ARTANGEL PAST

				ALAIN PLATEL / THE SHOUT Because I Sing 31 March & 1 April 2001 The Roundhouse, Chalk Farm, London NW1 A one-off choral portrait of London on a massive scale, Because I Sing brought together voices raised from across the capital: an A-Z of urban choirs, sacred and secular, side-by-side in a theatrical tribute to the democracy and classlessness of singing. In preparation composer Orlando Gough and choreographer Alain Platel excavated London's hidden choirs with Artangel and invited 16 distinctive and diverse groups - over 500 voices in all - to feature in a promenade event performed over two nights. Gough and Platel's search for 'choirs of character' took them back and forth across the river from Haymarket (where a Maori group sings on Wednesdays) to Tooting, where the Kingdom Choir regularly kick up a Gospel storm, to the Congolese Christian Choir in Harlesden via the Gay Men's Chorus in Camden Town and a large group of children who raise the roof every Sunday afternoon in North Finchley. Masterminded by Alain Platel as a compelling piece of theatre rather than a choral concert, Because I Sing animated different spaces within the epic interior of Camden's Roundhouse to create a surprising portrait of contemporary London. Alain Platel Alain Platel is best known for his pioneering work with the internationally acclaimed Belgium companies Les Ballets C de La B and Victoria. Bernadetje was presented by Artangel in 1997 on a dodgem track with a mixed race company ranging in age from 8-85. And Iets Op Bach was brought back twice to the South Bank in 1998, a dark and joyous urban epic featuring a trio of opera singers and a disparate group of social outcasts. The Shout Orlando Gough and Richard Chew are the Musical Directors of Because I Sing. Their own remarkable choir, The Shout, formed the backbone of the event, working closely with the conductors of each choral group to provide a link between amateur and professional. Comprised of a culturally and stylistically diverse group of performers, the Shout singers come from backgrounds which range from cabaret to opera, classical to drum'n'bass, bigband to baroque, New York jazz to classical Indian. Because I Sing was sponsored by Bloomberg. Because I Sing - The Film Director: Sophie Fiennes Producer: Gordon Baskerville Editor: John Dinwoodie Duration: 90 mins In parallel to Because I Sing, filmmaker Sophie Fiennes went on her own journey, forging relationships with these amateur choral groups to capture something of their very diverse worlds. The result was an idiosyncratic and poignant navigation of London's hidden voices and the communities in which they resound. Because I Sing was the first co-commission between Artangel Media and Channel 4. Artangel Media Ltd has been established to produce ambitious artists' projects in all media. It develops and produce new projects with the same spirit of openness and collaboration that has always characterised Artangel's core commissions.
	Participating Choirs: The Armenian Church Congolese Christian Choir Finchley Children's Music Group Gwalia Welsh Choir The Kingdom Choir Lloyds Choir The London Jewish Male Choir London Diocese Deaf Choir London Gay Men's Chorus New Elmwood Singers Ngati Ranana ñ Maori Choir The South Hampstead School for Girls The Swiss Church Music School for Children Velvet Fist Women's Institute Choir Lea Valley Singers