Bath Spa Music blog

We're not updating this site at the moment. You'll find our current blogs - and links to our various sites - on Edublogs.

October Open Day

The School of Music and Performing Arts will be opening its doors to visitors and potential applicants on October 26th 2007. You can meet the course teams, see presentations about our courses, and hear some of our student ensembles playing live on the day. Places are limited, so please do book in advance.

Booking form
Google map of our Newton Park campus

UK Songwriting Festival 2007 - pictures

We've put a few photos of this year's festival online. Some of the 60+ songs written and recorded by our students will be available soon. Booking for the 2008 festival opens later in the year; for now, please feel free to join our forum where you can post songs, comment on others' work, and talk about the craft of songwriting.

Concert grand piano

We're delighted to be taking delivery of a Steinway model 'D' concert grand piano. It will be used by all of our BA Music students undertaking piano as first study, and will also appear in a series of professional recitals at the Michael Tippett Centre in September.

Nizlopi at the UK Songwriting Festival

Chart toppers Nizlopi @ Moles Club in August

The UK Songwriting Festival is now in its fourth year. It’s a six-day event, held at Bath Spa University every August with formal or informal songwriting activities throughout the week.

For the first time the SWF will include a special performance as part of the schedule, which is also open to the public to attend. On Wednesday 15th August chart toppers Nizlopi will be gracing the Moles Club stage along with other talented singer/songwriters from the area to create a night that no real music lover should miss out on.

Nizlopi shot into public awareness at the end of 2005 when their half million selling single ‘The JCB Song’ entered the UK charts at number 1, also topping the download chart and introducing Luke and John to the mad worlds of Top Of The Pops and even Richard & Judy. Described as ‘the world’s foremost 2 man folk hip-hop orchestra’, there is an overall feeling that Nizlopi are writing their own rules and doing it their way!

Live, Nizlopi are in their element and their aim is to break down the barriers between performer and audience, giving their infamous, inspirational live shows, a feeling of intimacy, energy and overwhelming positivity. They enjoy nothing more than heading down into the crowd to play acoustically. You WILL leave their gigs with a smile on your face. The duo have earned a reputation as one of the hardest working bands in the country, playing a never-ending run of live shows in venues ranging from people’s living rooms [Gigs in Digs], to sold-out appearances at London’s Shepherd’s Bush Empire. In 2006 they enjoyed a hectic festival season, playing knockout shows at 02 Wireless, Cambridge Folk Festival, T On the Fringe, The Big Chill, Guilfest, The Big Session, Godiva and Greenbelt. They also played to thousands on their 10-date September UK tour, and spent November converting tens-of-thousands of Europeans to the unique Nizlopi sound whilst on tour across the continent with Jamie Cullum. To crown the year, Nizlopi took to the stage for two nights at Wembley Arena as special guests for Christina Aguilera, and followed those shows by opening for, and performing live with, The Bard of Barking legend Billy Bragg at London’s prestigious Hackney Empire.

After 2005’s critically acclaimed debut-album ‘Half These Songs Are About You’, and 2006’s limited-edition mini-album ‘ExtraOrdinary’, Spring 2008 will see the release of Nizlopi’s second full-length album.

“Rarely does a new artist achieve a debut number one hit by pure force of songwriting, but the British public took The JCB Song to their hearts. Nizlopi have proved what we’ve always believed – that a great song can cut through any amount of hype.”
(Joe Bennett, UK Songwriting Festival)

“Nizlopi are the real thing: a two man folk hip-hop band here to spread the love and bring everybody’s inner child out to play.”
(Sophie Heawood, The Guardian)

“The biggest duo in the world today”
(Jamie Cullum)

“Intense, angular and beautiful”
(Colin Murray BBC Radio 1)

Nizlopi will be joined by a number of other talented singer/songwriters. The intricacy and delicacy of Tom Peay’s songwriting shows wisdom beyond his years and he performs with a passionate, uncompromising delivery, drawing influences from singer songwriters such as Paul Simon, Sting and John Mayer. Tom is a new voice that sounds like an old voice - like oil on canvas; some things are best simple and direct.

There comes a time in a true original’s career where they become more than the sum of their influences. Sophie Madeleine's star is in such an ascendant, and we are witnessing the results of some maverick fusion. Steeped in an inherited classicism, she absorbed the greats of the last century - from Cole Porter to Gershwin, Bacharach, Beatles and beyond. But it is her love of blues and that old devil called jazz that refines and defines her intriguing bohemian swing. Shades of Amy Winehouse, Rufus Wainwright and Aimee Mann haunt her delivery, whilst she shines a light on the love song in a way that is at once candid, secretive and strange.

