the Velvet Underground and the Andrews Sisters. To prove that it happened, there’s a handy montage on YouTube:

Then, among a few smaller gigs, we sent our crack Morricone Squad to the Salt Café on 8 April to play an evening of lovely soundtrack music; and our Wedding Corps was dispatched to Glastonbury on 26 May to gild a knuptial knees-up with psuitable psychedelic psounds. Oh, and we helped someone special propose to another someone special in a flashmob sort of a thing at Café Kino.

If you were at the Folk House on 9 April, you’ll know that we played a show there, too, and ditto 27 May in the Bear Pit:

That gets us up to the end of May – and we’d only just got started…

Ursula Le Guin Appreciation Day, 6 Aug 2016, Café Kino, Bristol

8th March 2017Events, workshopsMothers Of The Terrible Glow, Ursula K. Le Guincoloursandsounds

Fantasy Orchestra leader and guiding light, Jesse D Vernon, writes:

As committed-for-life fans of Ursula Le Guin, my wife Kate and I decided to start running appreciation days when we discovered some amazing music, composed by Todd Barton, to accompany one of her books, Always Coming Home. Published in 1985, about a cultural group of humans—the Kesh—who “might be going to have lived a long, long time from now in Northern California.” (p. i) Part novel, part textbook, part anthropologist’s record, Always Coming Home describes the life and culture of the Kesh people.

Todd Barton wrote a selection of folk songs and music which the Kesh might have been going to sing and they make wonderful listening and a great subject for a singing workshop and performance.

You can find the original compositions here:
http://toddbarton.com/music/music-of-the-kesh/

Our Event took place at Café Kino in Bristol, UK and we started off with the singing workshop.

Here are some recordings we made on the day:

http://soundcloud.com/the-fantasy-orchestra/sets/songs-of-the-kesh

We started with the singing workshop 2-4pm

5pm we watched the film “The Lathe Of Heaven” followed by a discussion lead by Sheryl Robinson and the Bristol Utopian Book Collective.

7pm We were treated to a talk by Helena Hoyle-King about maps featured in the novels of Ursula Le Guin. This was followed by a map making workshop lead by . Helena.

Here are some of the maps made:

8pm “Mothers Of The Terrible Glow” performed some of their sci-fi inspired instrumentals with excellent introductions, explanations and insights from Daniel Potter.

A seasonal threefer

7th March 2017Uncategorisedcoloursandsounds

We heralded the approach of the holiday season with a reprise of our Navidad Nuestra set at two shows on Saturday 17 December.

And earlier in the day we also managed to fit in a quick flashmob at the Bearpit for BBC Radio Bristol:

Christmas Flashmob!

What a lovely way to spread a bit of Christmas joy!! The Fantasy Orchestra – Bristol performed this brilliant flashmob of this top David Bowie track! Well done The Bristol Music Show for organising!

Posted by BBC Radio Bristol on Saturday, 17 December 2016

Then it was off to Filton Church in the afternoon, and Windmill Hill in the evening:

And then it was Christmas.

Mists and mellow tunefulness, Part Two

1st March 2017Uncategorisedcoloursandsounds

Autumn continued thuswise:

East Harptree Village Hall, 21 November – a smaller-scale gig after the epic Union Chapel and Trinity shows:

Colston Hall Foyer, 10 December – a Bowie set that was, frankly, a bit of a blinder:

Mists and mellow tunefulness, Part One

27th February 2017Uncategorisedcoloursandsounds

Autumn was a busy one.

We played our annual fixture at Priston on 17 September…

…followed by a workshop and show on 22 October at the Creative Arts School in Plymouth…

…and two supporting slots with This Is The Kit at Bristol’s Trinity Centre and the legendary Union Chapel in London, featuring Rachael Dadd (below left), Rozi Plain and TITK’s Kate Stables on vocals with us.