Highlights:
- Celebrating Afro-Cuban music, Richard Bona and Alfredo Rodriguez
- Introducing Nashville
- Lyrics in Welsh and Zulu, Gruff Rhys’ new album Pang!
- Squeeze Plus Special Guests Heaven 17
- Classical Season 2019/20 | Small is Beautiful
Richard Bona and Alfredo Rodriguez
Monday 14 October, 8pm
Richard Bona could fill every stage with his presence, his effortless mix of voice and lightning speed bass. Following collaborations with Pat Metheny and Joe Zawinul, he forged his own path and discovered Afro-Cuban music.
Currently he forms a duo with Cuban piano wonder boy, Alfredo Rodriguez who was discovered by Quincy Jones and with breath-taking virtuosity the two of them reveal the close relations between African and Cuban music.
Book Now: https://sagegateshead.com/whats-on/richard-bona-and-alfredo-rodriguez/
Gruff Rhys
Tuesday 15 October, 8pm
Gruff Rhys’ new album Pang! Is a pop album with a couple of verses of Zulu and an English title.
Recorded in Cardiff, Wales. The song Pang! was mixed by the producer Muzi in Cardiff and Johannesburg. Drums by Welsh-American psychedelic warlord Kliph Scurlock, brass by Gavin Fitzjohn and flute and percussion by the engineer Kris Jenkins. Beats, bass and ah’s by Muzi with Gruff on vocals and guitar.
Gruff explains: “Pang! is a Welsh language song with an English title. It started life as a folk reel and soon expanded into a ‘list’ song, listing various reasons for pangs; hunger, regret, twitter, pain, bad design etc.
“Using the English word pang in a Welsh language track may appear weird but I suppose it’s like using the French word ‘Magazine’ in an English song, in that it’s slightly pretentious but completely acceptable.”
Book Now: https://sagegateshead.com/whats-on/gruff-rhys-2019/
Folkworks: The Unthanks The Emily Brontë Song Cycle
Wednesday 16 October, 6.45pm, 9pm
The Unthanks invite us into the darkly passionate world of Emily Brontë, with a song cycle bearing all the quiet beauty they are known and loved for.
Commissioned to mark Brontë’s 200th birthday, and using her original cabinet piano to write on, Yorkshire born Unthanks composer Adrian McNally has turned ten of her poems into song, performed with bandmates Rachel and Becky Unthank and recorded in the Parsonage in Haworth where Emily lived and worked.
Captured and released as Part 3 of Lines, a trilogy of records inspired by female writers across time, this live performance of The Emily Brontë Song Cycle will also feature songs from the other records that make up Lines, promising an atmospheric evening, and at its heart, a unique collaboration between a literary great and one of the most innovative and critically acclaimed bands working today.
Book Now: https://sagegateshead.com/whats-on/theunthanks2019/
Introducing Nashville: Danielle Bradbery, Travis Denning, Walker Hayes & Rachel Wammack plus Jake Morrell
Thursday 17 October 2019 | 7:30pm
As an international touring series, Introducing Nashville brings with it a rare, stripped-back show to fans. Designed with the same format as a traditional Nashville writers’ round, Nashville’s current artists take turns introducing their songs and sharing the stories behind the tracks, as well as their personal lives and careers. Experience a true cross section of what is coming out of Music City right now. Shows are seated, intimate and followed by an opportunity to meet the artists.
Danielle Bradbery
Twenty two-year-old, multi-faceted artist Danielle Bradbery stepped into her own lane with sophomore album I Don’t Believe We’ve Met, released in December 2017. The Texas native has worked on fine-tuning her unique sound since getting her start, winning Season 4 of NBC’s The Voice and has since garnered multiple ACM nominations as well as being up for CMT Breakthrough Video of the Year and CMT Performance of the Year.
Travis Denning
Travis just released his new single After A Few which he co-wrote with Kelly Archer and Justin Weaver following his Top 40 debut single David Ashley Parker From Powder Springs. Travis was recently selected as a CMA KixStart Artist Scholarship as well as Opry NextStage. The singer/songwriter has previously opened shows for Cole Swindell, Alan Jackson, Chase Rice, LANCO as well as Justin Moore and just wrapped up his first headlining Heartbeat Of A Small Town Tour.
Walker Hayes
Walker Hayes, is a singer/songwriter originally from Mobile, Alabama. Hayes recently released his single, Don’t Let Her, a devastatingly powerful love letter about his wife, illustrated through a heartfelt conversation between Hayes and the hypothetical man that may take his place should anything happen to him. Hayes has joined the likes of Kelsea Ballerini’s Unapologetically Tour and been on the road with Dan + Shay, Old Dominion, Thomas Rhett and more.
Rachel Wammack
Rachel Wammack recently introduced her shimmering new single Enough which she co-wrote with Laura Veltz and Sam Ellis. Her songs showcase a “powerful, raw, honest collection” (All Access), which has earned her recognition as the only artist in the genre selected for Entertainment Weekly’s “2019 Artists to Watch” list. Wammack shares “an undeniable air of confidence and sincerity when she performs” (Taste of Country).
Curated and presented by the Country Music Association.
Book Now: https://sagegateshead.com/whats-on/introducing-nashville-danielle-bradberry-travis-denning-walker-hayes-rachel-wammack/
Squeeze Plus Special Guests Heaven 17
Saturday 19 October, 7pm
Squeeze are back with their new tour The Difford And Tilbrook Songbook 2019, performing many of their big hits as well as some rare, lesser known gems from their back catalogue and solo careers.
Lauded as a song writing duo, Difford and Tilbrook have been compared to Lennon and McCartney since their first release in 1978, Take Me I’m Yours, which blasted Squeeze into the forefront of the UK music scene. Following up with hits such as Cool For Cats, Up The Junction, Goodbye Girl and so many more.
The Difford And Tilbrook Songbook 2019 is a tour that will capture the works of two of the most talented songsmiths working today.
Book Now: https://sagegateshead.com/whats-on/squeeze-2019/ – SOLD OUT RETURNS ONLY
Classical Season 2019/20 | Small is Beautiful
Brahms’ Piano Quintet
Saturday 19 October, 8pm
- Alasdair Beatson piano
- Royal Northern Sinfonia
- Schoenberg Webern Chamber Symphony No.1
- C Schumann Three Romances for Violin and Piano
- Brahms Piano Quintet in F minor
In the world of chamber music, big emotions can come in small packages. When Brahms originally planned his Piano Quintet, he thought it would turn out to be a symphony, confined to four string players and a piano, the emotion becomes so potent that it practically pours off the score. Pianist Alasdair Beatson and four Royal Northern Sinfonia musicians perform this pocket-sized epic today, a stirring counterpart to the tender Romances by Brahms’ beloved friend and mentor Clara Schumann. Webern’s extraordinary miniature version of Schoenberg’s ground-breaking Chamber Symphony gets things off to a swirling, intoxicating start.
Book Now: https://sagegateshead.com/whats-on/small-is-beautiful-brahms-piano-quintet/
Samling Academy Concert
Sunday 20 October, 7.30pm
Thirty of the North East’s finest classical singers, selected by audition, will present a concert of songs, arias and ensembles showcasing their work over six intensive days at the start of their year with Samling Institute’s inspirational leaders.
Book Now: https://sagegateshead.com/whats-on/small-is-beautiful-brahms-piano-quintet/