Simon Bookish

Simon Bookish is the stage name of Leo Chadburn,[1][2] a British musician and composer, known for his work in experimental, electronic, pop and classical music. His music has been broadcast on BBC Radio 1,[2] BBC Radio 3, BBC Radio 6 Music,[3] and Resonance FM.[4] Originally from Coalville, Leicestershire,[5] he moved to London and trained at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama from 1997 to 2001.[6]

Simon Bookish
Background information
Birth nameLeo Chadburn
Born1978 (age 42–43)
Coalville, United Kingdom
Genresclassical, art rock, electronic music
Occupationsvocalist, composer, producer, recording artist
LabelsTomlab
Websitewww.simonbookish.com

Work as Simon Bookish

To date, Chadburn has released three solo albums under the name Simon Bookish. The first two, Unfair/Funfair (2006) and Trainwreck/Raincheck (2007), combined his voice with synthesizers and laptop computers. His use of spoken word on Trainwreck/Raincheck and in live performances drew comparisons with "Bowie and Baudrillard, Burroughs and Byrne".[7] His third album, Everything/Everything (2008) featured an ensemble of brass instruments, saxophones, Farfisa organ, piano and harp. Chadburn describes this album as "a big band song cycle about science and information".[8][9]

Chadburn's most recent release as Simon Bookish was Red and Blue EP (2015), an experimental piece based on correspondence between Margaret Thatcher and Ronald Reagan.[10]

He has provided remixes of songs for bands and artists such as Grizzly Bear, Franz Ferdinand, The Organ, Owen Pallett, Seb Rochford and Late of the Pier.[11] He has also contributed tracks to the compilation albums Worried Noodles (2007),[12] a compilation of songs with lyrics by artist David Shrigley,[13] and The Wall Re-built! (2010), which celebrated the 30th anniversary of Pink Floyd's The Wall, for Mojo Magazine.[14]

Work as Leo Chadburn

Classical works

Chadburn has written a number of works for classical music groups. These include Unison: Things Are Getting Worse for a large ensemble of pianists,[15][16] X Chairman Maos, written for the ensemble Apartment House and performed at the De La Warr Pavilion to coincide with their Andy Warhol exhibition in 2011,[15][17] and Five Loops for the Bathyscaphe (2018), commissioned by the Britten Sinfonia.[18]

His string quartet, The Indistinguishables was written for the Canadian quartet Quatuor Bozzini and performed at the 2014 Huddersfield Contemporary Music Festival.[19] A performance by the quartet at Milton Court (Guildhall School of Music) in March 2019 with Gemma Saunders as narrator was broadcast on BBC Radio 3 in September 2019.[20] His piece for chamber ensemble, Freezywater, commissioned by the Wigmore Hall, won a 2016 British Composer Award.[21] Chadburn was nominated for a second British Composer Award the following year, for his choral piece Affix Stamp Here,[22] written for the vocal ensemble EXAUDI.[23]

Chadburn is currently an associate composer of the London Symphony Orchestra,[24] who performed his piece Brown Leather Sofa in 2013.[25]

Albums (as Leo Chadburn)

Chadburn has released two albums under his own name, Epigram / Microgram (2013),[26] an instrumental album which utilises the Casio CZ-101 synthesizer as its only sound source, and The Subject / The Object (2020), which comprises two 20-minute long tracks of spoken word stream of consciousness and drone music.[27]

Collaborations

Chadburn has collaborated on a number of projects with visual artists.[15] In 2009, he wrote the score for Richard Grayson's video installation The Golden Space City of God (exhibited at Matt's Gallery, London and Artpace, San Antonio), which featured a choir shot on location in Texas singing cult religious texts.[28][29]

In 2012 he collaborated with the artist Tanya Axford on a piece entitled The Path Made by a Boat in Sound (Three Down) for the Whitstable Biennale,[30] and with video artist Jennet Thomas, on her work School of Change, a "sci-fi musical film", again exhibited at Matt's Gallery.[31]

He went on to work with the conceptual artist Cerith Wyn Evans on a choral work for performance at the Irish Museum of Modern Art in 2013, based on Samuel Beckett's prose text Imagination Dead Imagine.[32]

