Clod Ensemble is creating a new staged piece for choir – at once a celebration and a lament. Elegy will be an exploration of loss and yearning, addressing many forms of loss – of health, of a broken relationship, of youth; how loss impacts on our bodies; how different cultures respond in different ways and how central singing is at these times. This will be composer Paul Clark’s first full score for choir since the critically acclaimed Silver Swan.

“The winning combination of music (composed by Paul Clark) and experimental physical theatre (directed by Suzy Willson) has made them pioneers of contemporary music theatre, taking then into new territories, often in collaboration with other artists” Total Theatre

In the years since, Paul has been creating pieces designed for musicians from different musical backgrounds – for example with Here All Night (Lincoln Center, New York) a vocal/instrumental work that is “a rare example of music from different traditions being successfully transmuted into something new and imaginative. . . a powerful and enjoyable masterwork” (Opera News).

This is the first stage of research and development for Elegy, an exploration of the vocal qualities we will work with in the final piece and how large the choir (or choirs) need to be. Paul Clark will create some short pieces of music which serve as the starting point for the workshops – as structures within which to craft staged sequences.

Led by director Suzy Willson, the choir workshops will begin with vocal, movement and spatial exercises that investigate collective memory and, using techniques derived from the work of physical theatre teacher Jacques Lecoq, explore how to think choreographically as a chorus. We will look at how different cultures around the world think about mourning, mass celebration, loss, carnival and funeral and the pivotal role of song in them.

We would like to work with:

Capable singers (between 10-20 in total) who are competent sight readers. Paul will create music which stretches the choir, but is achievable within a workshop setting.

It is an opportunity for the singers to stretch themselves, learn some new techniques and explore ideas at the heart of the history of song.

Key information:

Dates & times:

Tuesday 21^st March 2pm-5pm

Thursday 23^rd March 2pm-5pm 

Saturday 25^th March 10:30am-1:30pm

Each three-hour session would be paid at £87 per person. 

To apply, please send a CV to kit@clodensemble.com and a confirmation that you are able to attend all three sessions by Monday 20th March, 10am