Wednesday 15th August, Moles Club, George Street, Bath. Doors 8.00PM, over 18s only. Tickets are £8 in advance and can be purchased from www.moles.co.uk or by phone 01225 404445. For more information please visit www.myspace.com/imepromotions and www.uksongwritingfestival.com

MA Creative Music Technology

One significant absence from these blogs so far has been the excellent work by our MA Creative Music Technology students. Here we've collected together some examples of their film work and other video-related projects.
MA CMT student films

MA Songwriting applications

We're delighted to announce the formal approval and launch of this new MA – the world’s first and only Master’s Degree in Songwriting. It is aimed at unpublished songwriters wishing to develop their craft to a professional level, or published songwriters wishing to achieve academic accreditation and continue to improve creatively. The course will help you to develop a range of critical, practical, communicative, industrial and research-based skills. During the course you will learn to:
• Write better songs
• Comment critically upon your own and others’ material
• Examine the musicological roots of your craft
• Consider the commercial value of your songs in the marketplace
• Rewrite and collaborate
• Conduct academic research
• Develop technical skills
• Create a professional-standard album of your work

Admissions
We offer places on the basis of the student’s experience, potential and commitment as a songwriter. Normally, but not invariably, applicants will have a first degree (or equivalent music industry experience) plus a substantial body of recorded work, equal to that which would be obtained as part of a related undergraduate course. Those without a first degree in music should look at our Foundation Degree and BA in Commercial Music.
Applicants should submit a portfolio of work – a four-track CD of original songs in English accompanied by printed A4 lyric sheets.

Download the pdf leaflet.

Application forms are available from:

Joanna Prestidge (MA Songwriting admissions),
Bath Spa University,
Newton St Loe,
Bath BA2 9BN

For informal enquiries about the course please email Andy West or call +44 (0) 1225 876217

For enquiries about admissions process, dates and fees, please email Joanna Prestidge or call +44 (0) 1225 875 821

Concert at Bath's Guildhall

Gala Concert with Bath Spa University Orchestra, Choir and Wind Band
The Guildhall, Bath, Thursday 14th June 2006 at 7.30pm
Tickets £6 & £4. Book via Bath Festivals Box Office

Bath Spa University Georgian Band

The concert marks the 150th anniversary of Elgar’s birth, and will include performances of his well-loved Enigma Variations as well as Scenes from the Bavarian Highlands. There will also be an opportunity to hear Mozart’s Flute Concerto in G and Prokofiev’s dazzling Piano Concerto no. 1 with soloists from the BA Music course. In addition, Bath Spa University’s Georgian Band will perform Handel’s Concerto Grosso, op. 6, no.1, and the Wind Band will play Bernstein’s ever-popular Overture to Candide. Conductors will be Professor Roger Heaton, Dr Matthew Spring and Nigel Perrin.

The Guildhall, Bath

Bath Spa musicians in historic museums event

On Saturday May 12th ten museums and galleries across Bath will host an evening of music and cultural celebration featuring Bath Spa University students and staff. Night at The Museums is a national initiative designed to highlight the treasures held by museums all over the country. The evening event will include torchlit tours, presentations and music performances in prestigious venues including the Victoria Art Gallery, the Holburne Museum and the Roman Baths.

Bath is the first British city to mount an event of this kind. Many of the participating museums are suspending their entry fees for the evening.

Head of Department of Music Joe Bennett said; "We're delighted that our students will be playing in such prestigious and unusual venues. The wonderful museums of Bath are an ideal setting for our ensembles because they bring together Bath's unique heritage and the city's long history of nurturing talented musicians. This is our first joint project with Bath Heritage Services, so it's great to see our students contributing directly to Bath's vibrant musical culture."

