Tag: Collaboration

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Test-pitting Live-to-Air on Radiophrenia

Zoë Strachan and I are delighted to be performing Test-pitting live-to-air from the Radiophrenia Glasgow studio on Friday 18th April 2025 at 3pm.

Tune in at 87.9fm or online at https://radiophrenia.scot/listen/ 

Test-pitting is an evolving practice that gestures towards an archaeological process – delving into a site of enquiry to reveal layers of activity, fragmented artefacts, traces of presence. The emerging palimpsest of sound re-imagines lines of connection across time and place, between inner and outer ecologies.

For this Radiophrenia performance, we would like to thank the Scottish Environmental Protection Agency for the live river flow data used in the performance.

We first developed Test-pitting during a collaborative residency at Glasgow Project Room in 2022, which concluded with a public performance of work-in-progress (pictured above).

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Memory Dream Encounter 2 on Radiophrenia

I’m delighted to share that Memory Dream Encounter 2 programme will have it’s premiere broadcast on Radiophrenia on Thursday 10th April 2025 at 9.45 am. Listen at radiophrenia.scot

The composers/artists and works in programme order are:
Clara de Asis – Compass
Go Sing – Casual Friday
Liew Niyomkarn – Third Place
Nichola Scrutton – Hues
Ryoko Akama – Sounding

Memory Dream Encounter 2 is a second series of micro-commissions that I curated in 2023 following the success of the first series in 2021. The invite was to produce a short sound work – up to 3 mins – as a free response to this image I took during a residency I had a Tramway Glasgow in 2023. Many thanks to everyone for being involved. Enjoy!

Micro-commissions supported by Creative Scotland

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Sonic Bothy Charity Updates Dec 24

I work freelance with Sonic Bothy inclusive music/arts charity (2013-current) and occasionally post an update of our activities. Please visit Sonic Bothy’s website for detailed information about the charity’s work, team, community, and programmes. Here’s a link to donate to Sonic Bothy, if that’s of interest – to help continue its work and reach more people. www.sonicbothy.co.uk/donate

Sonic Bothy Ensemble

This November (2024) we were excited to perform twice – at the Glad Cafe for 1.5 Months on 14th, and at CCA Glasgow as part of GIOfest on the 30th. We premiered two new works – Public Inconvenience and Feed.Back. More updates on those on Sonic Bothy’s website and socials.

In 2023, Sonic Bothy Ensemble won the Musicians’ Union Award for New Music Performer/s at the Scottish Awards for New Music for our performance film Verbaaaaatim, which premiered at Tectonics Festival, Glasgow in 2021.

Sessions & Projects

Sonic Bothy has been busy with various strands of activity – I’m delighted to have been co-facilitator on a range of Open Sessions, a Rural Project with Strathearn Arts in Crieff (2023) ; and a new Hospice Project in collaboration with The Art Room, Prince and Princess of Wales Hospice, and young people in palliative care (2024).

In November 2024, I co-presented at the 5th Annual International Symposium for the Arts in Palliative Care (with Caroline Hussey) , which took place at St Columba’s Hospice in Edinburgh.

Sonic Bothy Ensemble Album Fields

Sonic Bothy Ensemble’s debut album Fields is still available at Bandcamp in hard copy and digital formats…https://sonicbothy.bandcamp.com/album/fields

More updates in 2025…

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International Symposium – Arts in Palliative Care

I was delighted to co-present at the 5th Annual International Symposium for the Arts in Palliative Care at St Columba’s Hospice, Edinburgh in November 2024. Caroline Hussey and I shared some reflections on our sound and performance project working with young adults at the Prince and Princess of Wales Hospice in Glasgow, which took place earlier in 2024. The project was a new collaboration between Sonic Bothy inclusive music/arts charity and The Art Room at the Hospice.

The theme of the Symposium was “Creative health care and dying” and our presentation title was:

Exploring sound and performance in sensory-based work with young people transitioning from paediatric to adult palliative care services: Some reflections.

