Constella Music Tenth Anniversary Concert

• Sofia Kirwan-Baez, soprano
• Hamish Brown, piano
• Toby Hughes, double bass
• Simon Wallfisch, baritone
• Philippa Mo, violin
• Ilona Suomalainen, accordion
• Sacha Rattle, clarinet
• Leo Geyer, conductor

Interdisciplinary music company, formally known as Constella OperaBallet, will celebrate a decade of daring and visually striking work with a special anniversary event at Sadler’s Wells. Celebrating their tenth anniversary, the company will rebrand as Constella Music, a reflection of the organisation's ever-growing repertoire encompassing the broad creative endeavors of its Artistic Director, award-winning composer and conductor Leo Geyer.

Constella Music brings diverse artistic projects to the public by engaging musicians and dancers in collaboration with visual artists, poets, historians, architects, scientists, and healthcare workers, to create new and unique work. Their new ventures for 2024 and beyond will include restoring the live cinema orchestra score for the seminal Ukrainian film Man with a Movie Camera, a television documentary about music of the Holocaust, and a collaboration with the Science Museum. Constella will also be continuing their acclaimed programme "Connecting Stars," that provides live and interactive virtual performances for care home residents, which to date has resulted in over 1,500 performances nationwide.

Dedicated to providing meaningful access to the arts, Constella are proud to mark this landmark year with a night of brand-new performances, showcasing their bespoke creative ethos.

Their celebration at Sadler's Wells will include a series of world premieres for the company, including London Portraits, an opera-ballet fused with jazz and street dance, written by Leo Geyer and choreographed by Taira Foo (Prisoner 466, The House of Lords; Carly's Exit, The San Francisco Dance Film Festival; Don't Give In, Snow Patrol). Geyer's Water Boatman for double-bass will also have its first public premiere, having been featured on the BBC, and will be performed by Toby Hughes (Wigmore Hall, St-Martin-in-the-Fields, The Edinburgh Festival).

Excerpts from Constella's new opera-ballet, the Orchestras of Auschwitz – featuring music written in concentration camps – will also be performed for the first time, a project that plays tribute to musicians murdered in Auschwitz. This will be performed by the Constella Orchestra, whose performers include Sacha Rattle (Wigmore Hall, Berlin Counterpoint, Mahler Chamber Orchestra), Ilona Suomalainen (Fiddler on the Roof, West End; BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra; Welsh National Opera), Philippa Mo (Barbican Centre, William Alwyn Festival, Shanghai SHAOC), and Simon Wallfisch (Weihnachtsoratorium, Brighton Early Music Festival; La Bohème, Teatro Verdi; Holocaust Memorial Day, BBC Two), grandson of Auschwitz survivor Anita Lasker-Wallfisch.

Constella Music's artistic director Leo Geyer comments, "This is an exceptionally special performance for me. Celebrating both a decade of work and a new vision that unites all my creative endeavours to take Constella through to the next decade!"

About Constella Music

Constella Music is the creative powerhouse behind the award-winning composer and conductor, Leo Geyer. Constella Music publishes and performs Geyer's work spanning opera, dance, film, concert music, and acts as production company for Geyer's increasing portfolio in broadcast presenting. Collaboration sits at the heart of Constella Music, encompassing pioneering professional musicians and dancers, and collaborations with visual artists, poets, historians, garden designers, architects, scientists, healthcare workers, and more. The driving energy behind Constella Music is harnessing the expressive power of music for social good.

About Sofia Kirwan-Baez, soprano

https://www.sofiakirwanbaez.com/

About Hamish Brown, piano

https://hamishbrown.org/

About Toby Hughes, double bass

https://www.toby-hughes.com/

About Simon Wallfisch, baritone

https://www.simonwallfisch.com/

About Philippa Mo, violin

https://www.philippamo.london/

About Ilona Suomalainen, accordion

https://www.accordionilona.com/

About Sacha Rattle, clarinet

https://www.sacharattle.com/

About Leo Geyer, conductor

https://www.leogeyer.co.uk/