aaron akugbo + milo harper
29 april 2023 / 9pm / the jago dalston
100% funded (sold out)
Trumpeter Aaron Akugbo and Harpist Milo Harper debut their new collaboration in iconic Dalston live music venue, The Jago.
8pm: late set doors open
9pm: aaron + milo late set
10pm: live bands play afrobeat, funk, soul, and disco until close (included with late set backing)
what are noisenights?
noisenights are our vision for the future of classical music: informal crowdfunded events featuring international soloists in bars, converted warehouses, and nightclubs.
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Most noisenights feature two short classical sets, one early evening, one late. All tickets to the late set include live music and DJs for the rest of the night, including jazz, latin, afrobeat, swing and funk acts.
This noisenight currently only has one set - but we're ready to add another, dependent on demand.
Live music needs your backing more than ever. Becoming a noisenight backer means getting tickets to hear the world's best performers up close while becoming part of a community working for a positive future for live music.
After a noisenight reaches its funding target, we'll e-mail all backers to confirm it and a small amount of extra tickets will be made available. These tickets are released in three stages, which increase in price the closer to the event they're purchased. Book early to get the best price.
Please note that due to the venue's license, this noisenight is strictly 18+.
the venue:
The Jago is a renowned arts and culture venue in the renovated buildings of the Hackney Gazette printing press.
The Jago's eclectic programme of music, art, dance, film screenings, workshops and community work relects the diverse cultures of the local Dalston community.
It's also a special venue for us, as it's just round the corner from through the noise HQ.
the music:
For this performance Aaron and Milo will present brand new arrangements of their favourite duets, including adaptations of Florence Price, Francis Poulenc, Claude Debussy, Nadia Boulanger, Samuel Coleridge-Taylor, and more.
aaron akugbo (trumpet):
Born in 1998 and of Nigerian-Scottish descent, Aaron Akugbo hails from Edinburgh and is poised as a future leading exponent of his instrument. He brings a wide-ranging musical taste to his artistry and despite being classically trained, cites Louis Armstrong as his biggest musical inspiration.
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He is a charismatic performer with an abundance of natural humour which translates into an effortless engagement with people and audiences.
A graduate of the Royal Academy of Music and an ex-principal of the National Youth Orchestra of Great Britain, Aaron can often be seen freelancing in the principal chairs of some of the most prestigious orchestras in the UK including the Philharmonia, BBC Philharmonic, BBC Symphony and Royal Philharmonic Orchestras.
In 2020, as part of the Southbank Centre’s ‘Behind Closed Doors’ concerts series, Aaron made his London debut at the Royal Festival Hall playing the Haydn Trumpet Concerto with Chineke!, Europe’s first Black and Minority Ethnic orchestra. His performance received glowing reviews, with the Arts Desk describing him as “a refined soloist… His sound was sweet, often lyrical… with perfect clarity and intonation”. Within the orchestra, Aaron has played in the UK’s top concert halls including Chineke’s BBC Proms debut. Aaron made his Wigmore debut playing Saint-Saëns Septet Op. 65 for trumpet, piano and strings with members of Chineke! as well as participating in the orchestra’s tour of Europe playing in halls such as the Royal Concertgebouw Amsterdam and Kölner Philharmonie.
In early 2019, Aaron was a finalist in the “Girolamo Fantini” International Trumpet Competition whilst also being awarded the special prize for best performance of “Vulcano Club” by Piergiorgio Ratti. Aaron was subsequently invited by competition panellist and trumpet soloist, Tine Thing Helseth, to the Risør Kammermusikfest in Norway where he received masterclasses from Tine herself whilst also performing as a soloist.
Besides his solo and orchestral performances, Aaron is also a member of the inaugural Philip Jones Brass Ensemble Award winning group, Connaught Brass. As a result of the competition, the quintet will give their debut performances at London’s Wigmore Hall and at the Lucerne Festival next season. Last year, the group gave several performances at the 2020 Birmingham Brass Fest including a recital and featuring as one of three brass quintets in a festival commission alongside Onyx Brass and a student quintet of the Royal Birmingham Conservatoire.
Aaron has received both lessons and attended masterclass from many of the top trumpet players including Urban Agnas, Reinhold Friedrich, Jeroen Berwaerts, Gabor Tarkovi, Guillaume Jehl and Eric Aubier. He plays on a combination of Vincent Bach Stradivarius and Scherzer instruments, his C trumpet purchase was made possible by a Royal Philharmonic Society Instrument Purchase Grant he was awarded in 2017.
milo harper (harp):
Milo Harper explores the unique history and poetic symbolism of the harp through diverse sound-worlds and narratives. He strives to challenge the standard repertoire by carefully curating and also transcribing works by both recognised and lesser-known composers, particularly those from historically underrepresented genders, queer identities, ethnicities, races and cultures.
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This year, Milo is a soloist on the Munster Trust Recital Scheme and also the Harp Fellow for the Philharmonia Orchestra's MMSF scheme. He recently returned to the UK from New York City, having completed his graduate studies under Emmanuel Ceysson's (Metropolitan Opera, LA Phil) tutelage at The New School's Mannes School of Music, where he was awarded the Performing Arts Scholarship. At Mannes he was also coached by Brandee Younger (renowned jazz harpist) as a member of the Alice Coltrane Ensemble. He completed his Bachelors at the Royal Academy of Music, where he received the D Day Fund Award and the Robert Alva Memorial Prize for outstanding achievement, having studied with Karen Vaughan (LSO) and Skaila Kanga (Abbey Road Studios). Milo’s studies were sponsored by the Hattori Foundation, the Countess of Munster Musical Trust and the Royal Philharmonic Society’s Julius Isserlis Scholarship.
As a soloist, Milo has won competitions including the Camac Harp Competition (2018), the North London Festival President's Prize Competition (2018) and the Royal Academy of Music's Guy Magrath Harp Prize (2019). He has also toured globally in solo, chamber and orchestral concerts. He gave solo performances at the World Harp Congress (Hong Kong, 2017) and Carnegie Hall’s Weill Recital Hall (NYC, 2019) and concertos in the UK, Germany, Switzerland, Hong Kong, and Singapore. He is the harpist for LGT Young Soloists, an orchestra described by Fanfare as 'one of the finest youth orchestras in Europe', with whom he has been featured on several albums released by Sony/RCA Red Seal Records. Previously, he was Principal Harp for the National Youth Orchestra of Great Britain (2014), Principal Harp for the European Union Youth Orchestra (2019) and a Britten-Pears Young Artist (2020). Not limited by genre, he has also collaborated with jazz groups, singer-songwriters, producers and contemporary composers.
Rewards: unallocated standing tickets to the noisenight22 late set in The Jago, Dalston at 9pm on Saturday 29 April 2023. First-come-first served for the best views.
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