Gogmagogs

directors note

I am a theatre director and a classically trained musician who has tried at every opportunity to use music in my work. I have always believed that it is possible to communicate new, and often difficult music, to a wider audience, by revealing it’s innate power through a theatrical language. There is so much movement hidden in music and this connection is a sensual one which communicates on an immediate and subconscious level. My work therefore is to find those physical gestures that will unlock the meaning and the form of the music.

Whilst passionate about the performance of music I have attended many contemporary classical concerts and come away disheartened by the experience, finding the contact between audience and player very minimal and unengaging in comparison to the more popular forms of music. I felt convinced that the connection between the performer and spectator could be truly compelling and exhilarating, given a new approach.

Six years ago a group of young graduate musicians approached me, asking if I would work with them. Headed by Nell Catchpole, they were all highly talented string players who wanted to explore ways of playing music which made more demands on their skills as performers. I leapt at the opportunity and we held workshops over two weekends. None of us had the slightest clue as to the outcome. I remember looking at this circle of very expectant faces and thinking what the hell do I do now! I began by using a series of acting exercises, working with physical movement in relationship to the release of sound. We explored ways of playing the music which engaged the whole of the body and the personality of the performer. The discoveries were profoundly exciting.

My main objective was to take the tightness of their ensemble playing and their instinctive communication with each other, and to express it with the whole of their body, so that the physical ensemble became as sensitive as the musical one. I went on to explore the sheer theatrical presence and energy of the musician in relationship to the audience, using the whole of the performing space. My desire was to create a different relationship with the spectator, one that engages with and responds to them and above all gives them immense pleasure. These were some of the starting points.

A year later we began working with composers to see if we could create pieces where movement and music could effect each other, and be combined in some way. This required the composer to work in rehearsal with us, before writing the final piece, in order to find the musical and physical starting points. In response to the success of these experiments Nell and I formed the gogmagogs.

- Lucy Bailey

an astonishing virtuosic show that has pushed back the boundaries of classical music "

The Guardian