Chadburn has also written music for the theatre, working with the Royal National Theatre on a new musical score for their 2007 production of The Caucasian Chalk Circle, in which he also played the part of "The Singer".[33]

As a performer, he has contributed to the albums of Leafcutter John, Max de Wardener, Patrick Wolf, Serafina Steer and Saint Etienne, credited with recorders, bass clarinet and vocals.[34] He is also credited as a producer on classical percussionist Joby Burgess' album 24 Lies Per Second (2013).[35]

He has occasionally performed works by other experimental composers, including John Cage,[36] Gavin Bryars,[37] Christopher Fox,[38] Frederic Rzewski (whose piece Coming Together he presented at the first London Contemporary Music Festival in 2013)[39] and Jennifer Walshe (whose work he performed at the 2017 London Contemporary Music Festival).[40] Alongside actor Gemma Saunders, Chadburn recorded a spoken word version of artist On Kawara's twenty volume book, One Million Years [Past and Future], which was released as a limited edition four CD set.[41]

Writing and curation

In addition to his work as a musician, Chadburn has written reviews and articles about classical and pop music for The Quietus, Frieze, the New Statesman and The Wire.[42] He is the curator of the public concert series and the Summer festival at City, University of London.[43]

Discography

Albums as Simon Bookish
  • Unfair / Funfair (2006, Use Your Teeth)
  • Trainwreck / Raincheck (2007, Use Your Teeth)
  • Everything / Everything (2008, Tomlab)

Albums as Leo Chadburn
  • Epigram / Microgram (2013, Library of Nothing)
  • The Subject / The Object (2020, Library of Nothing)

Selected notated works
  • ANTICLOCK (2019) for ensemble (nine players). Premiered at Cafe OTO, London.[44]
  • Five Loops for the Bathyscaphe (2018) for piano trio and recorded voices[45] for the Britten Sinfonia
  • Affix Stamp Here (2016) for voices, analogue synthesizers and projections[46]
  • Freezywater (2016) for piano, reed organ, strings, percussion and pre-recorded voices[47]
  • The Indistinguishables (2014) for string quartet and pre-recorded voices[47]
  • Vapour Descriptors (2014) for two pianos[47]
  • Brown Leather Sofa (2013) for large orchestra[47]
  • X Chairman Maos (2011) for voice and amplified ensemble[47]