More details on the Symposium and the presenters and guests is archived at:

https://stcolumbashospice.org.uk/support-for-you/patient-care-services/wellbeing-service/arts-service/arts-symposium-2024

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Night Vision at SOUND Festival

Details

Date and Time: Thursday 26th October 2023 at 8.30 PM
Venue: The Lemon Tree, 5 West North St, Aberdeen AB24, Scotland

Delighted to be performing Night Vision in the 2023 SOUND Festival. More information and book tickets at:
https://sound-scotland.co.uk/event/night-vision


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Duo Robertson/Scrutton at Old Hairdresser’s

Ali Robertson and I will be performing a duo in a stellar line-up as part of Rob Churm’s event at:

The Old Hairdresser’s, Glasgow
On Friday 6th October 2023

More information and tickets at:

http://www.theoldhairdressers.com/?events=sloth-racket-l-ali-roberts-nichola-scrutton-duo-dome-riders

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Lying Over Under Another Performances

Doors Open Day University of Glasgow Archives and Special Collections

11th September 2023 – Zoë and I perform Lying Over Under Another in the Archives and Special Collections at University of Glasgow. Some scrapbooks will be displayed after the performance during a Q&A exploring how they inform the palimpsest that we create in our sound art collaborations. More info and book tickets at: https://glasgowdoorsopendays.org.uk/in_person_event/lying-over-under-another-performance-followed-by-qa/

Radiophrenia

2nd September 2023 – We are delighted that Lying Over Under Another had its premiere on Saturday 2nd September as a live-to-air broadcast on Radiiophrenia direct from the Creative Lab in the CCA Glasgow. Big thanks to the Radiophrenia team for making it a smooth and special sail on the airwaves as always!

Lying Over Under Another is supported by the Edwin Morgan Trust through The Second Life Award.

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New release with Ali Roberston / Chocolate Monk

Delighted that recordings made via the internet during lockdown 2021 by Ali Robertson and me have been released by the consistently wonderful Chocolate Monk.

The always excellent Chocolate Monk has turned this collaborative effort into a limited edition of 60 limited edition CD-Rs with gorgeous artwork by Karen Constance. You can get them at: https://chocolatemonk.co.uk/available.html

The Longest Forty Miles

“The last train is at 11:30pm and I wouldnae recommend the night bus. It’ll be full of Lothians troglodytes, Cumbernauld carbuncles and folks what like their improv idiomatic. Best hop in our taxi. It willnae be cheap and, with two drivers pulling in opposite directions on the same wheel, you’ll be unsure which way is up let alone which is East or West. Ensure you’re wearing your seat belt on this tour of the Scottish Central Belt as your escorts are predisposed to unleashing belters for strings, gobs & kerfuffle and you’ll get pure pelters if you dinnae subscribe to their version of the Highway Code.”

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Night Vision Residency at Tramway

Residency 5th – 9th June 2023

Night Vision has several iterations underway through 2023, including an album, a performance and a film.

I’m working on the film with cinematographer Kirstin McMahon, and the Tramway residency is a space to explore additional visual/sound materials.

Team for Residency

Director: Nichola Scrutton
Cinematographer: Kirstin McMahon
Technical / SM: Jack Wrigley
Production Manager: Nick Millar
Producer: Nichola Scrutton

Additional thanks to performers – Alison Peebles, Ian Spink, Louise Montgomery, Nerea Bello, Belle Jones, to stand-in Deen Fredericks, and to Stevie Jones for sound recording experiments.

Many thanks to Tramway for supporting Night Vision, and to the super-helpful crew.

Main image: Nichola Scrutton © Julie Broadfoot

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Guest Artist at GLE4M Festival


Delighted to be a guest artist at GLE4M Festival at Queen Margaret Union, University of Glasgow – Ali Robertson joined me for a duo improvisation in the evening event on 25th May 2023.

“GLE4M 2023 returns with two days of concerts and specially-curated listening spaces in and around the Queen Margaret Union, University of Glasgow. The festival is a collaboration between the 4M netlabel and The Dear Green Bothy, which focusses on environmentally-conscious arts practices working at the intersection of technology and sustainability.”

