Propaganda Session One

Sons of Kemet with Britten Sinfonia + more

Sons of Kemet standing in front of a patterned wall

Shabaka Hutchings takes the stage to kick off his curated weekend of music, joined by his band Sons of Kemet and the Britten Sinfonia.

Mantombi Matotiyana opens the proceedings in her debut London performance. The South African artist is accompanied by specialist in African instrumentation, Dizu Plaatjies, performing traditional Xhosa music on uhadi (sometimes known as the long woman's bow), the umrhube (the mouth bow of her tribe, the Xhosa people) and the isitolotolo (the jaw's or jew's mouth harp). 

The textures get lusher in the second half as the Britten Sinfonia join Shabaka and his band Sons of Kemet to perform an arrangement of his piece Babylon. They also play Aaron Copland’s bittersweet and beautiful Clarinet Concerto – originally written for Benny Goodman, it was one of the first pieces to embed jazz-tinged melodies in a classical context.

This event will start at the advertised start time and running times will be confirmed closer to the event 

Produced by the Barbican

ClubStage

Following the concert, Martiniquian musician DJ Noss finds global resonance in Caribbean sounds, performing live on turntables and an ancestral Bèlè drum.

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Barbican Hall