References
  1. "Simon Bookish Takes on Everything on Third Album". Pitchfork Media. 1 October 2008. Retrieved 29 July 2009.
  2. Wyse, Pascal (19 April 2004). "Are school music lessons killing music?". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 5 May 2019.
  3. "Leo Chadburn - New Songs, Playlists & Latest News - BBC Music". BBC. Retrieved 5 May 2019.
  4. "Saturday 28th May 2016 - Resonance FM". Retrieved 4 May 2019.
  5. Scott, Neil. "The Mind's Construction Quarterly > Simon Bookish". Retrieved 13 August 2013.
  6. Leo Chadburn (16 February 2010). "Guest Blog: Simon Bookish on His Favorite Album of the Decade". Under the Radar. Retrieved 6 March 2010.
  7. Brainlove, John. "Review / Simon Bookish @ Nog Gallery, Durham". Retrieved 13 August 2013.
  8. Luke Turner (7 November 2008). "Simon Bookish Goes Big Band To Sing Particle Physics And Linguistics". The Quietus. Retrieved 30 October 2009.
  9. "tomlab". Archived from the original on 24 May 2012. Retrieved 13 August 2013.
  10. "The Quietus Reviews Simon Bookish". Retrieved 22 December 2016.
  11. "SIMON BOOKISH / LEO CHADBURN – REMIXES". Retrieved 13 August 2013.
  12. "Simon Bookish Discography at Discogs". Retrieved 13 August 2013.
  13. "BBC – collective". Archived from the original on 13 August 2013. Retrieved 13 August 2013.
  14. "Various – The Wall Re-Built! Disc Two (CD) at Discogs". Retrieved 13 August 2013.
  15. "SIMON BOOKISH / LEO CHADBURN – PROJECTS". Retrieved 13 August 2013.
  16. Cunningham, David. "a lot of pianos..." Retrieved 13 August 2013.
  17. "Apartment House + Simon Bookish". Retrieved 13 August 2013.
  18. Maddocks, Fiona (28 January 2018). "The week in classical: London Sinfonietta 50th anniversary concert; Britten Sinfonia - review". the Guardian. Retrieved 9 September 2018.
  19. "Leo Chadburn Composer's Kitchen 2014". Retrieved 22 December 2016.
  20. New Music Show, BBC Radio 3, 21 September, 2019
  21. "BRITISH COMPOSER AWARDS". Retrieved 22 December 2016.
  22. "Nominees announced for British Composer Awards 2017 - M Magazine". M magazine: PRS for Music online magazine. 26 October 2017. Retrieved 9 September 2018.
  23. Coghlan, Alexandra. "Prospect recommends: The best classical music this month". Retrieved 9 September 2018.
  24. "Composers – LSO Soundhub". Retrieved 13 August 2013.
  25. "Saturday 13 April: 5pm & 7.30pm – London Symphony Orchestra [PDF]". Retrieved 13 August 2013.
  26. "SIMON BOOKISH / LEO CHADBURN - EPIGRAM / MICROGRAM". www.simonbookish.com. Retrieved 25 July 2020.
  27. "The Quietus | Features | Spool's Out | Spool's Out: Cassette Reviews For July By Tristan Bath". The Quietus. Retrieved 25 July 2020.
  28. "Matt's Gallery – Richard Grayson: The Golden Space City of God". Retrieved 13 August 2013.
  29. Januszczak, Waldemar Januszczak (13 August 2013). "Give credit to the crunch; A rewarding trip to East End galleries proves to Waldemar Januszczak that at least our bad times beget better art". Sunday Times.
  30. "Tanya Axford". Archived from the original on 13 August 2013. Retrieved 13 August 2013.
  31. "Matt's Gallery – Jennet Thomas: All Suffering Soon to End". Retrieved 13 August 2013.
  32. "An exhibition exploring art and cinema at the Irish Museum of Modern Art". Retrieved 13 August 2013.
  33. Sam Marlowe (13 March 2007). "The Caucasian Chalk Circle". The Times. Retrieved 29 July 2009.
  34. "Leo Chadburn Discography at Discogs". Retrieved 13 August 2013.
  35. "24 Lies Per Second – Joby Burgess, Powerplant | Credits – AllMusic". Retrieved 13 August 2013.
  36. "Kammer Klang: Sebastian Roux + Jennifer Walshe + Lucy Railton/Leo Chadburn: 21 May 2013". Archived from the original on 13 August 2013. Retrieved 13 August 2013.
  37. Hewett, Ivan (1 June 2014). "London Contemporary Music Festival, review round-up: 'enthralling'". ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 30 January 2019.
  38. "the works". fox additions. 24 September 2012. Retrieved 30 January 2019.
  39. "LondonJazz: Review: Final Two Days at the London Contemporary Music Festival, Peckham". Retrieved 13 August 2013.
  40. Maddocks, Fiona (10 December 2017). "Cavalleria rusticana/ Pagliacci; London contemporary music festival – review". the Guardian. Retrieved 9 September 2018.
  41. "On Kawara : One Million Years (Box set) – Les presses du réel". www.lespressesdureel.com. Retrieved 30 January 2019.
  42. "LEO CHADBURN – WRITING". Retrieved 13 August 2013.
  43. "Leo Chadburn". City, University of London. Retrieved 30 January 2019.
  44. "ANTICLOCK". British Music Collection. 29 April 2019. Retrieved 5 May 2019.
  45. Hugill, Robert. "Five Loops for the Bathyscaphe". Retrieved 30 January 2019.
  46. "British Composer Awards". Britten-Pears Foundation. 5 December 2017. Retrieved 30 January 2019.
  47. "SIMON BOOKISH / LEO CHADBURN - WORKS". www.simonbookish.com. Retrieved 30 January 2019.
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