Read more at: https://deargreenbothy.gla.ac.uk/event/gle4m-sustainability-resilience-stability/

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Night Vision at GOMA Glasgow

A second performance of Night Vision at the Gallery of Modern Art (GoMA) Glasgow on Sat 20th May at 3 pm.

Read more at the GoMA Blog

Vocal Performers: Alison Peebles, Louise Montgomery, Ian Spink, Nerea Bello, Belle Jones.
Director/conductor: Nichola Scrutton
Live Sound: Stevie Jones
Outside Eye: Nicholas Bone
Producer: Nichola Scrutton

Many thanks to Curator/Producer Katie Bruce, and GOMA
Night Vision is supported by Creative Scotland and Glasgow Life-Glasgow Museums
MAIN IMAGE: pre-performance of Night Vision at GoMA, 20th May 2023 Photo. © Julie Broadfoot

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Night Vision Released on Bandcamp

The Night Vision album is now available to buy on Bandcamp in both limited edition CD and digital formats.

https://nicholascrutton.bandcamp.com/album/night-vision

Night Vision is a project I’m working on through 2023, and it has several iterations. At the core of Night Vision is a large body of text written in the middle of the night lying down in a semi-conscious state over a two-year period – a very different approach for me as a composer and artist. 

On the album, excerpts are performed by five vocalists in chronological order, set in a soundscape I composed with ensemble voices and my own voice/studio recordings.

Vocal performers on the release are:
Alison Peebles, Louise Montgomery, Nalini Chetty, Ian Spink and Mairi Morrison.

The live voices were recorded by Jim McEwan at Solas Sound Studios. All tracks were mixed and mastered by Jim McEwan at Bark Bark Dog Studios.

Many thanks to Sarah Praill for the cover design, which includes a few drawings/marks from the original journals.

Night Vision is supported by Creative Scotland.

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Night Vision at CCA Glasgow

The world premiere of Night Vision was at the CCA Glasgow in the main theatre on Friday 28th April 2023.

Details of the event are listed at:
https://www.cca-glasgow.com/programme/night-vision

Night Vision is a contemplative, dynamic, ensemble performance – a vocal sound work that crosses territory between concert, theatre, live art, visual art.

Night Vision live is one of various iterations of the work being produced in 2023. This CCA performance was filmed live, with cinematographer Kirstin McMahon and a roving camera part of the performance.

Vocal Performers: Alison Peebles, Louise Montgomery, Ian Spink, Nerea Bello, Belle Jones.
Director/conductor: Nichola Scrutton
Cinematographer: Kirstin McMahon
Outside Eye: Nicholas Bone
Producer: Nichola Scrutton

Many thanks to all at the CCA.
Many thanks to Creative Scotland, and to everyone who has supported Night Vision.

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Lying Over Under Another with Zoë Strachan

Lying Over Under Another is a collaborative sound performance with Zoë Strachan.

We were absolutely delighted to have been selected for a Second Life Award by the Edwin Morgan Trust to research, develop and produce the work through 2023. https://edwinmorgantrust.com/2022/10/14/nichola-scrutton-and-zoe-strachan-lying-over-under-another/

Responding to the visual richness of Edwin Morgan’s scrapbooks, held in Archives and Special Collections, we reimagine the scrapbooking and research process through sound and gesture. This improvised performance combines recorded and live sound with spoken word to re-present the diverse materials Morgan collected as bodies (entities) in relation to each other; offering new connections that may be physical, emotional, psychical. Elements of verbal disintegration and moments of absurdity and humour echo Morgan’s own poetic practice and its rootedness in the city of Glasgow.

Supported by the Edwin Morgan Trust through The Second Life Award.

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New Worlds with Martin O’Connor

Image © Nichola Scrutton

New Worlds is a spoken word / sound composition created with writer Martin O’Connor in Autumn 2022. The piece weaves together recordings from Your Voice in Greenock, Inverclyde, Martin’s poems, field and other recordings.

Read more about the project and listen to New Worlds at: http://www.martinoconnor.info/new-worlds.html

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Night Vision 2023 – Creative Scotland Open Fund

Absolutely thrilled to receive an award from the Creative Scotland Open Fund to produce my Night Vision project in 2023. I’ll be sharing various updates along the way. Sign up for updates at Newsletter

Many thanks to everyone who’s supported the development of Night Vision.

