Formed in 1991 by Artistic Director and percussionist Tim Williams, Psappha is an ensemble of contemporary classical musicians specialized in performing works by living composers and music of the XXth and XXIst centuries. The group takes its name after a percussion piece by Greek modernist composer Iannis Xenakis.
Psappha has a core instrumentation of flute (Conrad Marshall), clarinet (Dov Goldberg), violin (Benedict Holland), viola (Heather Wallington), cello (Jennifer Langridge), piano (Benjamin Powell) and percussion (Tim Williams).
The English composer and Master of the Queen’s Music Sir Peter Maxwell Davies was Psappha’s Patron for twenty years until his death in 2016. In 2004 the ensemble made its debut at the BBC Proms with a concert for his 70th birthday, gave the first public concert at Stormont Castle in Belfast, appeared in the special Henze and Maxwell Davies portrait series in the Queen Elizabeth Hall in London and launched its own CD label with Eight Songs for a Mad King and Miss Donnithorne’s Maggot, two unconducted performances of Maxwell Davies music-theatre works featuring soprano Jane Manning and baritone Kelvin Thomas. The album received great critical acclaim and was featured among the Best CD Releases of 2004 in The Sunday Telegraph.
Ten years later they gave a special concert for Sir Peter Maxwell Davies’ 80th birthday and have performed many of his productions, including Missa super l’homme armé, Eight Songs for a Mad King and the award-winning Mr Emmett Takes a Walk (with direction and libretto by David Pountney), which he wrote especially for Psappha in 2000.
Psappha is the only professional, stand-alone contemporary music ensemble in the North of England. With a diverse repertoire of over 300 works, it is renowned for its interpretative ability and technical expertise. So far, the group has released seven recordings of music by British composers, including John Casken, Piers Hellawell and Gordon McPherson.
Psappha is involved in education projects both in the UK and abroad. The group supports composers at all stages of their careers by participating in composition workshops and courses, and offering opportunities to work with their musicians. They have also produced a number of online film-based resources. Composition Lab supports GCSE and A-level music, and Psappha Kids supports the teaching of classroom music for children aged 7 to 11. Psappha has received the Swatch City Life Award for Best Concert Series and Education Work. It is currently the University of Manchester’s Contemporary Ensemble in Residence as well as a Talent Development Partner for PRS for Music Foundation and a National Portfolio Organisation for Arts Council England.
Psappha has commissioned works from a wide range of composers, such as Ronald Caltabiano, John Casken, Anthony Gilbert, Steven Mackey, Gordon McPherson, Rebecca Saunders and Karen Tanaka. The ensemble has worked with prominent soloists like Sir Thomas Allen, Phyllis Bryn-Julson, Philip Langridge, Robert Tear and the actress Fiona Shaw.
In addition to appearances throughout the UK and regular participation in major music festivals (Aldeburgh, Bath, Buxton, Cheltenham, Huddersfield, Oxford, and St Magnus in Orkney), Psappha has made successful tours to Australia, Belgium, France, Ireland, Jersey, the Netherlands, North and South America (in Buenos Aires, Sacramento, San Francisco, at the Guggenheim Museum in New York), Portugal, and Spain. Psappha’s appearances also include residencies at Princeton University and the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts.
Psappha has received the 2000 Manchester Evening News Award for opera and has been shortlisted three times in the Royal Philharmonic Society Awards.
In 2015 the ensemble moved to St Michael’s, a former Italian Chapel in Ancoats, Manchester.
Psappha has a core instrumentation of flute (Conrad Marshall), clarinet (Dov Goldberg), violin (Benedict Holland), viola (Heather Wallington), cello (Jennifer Langridge), piano (Benjamin Powell) and percussion (Tim Williams).
The English composer and Master of the Queen’s Music Sir Peter Maxwell Davies was Psappha’s Patron for twenty years until his death in 2016. In 2004 the ensemble made its debut at the BBC Proms with a concert for his 70th birthday, gave the first public concert at Stormont Castle in Belfast, appeared in the special Henze and Maxwell Davies portrait series in the Queen Elizabeth Hall in London and launched its own CD label with Eight Songs for a Mad King and Miss Donnithorne’s Maggot, two unconducted performances of Maxwell Davies music-theatre works featuring soprano Jane Manning and baritone Kelvin Thomas. The album received great critical acclaim and was featured among the Best CD Releases of 2004 in The Sunday Telegraph.
Ten years later they gave a special concert for Sir Peter Maxwell Davies’ 80th birthday and have performed many of his productions, including Missa super l’homme armé, Eight Songs for a Mad King and the award-winning Mr Emmett Takes a Walk (with direction and libretto by David Pountney), which he wrote especially for Psappha in 2000.
Psappha is the only professional, stand-alone contemporary music ensemble in the North of England. With a diverse repertoire of over 300 works, it is renowned for its interpretative ability and technical expertise. So far, the group has released seven recordings of music by British composers, including John Casken, Piers Hellawell and Gordon McPherson.
Psappha is involved in education projects both in the UK and abroad. The group supports composers at all stages of their careers by participating in composition workshops and courses, and offering opportunities to work with their musicians. They have also produced a number of online film-based resources. Composition Lab supports GCSE and A-level music, and Psappha Kids supports the teaching of classroom music for children aged 7 to 11. Psappha has received the Swatch City Life Award for Best Concert Series and Education Work. It is currently the University of Manchester’s Contemporary Ensemble in Residence as well as a Talent Development Partner for PRS for Music Foundation and a National Portfolio Organisation for Arts Council England.
Psappha has commissioned works from a wide range of composers, such as Ronald Caltabiano, John Casken, Anthony Gilbert, Steven Mackey, Gordon McPherson, Rebecca Saunders and Karen Tanaka. The ensemble has worked with prominent soloists like Sir Thomas Allen, Phyllis Bryn-Julson, Philip Langridge, Robert Tear and the actress Fiona Shaw.
In addition to appearances throughout the UK and regular participation in major music festivals (Aldeburgh, Bath, Buxton, Cheltenham, Huddersfield, Oxford, and St Magnus in Orkney), Psappha has made successful tours to Australia, Belgium, France, Ireland, Jersey, the Netherlands, North and South America (in Buenos Aires, Sacramento, San Francisco, at the Guggenheim Museum in New York), Portugal, and Spain. Psappha’s appearances also include residencies at Princeton University and the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts.
Psappha has received the 2000 Manchester Evening News Award for opera and has been shortlisted three times in the Royal Philharmonic Society Awards.
In 2015 the ensemble moved to St Michael’s, a former Italian Chapel in Ancoats, Manchester.