James McIlwrath

James describes himself as someone who does things and make things. He is a composer-performer who writes a range of experimental works, including people singing on bikes, music for boxes and performing on tiny drums kits.

This Battle of the Bands he’ll be performing Alison Knowles’ Shuffle Piece, Niel Luck’s THING and Oogoo Maia’s Maximum Effort.

Lara Jones

Saxophonist, improviser and composer Lara Jones has performed at the Vortex Jazz Club, London Jazz Festival, Kings Place and Cafe Oto, and has worked with the likes of Jo Thomas, Courtney Pine, Novelist, Roller Trio, Portico Quartet, Matthew Bourne, Elliot Galvin, Laura Jurd and Shiva Feshareki. As a soloist, she has recently been awarded a place on the Manchester Jazz Festival’s Hothouse programme, and is a mentee on the Brighter Sounds mentorship programme, where she is mentored by Anna Meredith.

On the night, Lara will perform a solo set of original works for saxophone and electronics.

Nobuto

Composer and pianist Nobuto combines solo piano and fixed electronics. He draws influence from ambient, electronic and contemporary classical idioms to create immersive, long-form soundworld. He’ll be performing his own composition (as yet untitled), which involves rapid, collage-based techniques, electronic samples, and sparse ambient/drone textures; touching on themes relating to the internet, information overload and British-Japanese identity.

Ret Frem

Ret Frem was founded in 2016 by composer and artistic director Will Handysides and comprises of new music specialists Jenni Hogan (flute), Abi Heath (clarinets), Kate De Campos (viola) and Fraser Bowles (cello). They are committed to the performance and promotion of music by living composers from around the world, as well as bringing new music to young people who are denied access to the arts at school.

They’ll be performing Will Handysides’ Come Apart and Swedish composer Frej Wedlund’s with a certain degree of pointlessness.

Rosie Middleton

Specialising in new music, mezzo soprano Rosie Middleton has collaborated with composers Laura Bowler, Catherine Kontz, Esin Gunduz and Michael Betteridge, and was recently artist in residence at Snape Maltings and The Banff Centre. Past performances include Schoenberg’s Pierrot Lunaire at the Southbank Centre (reviewed as ‘staggeringly good’ by the New Statesman) and Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland at the Royal Opera House Linbury Theatre.

She’ll be performing Laura Bowler’s Cover Squirrel, a solo work which combines the voice, recording and a detuned violin.

Yorgo Stenos

Yorgo is a sonic scavenger; a full-time explorer of hardware stores, kitchens and junkyards in quest for noise-making treasures. As a performer of experimental music he's lately focusing on his solo project, playing home-brewed noise makers and micro-percussion, amplified objects, turntables and electronics. He also makes audiovisual works, installations and music compositions for instruments and fixed media, while also performing with his band Trigger Happy.

He’ll perform a set of his own music, with strong elements of improvisation.

Gillian Moore CBE – Director of Music, Southbank Centre

Director of Music at the Southbank Centre, Gillian Moore CBE is one of the most influential women in British music, something BBC Women’s Hour confirmed in their Power List in 2018. She began her career working in education, and was awarded an MBE for her services to British music in 1994. Before becoming Director of Music at Southbank Centre, she was Artistic Director of the London Sinfonietta, Head of Contemporary Culture and Head of Classical Music at the Southbank Centre. Awarded a CBE in 2018, Gillian is a passionate advocate for new music, a regular writer and broadcaster and pioneers equal opportunities for female presence in the industry.

Abel Selaocoe – Cellist

Moving seamlessly across genres, South African cellist Abel Selacoe is one of the most exciting performers around. He is as comfortable working in non-traditional contexts – such as collaborating with world musicians and beat boxers – as he is in the traditional concert environment – having performed in prestigious venues such as Cadogan Hall, Royal Albert Hall, Sage Gateshead and the Bridgewater Hall. A keen collaborator, he regularly works with new music, and has collaborated with Colin Matthews, Tim Garland, Seckou Keira, Giovanni Sollima, Gwilym Simcock and 12 ensemble, in addition to being a founding member of award-winning groups Kabantu and Chebasa. He is a commanding improviser and has a special interest in curating recital programmes that highlight the links between Western and non-Western musical traditions, with a view to helping classical music reach a more diverse audience.

Gabriel Prokofiev – Composer, Artistic Director and Founder at Nonclassical

Gabriel Prokofiev, is a composer, producer and DJ, whose music seeks to simultaneously embrace and challenge western classical traditions and often takes influences from other popular styles, such as grime, hip hop and electronic music. This can be heard in works like Concerto for Turntables and Orchestra – which premiered at the BBC Proms in 2011 – and Cello Multitracks, which has received over 40 performances worldwide. He has written numerous works for international concert halls, dance companies and opera stages, including commissions for the Seattle Symphony, St Petersburg Philharmonic, Moscow State Symphony, BBC Philharmonic, Rambert Dance, Birmingham Royal Ballet and Alexander Whitley Dance.

Natalia Franklin Pierce – Executive Director at Nonclassical

Specialising in artist development and producing large-scale new music events, Natalia came to lead the Nonclassical team in August this year after managing the LSO’s Panufnik, Soundhub and Jerwood Composer+ Schemes for composers. Previously, she worked as a producer for Multi-Story Orchestra; a project leader for Sound and Music (where she lead composer residency programmes with artists such as Kuljit Bhamra, Wet Sounds, The Riot Ensemble and Red Note Ensemble); and as an artist manager for Emily Hall and Ikon Arts Management.