Music programs

In partnership with the Park Avenue Armory, the British Council was proud to support the US debut of Massive Attack V. Adam Curtis after its premiere at the Manchester International Festival

An extraordinary collaboration connecting the dark, intense music and visual work of Robert Del Naja of Massive Attack with the thought-provoking vision of documentary filmmaker Adam Curtis, this site-specific event is a new kind of imaginative experience that integrates music, film, politics, and breath-taking moments of illusion in a hallucinatory ride through the dreams and hidden realities of our strange, anxious age. The piece ran at Park Avenue Armory, New York from September 28 to October 4, 2013.

In partnership with Howlround.tv and The Park Avenue Armory, the British Council USA arts program presented 'The Illusion of Power and the Power of Illusion: Viewing Media Through an Artistic Lens', a live-streamed panel discussion on the peer produced, open source HowlRound TV network at howlround.tv on Thursday, October 3 at 3 pm. The panel featured Graham Sheffield, director of Arts for the British Council, who moderated a discussion with Simon Critchley (Professor of Philosophy at the New School), Joyce Barnathan (President of the International Center for Journalists), and Alexis Goldstein (contributor to The Nation and frequent media guest).

The work of three major British composers was featured at the Ars Nova Workshop in Philadelphia as part of a cultural exchange partnership with Huddersfield Contemporary Music Festival.

• Karlheinz Stockhausen (1928-2007, Germany); realized Derek Bailey (1930-2005, UK) - Plus-Minus [world premiere of this realization] 20’ (c. 1967-69)
• Paul Rutherford (1940-2007, UK) - Quasi-Mode III [world premiere of new version] 15’ (1980)
• Derek Bailey (1930-2005, UK) - No. 22 [Ping] [world premiere] 30’ (c. 1967-69), No. 10 [Five Pieces for Guitar] [world premiere] 10’ (c. 1966-67), Nos. 18-20 [Three Pieces for Guitar] 6’ (c. 1967), No. 23 [Bits] [world premiere] 4’ (c. 1967)

Kate Tempest was first featured in British Council’s Edinburgh Showcase in 2013, and in 2014, British Council USA supported the US premiere of Kate Tempest with her epic hip-hop music theatre show Brand New Ancients at St. Ann’s Warehouse.

The one-off US presentation of this show attracted considerable attention (Critic’s Pick New York Times review, full interview guest appearance on the Charlie Rose show). Following substantial acclaim including The Ted Hughes Poetry Prize for the piece and a Mercury Prize for her new album, Kate has independently (from the British Council) returned to the USA in 2015 on two extensive national tours to sell-out audiences.