CUEE with guest artist Lilja María Ásmundsdóttir


IKLECTIK presents:

CUEE – City University Experimental Ensemble with guest artist Lilja María Ásmundsdóttir

Thur 28 March doors 7.30pm – music 8:00 | FREE EVENT – SIGN UP HERE

City University Experimental Ensemble (CUEE) return to IKLECTIK following capacity audience events in 2017 and 2018. This 24-piece outfit are delighted to be presenting the world premiere of a newly commissioned multi-disciplinary work by Icelandic composer and City graduate Lilja María Ásmundsdóttir, who will join the ensemble on the night. CUEE will also premiere a brand-new collaboration with City’s Field Recording Ensemble, present various approaches to large group free improvisation and interpretations of graphic notation.

CUEE are a wide-ranging, free-wheeling large ensemble of young improvisers and experimental musicians, led by Tullis Rennie. They have previously collaborated with guest artists Cath Roberts and Sam Andreae for prior headline sets at IKLECTIK. The group have also worked with composer Michael Finnissy for an event marking his 70th birthday, and performed the work of Pauline Oliveros with Seth Cluett.

Lilja Maria Asmundsdottir

Lilja Maria Asmundsdottir, (MA, Composition), has created a string instrument called the Hulda, which produces both sound and light when played. The design of the instrument is based on human anatomy, focusing on the senses of hearing and seeing. The lower part of the frame is based on parts of the inner ear and the upper part of the frame is based on muscles in the eye.

Lilja said: “I wanted to create a link between music and visual art. Music is constantly changing as you hear all different kinds of sounds. The Hulda reflects this, as when different strings are played you will see different coloured lights coming from the built-in projector.

“The sounds are picked up by a computer which measures the frequency and determines the colour of the lights. You can pluck the strings or play them with a bow, and the brightness and darkness of the colours are determined by how loud or soft the instrument is being played.

“I called the instrument the ‘Hulda,’ as this means the hidden one. At a first glance you see a wooden string instrument, but when it is played it creates colourful lights and projections. The Hulda shows that there is always more to what meets the eye.

“It is nice to have an instrument that no one has played before, as I can experiment and practise however I want. For me, the Hulda attempts to find common ground between artists and composers, as it offers them both a visual and audial performance.”