The Fantasy Orchestra are going back to their roots with a celebration of the film music of Spaghetti-Western composer Ennio Morricone – featuring such delights as The Good, The Bad and the Ugly and the beautiful Ecstasy of Gold.
The Fantasy Orchestra is coming to Cheltenham Literature Festival for another of our celebrated tributes to the life and music of Leonard Cohen. Featuring a range of Cohen’s most popular tunes performed by the orchestra with a range of guest singers.
What: We’re busking by the Aladdin Sane Wallace on the 24th August!
When: Friday 24th August , 6pm
Where: Wapping Wharf, Bristol
Tickets: Free!
The Wapping Wharf area forms part of the Gromit Unleashed 2 trail , which consists of dozens of sculptures from Aardman’s famous Wallace and Gromit series dotted around the city in aid of the Grand Appeal.
Artist Carys Ink’s Bowie-themed Space Oddi-tea Wallace sculpture is located at Wapping Wharf until September 2 and is the inspiration behind both of the Bowie music fundraiser.
Bristol’s very own Fantasy Orchestra will be performing a selection of Bowie’s early songs on August 24, in keeping with the Wallace sculpture’s Aladdin Sane lightning bolt.
Here is a taste of what to expect – the orchestra’s rendition of Life on Mars from our recent Valley Fest appearance:
The performance will take place at 6pm on August 24 next to the sculpture, in front of Portside Gallery and Brothers We Stand.
In association with Bath Film Festival and in promotion of the F-Rating – a rating awarded to films either directed or written by a woman – the orchestra played a pair of gigs, both at Colston Hall’s Lantern and in Stroud’s Goods Shed.
The music performed was written entirely by women and included works by Joni Mitchell, The Roches, Connie Converse, Ivor Cutler (close enough!), Beyonce, and P. J. Harvey. The orchestra was also joined by special guests Rita Lynch and Djanan Turnan performing arrangements of their own songs.
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.
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
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.
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.
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.
