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Artist Biographies All Or Nothing All or Nothing are Scotland’s aerial dance theatre company. Their work crosses the boundaries between the floor and the air and explores the space in between. They merge aerial skills, including silks, harness and rope, with dance theatre and contemporary circus to create exciting, challenging and spectacular performances.

Based in Edinburgh, All or Nothing create work for theatres and festivals as well as corporate occasions and one-off events; performing across Scotland and beyond.

They develop opportunities to experience aerial dance and theatre, running classes, workshops, outreach and training programmes for everyone, from complete beginners to professional performers.

www.aerialdance.co.uk

Bigg Taj Runner up in the 2009 UK beatbox championships, Glasgow born Bigg Taj has been carving a totally unique niche for himself as a beat boxer like no other since stepping up onstage for the first time nearly a decade ago. His rapid fire, off the wall rhythmic delivery and ability to produce more noises than a fully loaded Akai sampler has astounded audiences across Scotland, the UK and beyond and earned him support slots for a who's who of hip hop – from Jurassic 5, GZA, Methodman & Redman, Immortal Technique, EL-P and MF Doom to legends like EPMD and Grandmaster Flash. He is also part of a duo with rapper Spee SixNine, and is increasingly in demand in theatre productions by leading Scottish writer/directors like Cora Bisset and Davey Anderson. www.biggtaj.bandcamp.com Frightened Rabbit Initially a solo project for vocalist and guitarist Scott Hutchison, Frightened Rabbit's first studio album, Sing the Greys, was recorded as a duo by Hutchison and his brother Grant, and released on independent label, Hits the Fan, in 2006. The band subsequently signed to Fat Cat Records, in 2007, and became a three-piece with the addition of guitarist Billy Kennedy for its second studio album, The Midnight Organ Fight (2008). The album was released to widespread critical acclaim and extensive touring, with guitarist and keyboardist Andy Monaghan joining the band to flesh-out its live performances.

 

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The band's third studio album, The Winter of Mixed Drinks, was released in 2010, with former Make Model guitarist Gordon Skene joining the band for its accompanying performances. Frightened Rabbit signed to Atlantic Records later that year, and issued two EPs, A Frightened Rabbit EP (2011) and State Hospital (2012), before the release of their fourth studio album, Pedestrian Verse in 2013. A critical and commercial success in the UK, the album peaked at number nine on the UK Albums Chart. www.frightenedrabbit.com Glasgow Phoenix Choir The Glasgow Phoenix Choir is a busy mixed voice choir of 110 plus singers performing up to 40 concerts per year. With a prestigious history, coming out of the ashes of the famous Glasgow Orpheus Choir in 1951, the choir has roots in the city stretching back over 113 years. From its base in Glasgow it performs twice a year in the Glasgow Royal Concert Hall and undertakes numerous concerts and engagements including at least two short tours each year. The choir recently visited Germany for a series of concerts in Enger, Bielefeld and Minden with the Widukind Chor, followed by a tour to the North of Scotland to Dornoch Cathedral, St Magnus Cathedral in Orkney and to Thurso West Church and, as always, singing to full houses. www.phoenixchoir.org Marie Claire Breen Described as 'a soprano of rare fluency' (Daily Mail, 2011) Marie Claire is a dynamic and vibrant young artist with extensive experience on the operatic stage and concert platform. She is a former Scottish Opera Emerging Artist and was cast in various roles including Vixen, The Cunning Little Vixen; Venus, Orpheus in the Underworld; Dewman/Cover Gretel, Hansel and Gretel. She also created the role of Denise Austin in Gareth Williams' The Elephant Angel with Scottish Opera. Marie Claire is in high demand as a vocal tutor across the country. She is chief vocal instructor with Breath Cycle, an original and pioneering project working with young adults with Cystic Fibrosis. www.marieclairebreen.co.uk

 

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Miaoux Miaox Miaoux Miaoux is producer and multi-instrumentalist Julian Corrie, who makes beautiful, spaced out electronic pop that recalls the best of Caribou, Postal Service and Four Tet. Describing his sound as like ‘a supercomputer being thrown in a lake’, Miaoux Miaoux signed with Chemikal Underground Records in 2012, releasing the album ‘Light of the North’ to critical acclaim. A nomination for Scottish Album of the Year followed in 2013, along with numerous live gigs with a stunning live band - joined by bass player Liam Graham and drummer Liam Chapman, a Miaoux Miaoux live set is a synth heavy, silver-plated extravaganza. www.miaouxmiaoux.com Model Aeroplanes Model Aeroplanes have been together as a band in various incarnations since they were 13 years old and now, as Model Aeroplanes, they share a desire to write honest pop songs. This is a group thriving on the youthful exuberance of four young lads honing their craft throughout their teenage years together. The band have went from strength to strength in the last 12 months and the coming year looks even more exciting for the boys. www.facebook.com/modelaeroplanes Oliver Coates Oliver Coates' position as an Artist in Residence at Southbank Centre in London has lead him to the forefront of curating and performing unique arts events which have been building new audiences for live music. It culminated in him winning the Royal Philharmonic Society Young Artist Award in 2011. Reflecting upon this he decided to explore principles of context and sound, working on a self-produced album to be released on 12-inch vinyl as the first release for new imprint PRAH.

