The Art of Touch
Music
Matteo Fargion, Domenico Scarlatti
Design
David Buckland »
Costume design
Antony McDonald »
Lighting design
Ian Beswick »
Biographies
Since attending the Gulbenkian Course for Composers and Choreographers in 1989 Matteo has collaborated with many choreographers, including Jeremy James, Russell Maliphant, Lynda Gaudreaux, Stephanie Schober, Jonathan Burrows and Siobhan Davies. Following his residency at Stuttgart's prestigious Akademie Schloss Solitude he has also written theatre music, for productions by Thomas Ostermeier (Schaubühne, Berlin,) Tom Kuhnel (TAT, Frankfurt) and Elmar Goerden, (Residenz, Munich). Matteo's concert music has been heard around the world, played by leading performers such as Robyn Schulkovsky, Balanescu Quartet, Smith Quartet and Carole Cerasi. With collaborator Jonathan Burrows, he has created a trilogy of duets Both Sitting Duet, The Quiet Dance, and Speaking Dance, which have toured to over 20 countries and won a Bessie Award in New York. Matteo also teaches composition workshops at Anne Teresa de Keersmaeker's dance school in Brussels.
Born in Milan, Matteo studied composition with Kevin Volans in South Africa and later with Howard Skempton in London.
Born in Naples in 1685, Italian composer and keyboard player Scarlatti was the son of composer Alessandro Scarlatti. In 1701 he was appointed organist and composer of the royal court at Naples. By 1707 Scarlatti was in Rome, where he remained for over 12 years, providing music for both sacred and secular employers. In 1719 Scarlatti took up a post in the Portuguese court in Lisbon, and following this spent the latter years of his life in Madrid. Although he continued to write vocal music, sacred and secular, his main output was the hundreds of keyboard sonatas he composed; stimulated by the new sounds, sights and customs of Iberia. In these he explored new worlds of virtuoso technique including hand-crossing, rapidly repeated notes, wide leaps in both hands and countless other techniques achieving a devastating brilliance of effect. In 1738 he was honoured with a knighthood from King John V of Portugal.
Since 2001 David Buckland has created and now directs Cape Farewell, bringing together artists, scientists and educators on expeditions to the High Arctic to collectively address and raise awareness about climate change. It is on their journey to the world's tipping points that our artists and scientists begin their conversations, which leads to further research and production of pioneering new work that provokes and evokes a cultural response to the true scale of how the earth's environment and climate are changing. From the expeditions has sprung an extraordinary body of artwork, educational projects and collaborations.
David is a designer, artist and film-maker whose lens-based works have been exhibited in numerous galleries in London, Paris and New York and collected by the National Portrait Gallery, London, the Centre Georges Pompidou, Paris, the Metropolitan Museum, New York and the Getty Collection, Los Angeles amongst others.
Antony was part of the British team of designers who won the Golden Triga at the 2003 Prague Quadrennial for Un Ballo in Maschera, Bregenz Festival; and in 1991 for the 1989 Royal Shakespeare Production of Hamlet.
Previously for Rambert A Tragedy of Fashion and Mercure.
Current and previous design for dance includes Carmen, by Richard Alston; Pennies from Heaven, Sleeping Beauty, Fearful Symmetries , Cinderella, Nutcracker, and Hidden Variables all by Ashley Page, for Scottish Ballet; Of Oil and Water and Eighty Eight for Siobhan Davies.
As director/designer Antony recently premièred Das Rheingold for the Nationale Reisopera, Holland, the first part of Wagner's Ring Cycle concluding in 2012. He will direct Queen of Spades for Grange Park Opera in 2012 and his Rusalka will be revived in 2011.
Recent designs: Prima Donna by Rufus Wainwright (world première, MIF). The Gambler, Royal Opera House, Billy Budd, Frankfurt, Cunning Little Vixen, Amsterdam, all directed by Richard Jones.
Ian has been a freelance lighting designer and electrician since 1980. His work has involved lighting for conferences, concerts, theatre and exhibitions and has taken him around the world. His early days saw him light for over 40 dance companies. He became Technical Director for Siobhan Davies Dance Company from its inception in 1988, where he lit productions of Bank (1997) and The Art of Touch (1995), the latter winning the Evening Standard Award for Outstanding Production in 1996. In the nineties Ian moved north of the border and now resides in Scotland. He was Head of Lighting for the Edinburgh International Festival for a number of years. At present he now focuses much of his work in designing for conference and exhibition work and tours with P J Harvey. He is a member of the Association of Lighting Designers.