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Second Life Award – Edwin Morgan Trust

Lying Over Under Another – a collaboration with Zoë Strachan

Really delighted to have been selected for a Second Life Award with Zoë Strachan – thank you so much to the  Edwin Morgan Trust for such a fantastic opportunity to develop our collaborative practice and make new work! More info to follow…

Read more about the selected projects at: https://edwinmorgantrust.com/the-second-life-awards-2023/

In case it’s of interest, sign up for updates at Newsletter …

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Night Vision

2022-23 – Phase 2

I’m thrilled to say that I have been awarded Creative Scotland funding for the Night Vision project over 2022-23.

As part of a general website overhaul, I have temporarily removed background information, credits and plans for Night Vision so I can update all the details.

In the meantime, I’ll be posting news about select performances and a recording, to be released first on Bandcamp in early April and then across all music platforms on 28th April so please do connect / follow for updates. Many thanks.

Many thanks indeed to everyone who has supported Night Vision.

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Test-Pitting with Zoë Strachan

Test-Pitting – a collaborative residency

Zoë Strachan and I had a two-week residency at Glasgow Project Room in April/May 2022.

In our residency we were engaging in a process of ‘test-pitting’ to develop new work around themes of excavation as a means of opening an aperture onto fragile lines of connection between inner and outer landscapes. We shared some work-in-progress at the end of the residency in a public event that included a performance and a Q+A chat.

In archaeology a test-pit is a trial, a delving in to reveal layers, fragments of artefacts, the potential of a site of enquiry. It enables a snapshot of composition and decomposition, of life cycle and decay in the earth. Grids and tracing map the process.

Zoë and I have an ongoing collaboration making sound art works and experimental radio combining newly written and found text, composed sound, field recordings, found sound, voice and improvisation.

@zoestrachan
@NicholaScrutton

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Julius Caesar Company of Wolves

Julius Caesar – Company of Wolves

More information and Scottish tour dates for summer 2022 at Company of Wolves website.

Director – Ewan Downie
Associate Director – Brian Ferguson
Set and Costume Designer – Alisa Kalyanova
Lighting Designer – Benny Goodman
Sound Designer – Nichola Scrutton
Cast – Lawrence Boothman, Esme Baylay, Oat Jenner, Belle Jones, Megan Lovat
Technical Stage Manager – Stephen Cunningham
Wardrobe supervisor and Costume-maker – Catherine Barthram 
Producer – Corinne Salisbury
Production Manager – Elleanor Taylor

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Radiophrenia and Mobile Radio Collaboration

Mobile Radio residency – Glasgow Calling Scale

In collaboration with Radiophrenia and the Goethe Institut Glasgow ‘Mobile Radiophrenia’ is a cultural exchange and radio residency that will result in five new live broadcast works. The artist duo Mobile Radio (Sarah Washington & Knut Aufermann) from Ürzig in Germany have been invited over to work with five Glasgow based artists or artist duos on an intensive daily collaboration that culminates in a live radio performance at 5pm each day.

I’m delighted to be performing on Thursday 17th Feb – the performances have been devised within the following framework:

Mobile Radio residency – Glasgow Calling Scale live with Nichola Scrutton – 17 February 2022  5:00 pm – 5:30 pm

‘Glasgow Calling Scale: a verbal response series in five parts’
There are five grades starting with the most musical:

Mon 14th Feb – No verbal response
Eothen Stearn, Lady Neptune, Knut Aufermann, Sarah Washington.

Tues 15th Feb – Incomprehensible sounds
Elina Bry, Knut Aufermann, Sarah Washington.

Weds 16th Feb – Inappropriate words
Cindy Islam, Knut Aufermann, Sarah Washington.

Thurs 17th Feb – Confused
Nichola Scrutton, Knut Aufermann, Sarah Washington.

Fri 18th Feb – Oriented
Rebecca Wilcox, Hannah Ellul, Knut Aufermann, Sarah Washington.