Visitors can set their own timetable from the full list of participating museums and events. Those featuring music include;


Victoria Art Gallery, by Pulteney Bridge: 5.30pm to 9pm, 12th May 2007. Free entry.
'Night at the Museums' will be launched here. A live jazz trio from Bath Spa University will perform and Chairman of Bath & North East Somerset Council, Councillor Loraine Morgan Brinkhurst, will officially open the event. Visitors can take part in portraiture workshops throughout the evening.
(Live music from 5.30pm)
Victoria Art Gallery website

Museum of Bath at Work, Julian Road: 6.30pm to 10pm, 12th May 2007. Free entry.
Experience 'Coal Face', a GPO documentary made in 1936 about the living and working conditions of coal miners in Britain. This was one of several films made about industry in Britain and features music specially composed by Benjamin Britten which will be performed live by music students from Bath Spa University.
(Live music from 7pm)
Museum of Bath at Work website

Number 1, the Royal Crescent: 6.30pm to 8.30pm, 12th May 2007. Contact venue for admission details.
Classical music related to this magnificent building’s heritage will be played in the music room, starting at 6.30pm. Among the highlights of the programme are pieces by Handel, whose secretary lived in the neighbouring Brock Street. This is a great opportunity to see an original Georgian house which has not been fitted with electrical lighting - so arrive before it gets dark!
(Live music from 6.30pm)
No 1 Royal Crescent visitor information

Museum of East Asian Art, Bennett Street: 6.30pm to 10pm , 12th May 2007. Free entry.
Join the Museum as it enjoys an evening of East Asian Art with live music played by a member of the UK Chinese Ensemble. The recently-released Chinese documentary How far do leaves fall? presents topics of discussion including migration, generational changes, and Chinese identity within multi-cultural Britain and will be shown at 6.30pm and 8.30pm. Professional musician Cheng Yu will perform traditional Chinese music on the pipa and the qin, between 7.30pm and 8.30pm.
(Live music from 7.30pm)
Museum of East Asian Art website


The Holburne Museum: 6.30pm to 10pm, 12th May 2007. Free entry.
Dr Matthew Spring and the students of Bath Spa University perform music
by Chilcott, Herschel and Mozart in the Picture Gallery at 6.30pm and 9pm. Torch-lit tours and refreshments will also be available.
(Live music from 6.30pm)
Holburne Museum events page





Roman Baths, Stall Street, Bath: 8.30pm to 10pm; last admission, 9.30pm. Free entry for all Discovery Card holders.
Visitors can relax beside the torch-lit Great Bath with accompaniment from the Bath Spa clarinet quartet. Licensed bar available.
Roman Baths website





For more information about Bath Spa University's music activities please see BathSpaMusic.com or contact Joe Bennett on 01225 875 523.

For more information about Museums Month, see the official B&NES Museums Events and Exhibitions website or call Heritage Services on 01225 477785.

Bath Spa University students sign record deal

Four Bath Spa Commercial Music students have signed their first major record deal after winning an international competition running by one of the world’s leading videogames companies.

The band Showing Off To Thieves was named European winner of the 2007 Burnout Bandslam, sponsored by EA Games. The competition received entries from more than 2100 bands from all over Europe, and culminated in an intense public ranking process, with over 2500000 myspace users participating, followed by final selection by an expert panel. The two worldwide grand prize winning bands have been confirmed as ‘Never Heard Of It’ (USA) and ‘Showing Off To Thieves’ (UK & Europe).
The winning bands will each receive a demo recording deal in a collaboration between Virgin Records and EA and a chance to have their song included in a future ‘Burnout’ videogame.

Showing Off To Thieves consists of Bath Spa students Phil Maggs (bass), Tom Lloyd (drums), Andy Bradshaw (guitar), and Bath Spa graduate Andy German (voice). They formed in 2005 at Bath Spa University, and began recording together as part of the Commercial Music degree course, which also requires students to undertake a national tour to promote their work. The band signed their first independent record deal in 2006 with Bath-based independent record label Lockjaw records.

Bassist Phil Maggs said “we’re really excited because it means that our track 'Everyone Has Their Secrets' will be on the next Burnout game on the PS3 and Xbox 360 – so millions of gamers worldwide will get to hear our songs. We’re looking forward to starting work on the demos for Virgin Records in the USA.” Guitarist Andy Bradshaw added; “The Commercial Music course has given us the opportunity to develop our sound and get started on the live circuit, so when we graduate this summer we’ll be able to launch straight into the music industry as a signed band.”

Head of Department of Music Joe Bennett said; “Everyone here at Bath Spa is delighted for ‘The Thieves’. The Commercial Music team affectionately describes them as ‘the hardest working band in rock’. Throughout their time here they have been relentlessly writing, rehearsing, recording and gigging – this success is the result of two years of intense hard work, and it’s richly deserved”.
The band’s winning track ‘Everyone Has Their Secrets’ is available on their myspace page . More information about the Commercial Music course at the University site.