Currently working on the music for Surge Orchestra at mac centre on 7th feb, 2015 as part of my Associate Artist position there. BOOK HERE This gig will see the string section get bigger and feature drummer Mark Sanders and pianist Steve Tromans as main improvisers.

So, I have been back in Birmingham since 18th June. My flight back from Chengdu was quite an emotional one, perhaps partly brought on by the free beer. Having set up a random listening list on the in flight entertainment I wondered what I would touch down to in London. As we glided over London […]

  I write poetry because this morning I woke trembling with fear what could I say in China? from “Improvisation in Beijing” by Allen Ginsberg   I have discovered that on 8th November 1985 Allen Ginsberg landed in Chongqing! If “Howl” has been recited here before it was by Ginsberg himself. So far the only […]

Many thanks for continuing to check out my blog and apologies for my delay in posting. The last two weeks got incredibly busy with rehearsals, meetings and gigs. Add to that an unsympathetic internet service and posting has proved near impossible. There is much I want to update and add to, especially the Sisyphe post, […]

Before I came to Chongqing I searched the internet to find out what I could about the Sichuan Opera and the Chongqing Troupe. good quality video proved difficult to find on youtube and vimeo but there were many good images. These were mainly  of masked performers and the wonderfully elaborate costumes. Due partly to the […]

Sisyphe bookstore is a cool vibrant bookstore in downtown Chongqing. There are lots of mostly young people hanging out there browsing for books and working at the many study areas available. Reminded me a bit of the ill fated Borders Bookshop. Sisyphe describes itself as a humanities books holding “cultural spiritual ideals”. The name comes […]