Sonic Illuminations

Next show:

Friday 12th June

Centre of the Cell,

Queen Mary University

London E1

Performances at 6pm and 7:30pm.

Click here for tickets

Abstract digital art featuring a spherical, marbled blue pattern with red and white accents, surrounded by a scattering of multicolored particles against a black background.

PROGRAMMES

  • With our feet planted firmly on the ground, as humans we find the sight and sound of thousands of birds travelling overhead to be beautiful and uplifting. As we marvel at this magnificent spectacle, it is easy to forget just how perilous and arduous this journey is. In this programme we will take you on a migratory journey, through moments of joy, sadness, movement and stillness with music and imagery inspired by our response to this truly awe-inspiring feat of nature.

  • A performance curated as part of our residency at Hungate Medieval Arts, Norwich. This performance explored the visual and aural acoustics of this ancient building with pieces of music chosen to represent the juxtaposition of the vastness of sound and image within this very beautiful, intimate, little church.

  • This performance centres around Bach’s Partita no.2 for Solo Violin, with its mighty “Chaconne”. The imagery flows in a direct response to the universal, all-encompassing music of Bach.

About

Sonic Illuminations is a project by the violinist Hannah Perowne and live visual artist Marian Saunders creating immersive, unique and site specific performances which captivate and inspire audiences.

The audience enjoys a fully immersive experience which transcends the traditional understanding of a “classical” concert, hence making the music accessible to a more diverse audience. Hannah and Marian interpret the music and imagery entirely at the moment of performance in an ever changing audio visual dialogue with both the artists and the audience evolving in harmony.

Each performance can be adapted to fit each performance space perfectly: Upcoming performances include churches, museums, barns and even a nature reserve, with each venue providing inspiration and material that can be woven into the event, creating a truly bespoke and unique experience.

Black and white photo of a woman with shoulder-length wavy hair, wearing a black leather jacket, sitting on a chair while holding a violin in her lap.

Hannah Perowne enjoys a varied career as a soloist, chamber musician and orchestral leader. She has performed worldwide as guest artist with the Henschel Quartet, the Mozart Piano Quartet, Camerata Salzburg and the eminent harpsichordist, Mahan Esfahani. Her concerto performances include those of Brahms, Elgar, Prokofiev, Barber, Glass and Tchaikovsky and she has been broadcast as a soloist and chamber musician by the BBC, Classic FM, ABC Australian and SWR and NDR Radio, Germany. Her recording of John Rutter's "Visions" together with the Choir of King's College, Cambridge was released by Hyperion Records in 2024.

A black and white portrait of a woman with short hair, smiling and looking slightly to the side. She is wearing a textured jacket and a turtleneck sweater, with earrings visible.

Marian Saunders is an experimental audio-visual artist specialising in improvised, live visual performance. Fusing hand-made analogue imagery and digital real-time technologies, her improvised visual projections respond to sound, space and audience in an evolving collage of colour, shape and light. She enjoys a diverse collaborative practice with recent performances including Sonic Illuminations @The Chapel, ‘Aether’ at Norwich Arts Centre, ‘BioSynthesis’ at Cinema City Norwich, ‘The Light Works’ at EAST gallery Norwich, ‘This is How We Dance’ at First Site Gallery Colchester. Her visuals feature in ‘Tripping On Life’ and ‘Could you Patent The Sun?’ theatre productions in New York. 

Contact us

If you are interested in commissioning a performance or would like further information about what we do, please fill out the form and we will be in touch.