Sage Gateshead is delighted to open its doors for this autumn’s incredible celebration of music.
A busy and vibrant time for the music charity, it is set to host over 100 events showcasing the best classical and contemporary music and offer more than 50 different classes for people of all ages and stages of participation in music.
Sage Gateshead’s autumn line-up is once again a rich and diverse opportunity to create, listen to and celebrate music, set to enthuse new and long-standing fans alike.
Celebrating its first full season since the pandemic, Royal Northern Sinfonia (RNS) returns with an array of events including the opening of the classical season with Mozart’s masterpiece Mass in C minor, conducted by Principal Conductor Dinis Sousa. As announced earlier, this concert will include a dedication to the memory of Lars Vogt who served as music director from 2015 – 2020 and died recently.
The concert will now also mark the passing of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II.
Another unmissable performance sees David Bowie’s music as reimagined by Philip Glass in RNS Plays Glass: The Bowie Symphonies.
The relationship between spirituality and music will be a recurring theme this season. As the Lindisfarne Gospels return to the North East, conductor James Weeks, Royal Northern Sinfonia and one of Britain’s greatest living singers – Dame Sarah Connolly – come together to explore centuries of spirituality in sounds, words and images.
Concerts on 17 and 23 September will be preceded by special, free events featuring a panel of experts discussing the theme of ‘music and spirituality’ on the Concourse of Sage Gateshead.
For those wanting to enjoy RNS from the comfort of their homes, highlights of the RNS season are livestreamed, and there is a new RNS YouTube channel featuring performances, livestream excerpts, interviews, behind the scenes features and short films.
Sage Gateshead will continue bringing visiting world-class music to audiences in the North East with a classical music showcase featuring performances from great pianists such as Angela Hewitt, Sir Stephen Hough, and Benjamin Grosvenor, renowned orchestras including the London Philharmonic Orchestra, the Belgian National Orchestra, and the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra, and many other exceptional guest artists.
Contemporary music at Sage Gateshead continues to bring together music lovers from across genres. The autumn line-up includes some incredible performances from, Madeleine Peyroux, Penguin Café, Kate Bush Live-e-oke, Witch n’Monk: Unravelling the Mind, Soumik Datta, Brass in Concert, and William Basinski. Sage Gateshead also looks forward to sharing the music of RJ Thompson, Fay Hield, Don McLean, Laura Jurd and Tom Chaplin with audiences over the coming months.
Sage Gateshead is an international music centre for the North East and wider North, and through music, creative learning and artist development demonstrates what music can achieve for communities.
Along with bringing great artists to the region, Sage Gateshead is committed to helping develop diverse music here in the North East. Joining Sage Gateshead’s Artists in Residence programme this month, an initiative supporting four developing musicians each year, are Anna Hughes, Ceitidh Mac, Kerrin Tatman and Late Girl. They will all create work we can hear and enjoy next summer.
Sage Gateshead supports local people to be creative, to develop a passion for music and put music at the heart of communities. Its highly successful Make Music programme returns on Thursday, September 22, ready to welcome 400 people weekly to its adult and family classes. Among these are exciting new classes such as Nu-Groove Brass Band, which combines the traditions of the original New Orleans brass bands with contemporary styles and sounds from R&B and Hip Hop bringing funky soul and swing to the banks of the Tyne. Intermediate Sax is the perfect class to improve and develop Saxophone skills in a fun and relaxed group, covering a broad range of music including Pop, Jazz, Swing and Blues. Swing Band offers the perfect opportunity to be part of an ensemble dedicated to bringing the fantastic sounds of the big bands and swing bands to the North East.
For people unable to get to the building, a selection of these classes continue online, and a new selection of Make Music On Demand lessons launch this month to help people enjoy learning music from home at their own pace.
September also sees the return of Sage Gateshead’s Young Musicians programme, providing 350 children with the best musical educational experiences. The Centre for Advanced Training offers seven programmes spanning classical, folk, popular and contemporary styles, and delivers musical excellence for ambitious young musicians aged 10-19. Youth Ensembles welcome musicians aged 13-19 committed to honing their playing and singing skills as part of any of the eight groups offered. The Foundation and Step Up programmes include six classes for young musicians aged 4-14 and provide an exciting way to learn and develop for the complete beginner.
Sage Gateshead continues to navigate the aftermath of what was one of the toughest ever periods in history for culture. The charity will continue delivering the benefits of music for as many as possible at Sage Gateshead, in local schools and through its partnerships across the region.
The charity is currently in the third year of a three-year campaign to support music-making through the pandemic into recovery and welcomes any donations towards the £1million still needed to deliver its programme over the next twelve months. Please visit sagegateshead.com/fundraisingcampaign for details.