In 2013 he worked with field recordist Chris Watson, using music by Britten and environmental sounds for a project in Suffolk. His other major performing collaborations have been in intimate settings with Steve Reich, Jonny Greenwood, DOOM, Oren Ambarchi and Mira Calix. These encompass notated music, drone, improvisation, glitch and interactions with live electronics.

In the last two seasons he has performed concertos in China, Brazil, Holland and UK with Britten Sinfonia, Aurora Orchestra, BBC Scottish Symphony, BBC National Orchestra of Wales and the Neojiba Youth Orchestra of Bahia. His one-to-one composer collaborations have been with contemporary composers such as Thomas Adès, Helmut Lachenmann, Kaaja Saariaho, Jonathan Harvey and Sofia Gubaidulina. In November and December 2014 he undertakes an artistic residency to make new work in Hong Kong supported by the British Council and PRSF.

www.olivercoates.com

 

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Rachel Sermanni Rachel Sermanni is 19. She is a songwriter from a small village in the Highlands called Carrbridge. Sometimes she plays solo and at others she is surrounded by a group of wonderful musicians consisting of Laura Wilkie, Siobhan Anderson and sometimes Louise Bichan (the fiddle pixies), Leo and Declan Forde, Joe Rattray and pianist Jennifer Austin. Rachel has had many adventures both solo and with the band in the last twelve months, winning over audiences and making friends everywhere she goes. She has been honoured to have supported many acts over the past twelve months including Mumford & Sons on their infamous Highlands & Islands tour as well as amongst others, KT Tunstall, Newton Faulkner and John William Grant,the latter two who Rachel has ended up duetting with. www.rachelsermanni.net The Royal Navy The Royal Navy is an important element of Sound to Sea, contributing ships and personnel to the event. HMS PURSUER, a P2000 Fast Patrol Craft which provides training for the Glasgow & Strathclyde University Royal Naval Unit, two fast Rigid Inflatable Boats manned by Royal Marines from Faslane-based 43 Commando Fleet Protection Group and the larger Mine Counter Measures ship HMS BANGOR will take part in the two evening performances. In addition, the Type 45 destroyer HMS DAUNTLESS will be arriving in Glasgow during the Games. Built at BAE Systems on the Clyde, DAUNTLESS will be a noticeable addition to the naval presence in Glasgow during that period. DAUNTLESS is one of six ships that were built in the Clyde shipyards in recent years. Nearer the time the public will be invited to welcoming her to the city. www.royalnavy.mod.uk Tigerstyle Tigerstyle are a Glaswegian bhangra group from a British Punjabi background. They are made up of two brothers, Raj and Pops, trained in classical tabla, gurmat sangeet and various forms of Punjabi folk music and instrumentation. Coming from a traditional background where religious adherence was the call of the day and where they both learnt to play instruments from a young age so that they could perform at their local temple, Raj and Pops have now turned this young Sikh outfit into the most sought after act. www.tigerstyleonline.co.uk

 

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Treacherous Orchestra Emerging from the vibrant melting-pot of Glasgow’s 21st-century folk scene, Treacherous Orchestra take Scottish dance music into a thrilling new dimension. Comprising of ten of Scotland’s, and two of Ireland’s, finest young instrumentalists (or should that just be mentalists?), this truly turbocharged collective have incited merry mayhem at every one of their previous appearances, from remote Hebridean islands to Rudolstadt’s World Music Festival in Germany, from sell-out shows at Celtic Connections to the world-renowned Cambridge Folk Festival. Now they enter a new chapter with the long-awaited release of their debut album, launched in February 2012 on Navigator records. The band’s members hail from the length and breadth of Scotland – plus two from Ireland – and together represent the leading edge of the country’s ongoing folk revival. Having grown up under the influence of such pioneering fusion acts as Shooglenifty, Martyn Bennett and Wolfstone, they draw simultaneously on deep traditional roots and the full gamut of contemporary influences, interweaving these strands organically in a repertoire consisting almost entirely of original tunes. Along with boundless youthful energy, they bring to bear a vast range of experience from other innovative Scottish outfits, featuring past or current members of Croft No. Five, Salsa Celtica, the Peatbog Faeries, Session A9, Old Blind Dogs, Box Club and Back of the Moon, among others. www.treacherousorchestra.com Walk The Plank Walk the Plank are outdoor arts experts, who create powerful events with mass appeal. From international stage to village square, their specialist team develop remarkable moments that enrich the lives of their audience through shared experience - encouraging a sense of place, a feeling of pride, and well-being. The organisation empowers artists and communities through creative development, transforming people and the places in which they live through opportunities to engage with accessible, artistic excellence. Walk the Plank’s work includes the opening ceremony of Turku’s 2011 European Capital of Culture in Finland and The Return of Colmcille – a landmark event for the first UK City of Culture Derry,Londonderry. www.walktheplank.co.uk