@radiophrenia
@Mobile_Radio
@NicholaScrutton

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Memory Dream Encounter 1 Micro-Commissions

In another strand of research that emerged during Night Vision R&D in 2021, I curated a series of micro-commissions. I created a series of abstract images, photographing fragments of drawings. Those images served as a prompt, a connecting point, a spring board for dialogue.

Under the umbrella title, Memory Dream Encounter, I invited composers/artists Ruth Wiesenfeld, Elisabetta Senesi, Dafna Naphtali, Julia Drouhin and Claire Docherty to create miniature sound compositions in response to the prompts. On 31st August 2021, the six composers met in a virtual gathering to listen together, and discuss the creative process.

Radiophrenia 2022

Subsequently I edited the works into a programme that was broadcast on Radiophrenia at 9pm on 13th February 2022.

The programme in order was:
Claire Docherty – Pulse dream fragment For Una MacGlone (bass) & Emma Roche (flute) (3’23)
Dafna Naphtali- Striations (3′)
Elisabetta Senesi – Under the Surface (3’50)
Julia Drouhin – Mer4 (3’50)
Nichola Scrutton – Gestures (3’44)
Ruth Wiesenfeld – the wool from which the ribbons were made (3’54)

The micro-commissons were supported by Creative Scotland.

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Salt Cellar with Zoë Strachan

Salt Cellar – live-to-broadcast performance – Zoë Strachan and Nichola Scrutton

Salt Cellar – a collaborative radio art work

Zoë Strachan and I first performed Salt Cellar as a live-to-air broadcast on Radiophrenia, 11th February 2022, in the Creative Lab at the CCA Glasgow.

Programme Note

What is a prompt? It’s an inciting, a bringing forth, an augury, an urge, a bringing to light. In this live to broadcast performance, Nichola Scrutton and Zoë Strachan employ a cootie catcher (also known as a salt cellar) to provoke a series of discreet but interlinked improvisations based on texts, photographs and physical objects. Thus they seek to enact an archaeology of embodied memory within the palimpsest of a time-limited performance space.  

Zoë and I collaborate to make sound art/experimental radio combining newly written and found text, composed sound, field recordings, found sound, voice and improvisation.

@zoestrachan
@NicholaScrutton

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hyphæ drawing collective at Folkestone

hyphæ drawing collective poster for group show in Folkestone

The recently formed hyphæ drawing collective are having a group show in Folkestone. The details are:

Dates: 9 – 14 September 2021
Opening hours: 11 – 17 h daily
Touchbase Gallery, 15 Tontine Street, Folkestone CT20 1JT

You are warmly invited to an afternoon of refreshments with the artists of hyphæ drawing collective to celebrate our exhibition, Letting it settle.

Saturday 11 September, 2021, between 14 –17h  at the above address.

Please let us know if you intend to come along, so that we don’t run out of tea…RSVP

Read more about hyphæ drawing collective at our website, where you can also contact us and sign up for our newsletter.

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hyphæ drawing collective

One of ten artist who formed the hyphæ drawing collective. The collective met online during the lockdown of early 2021, through the inaugural Drawing Correspondence development programme (Feb 2021). Read more about hyphæ drawing collective at our website, where you can also contact us and sign up for our newsletter. We are also on social media a Instagram @hyphaedrawing 



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Giant Tank Pot Luck at Tusk TV

I was delighted to be invited into a duo with Manuel Padding for Giant Tank’s Pot Luck, which was aired on TUSK TV on 6th August 2021. Big thanks to Manuel, and to Ali and Collette for hosting – connect to Giant Tank on their FB page – Giant Tank Facebook

Our duo track is available as part of TUSK Editions #5 – download the album at TUSK Festival’s TUSK Editions Bandcamp.

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Colliding Lines Tape and Digital Album Artwork

I am delighted to have produced some new drawings for the cover of tape / digital album River . Pathway . Static – at Colliding Lines. Release date is Monday 19th July 2021. More info and link for tape purchase at Colliding Lines (which includes a digital version). The digital version is also available at Colliding Lines Bandcamp

Colliding Lines are also broadcasting on Resonance Extra – info and listening links at #18 Nettles and Chalklines.