2-5 Postcards

Open Ears Podcast – Season 4, Episode 4

Open Ears Podcast – Season 4, Episode 3 In each episode of Open Ears, podcast host and producer Alain McFadden invites a guest to listen to a recording from Crash Ensemble’s catalogue. Together, they share first impressions, personal reflections, and explore the ideas, emotions, and stories the music inspires. For the third episode of Season 4, Alain is joined by acclaimed singer songwriter Anna Mieke. Together, they listen to ‘Grey Area’ by Sam Perkin (2019). Blending the essence of street skateboarding with contemporary music, Grey Area is a hypnotic journey through the streets, leading us to secrets that we find only if we are open to them. Grey Area is a skateboarding film with live original score, available to view on Crash Ensemble's Youtube channel. Shot and edited by skate photographer and videographers Niall O’Byrne and Sam Curtin. Composed by Sam Perkin. Performed by Crash Ensemble. Grey Area was commissioned by Engage Arts Festival, Bandon to the Sea with funds from the Arts Council. This was the very first release on Crash Records, Crash Ensemble’s own label.

Open Ears Podcast – Season 4, Episode 2In each episode of Open Ears, podcast host and producer Alain McFadden invites a guest to listen to a recording from Crash Ensemble’s catalogue. Together, they share first impressions, personal reflections, and explore the ideas, emotions, and stories the music inspires.For the second episode of Season 4, Alain is joined by acclaimed musician and composer Peter Broderick. Together, they listen to ‘Invitation to a Journey’ by Deirdre Gribbin. The piece was a co-production by Crash Ensemble, CoisCéim Dance Company, and Fishamble: The New Play Company, for their theatre piece of the same name, which showcased the life and work of Eileen Gray. Gray is one of Ireland's most important artists as an architect and furniture designer and a pioneer of the Modern Movement in architecture. The piece was performed at the Galway International Arts Festival and released August 11, 2021.Deirdre is an award-winning composer who was born in Belfast. She is a graduate of Queen’s University, Belfast and Guildhall School of Music, London. She received her doctorate from the University of London. She subsequently was a Visiting Arts Fellow at Trinity College, Cambridge and in 2013 was awarded a Sir Winston Churchill Fellowship for research on arts and disability programmes in the USA and Canada. She is a Fulbright Fellow and studied at Princeton University (USA).Deirdre has always been interested in the juxtaposition of drama and concert music. Find out more about:Peter Broderick ~ www.peterbroderick.net Deirdre Gribbin ~ www.deirdregribbin.com Crash Ensemble ~ https://www.crashensemble.com/aboutPresented by: Alain McFaddenMusic featured: Invitation to a Journey (2021), by Deirdre Gribbin, performed by Crash EnsembleHost: Alain McFaddenGuest: Peter Broderick

In each episode of Open Ears, podcast host and producer Alain McFadden invites a guest to listen to a recording from Crash Ensemble’s catalogue. Together, they share first impressions, personal reflections, and explore the ideas, emotions, and stories the music inspires.For the first episode of Season 4, Alain is joined by acclaimed musician and songwriter Sam Amidon. Together, they listen to Drones, Variations, Ornaments by Nico Muhly, taken from Crash Ensemble’s album Ghosts (2017), released on Bedroom Community.Drones, Variations, Ornaments unfolds gradually, accumulating restless energy until it sails along on the kinetic rhythms of American postminimalism. A striking coda reveals the chamber orchestra lurking beneath the brash new music ensemble.Nico Muhly is an American composer whose wide-ranging output includes orchestral works, chamber music, sacred music, and music for the stage.Find out more about:Sam Amidon ~ https://www.samamidonmusic.com/Nico Muhly ~ https://nicomuhly.com/biography/Crash Ensemble ~ https://www.crashensemble.com/aboutPresented by: Alain McFaddenMusic featured: Drones, Variations, Ornaments from Ghosts (2017) by Nico Muhly, performed by Crash EnsembleHost: Alain McFaddenGuest: Sam AmidonWith thanks the Bedroom Community

On this episode of Open Ears, the sixth and final episode of Season 3, Alain chats with Kate Stables of This Is The Kit. Together, they listened to Aleksandr Nisse's Pleonexia.