Shetland Arts presents 'The Wonderful World of Cerys Matthews'

Mareel’s Official Opening Season will kick off in style with, amongst other events, The Wonderful World of Cerys Matthews on Sunday 7 October.

The Wonderful World of Cerys Matthews will include a workshop in the Café Bar from 12noon to 2pm, giving the audience an exclusive chance to get up close with Cerys and her guests – Arun Gosh, Chi2, Musa Okwonga, Neil Charles, and Frank Moon - as they give intimate performances and answer questions.

Cerys and her guests are particularly keen to meet and hear from local musicians, so book your tickets now for this exclusive opportunity.

In the evening (at 8pm) you can join Cerys and guests as they perform and host an eclectic and dynamic mix of the best music and poetry from around the world.

See live performances of songs, from original pieces to cover songs from the likes of Johnny Cash to Sydney Bechet, from melody to spoken word, from the obscure and the exotic to guitar driven classics.

Starring alongside Cerys will be:

Arun Ghosh photo by William Ellis

Arun Ghosh is a clarinettist, composer and music educator. He has released two critically acclaimed albums, Primal Odyssey (2011) and Northern Namaste (2008), on camoci records, tours nationally and internationally with his IndoJazz & Horn E Bass bands, regularly works on theatre and multimedia productions as well as collaborating with dancers, filmmakers, poets and MCs. Ghosh was one of the BT Celebrity Storytellers for the London 2012 Olympics and Paralympics and recently appeared as a featured artist with his Arkestra Makara at the BT River of Music Festival as part of the 2012 Cultural Olympiad.

Chi2 photo by Kasia Marzalek

Chi 2 are British-born violinists Liz and Sarah Liew who are a dynamic fusion of electric violins and electronic beats. Dubbed as "double violin assault specialists", Chi2 compose and perform a charismatic blend of 'east meets west' rhythms and melodies. In Summer 2008 and Autumn 2009 they toured their exciting show Monkey King – A Modern Beijing Opera a brand new spin on the classic Chinese tale and they have released an album of music from the show. With their solid technical grounding and improvisational abilities, they have been a much in demand session duo and they have played with diverse artists such as Moby (world tours), Barry Adamson, Nelly Furtado, Gnarls Barkley, Goldfrapp, Boy George, KLF/Orb and Anastasia and recently with Asian Dub Foundation and Jerry Dammers Spatial AKA Orchestra.

Musa Okwonga 

Musa Okwonga is a poet, football author, musician, broadcaster and social commentator. He is one half of The King's Will, an electronica outfit that blends poetry, music, and animated videos. He writes for, among others, The Blizzard, ESPN and the Financial Times.

Neil Charles

Neil Charles is a bassist, electronic producer and composer. He regularly performs, records and tours with numerous jazz, classical and contemporary music bands and ensembles and is a member of the electro-acoustic jazz trio, Zed-U.

Frank Moon

Frank Moon is a multi instrumentalist and composer whose performance work crosses folk, jazz, gypsy swing, Balkan punk, African funk, Arabic and Indian fusion, Cuban son, hip-hop, klezmer, free improvisation, art noise, singer songwriters, and mediaeval choirs. He has toured widely with many artists, and his current performance work includes Cerys Matthews, the Urban Folk Quartet, Bev Lee Harling, The Destroyers, and Mediaeval Baebes. As a composer Frank has scored numerous productions for theatre and dance, including Utopia and The Metamorphosis (a Royal Opera house commission) for renowned choreographer Arthur Pita.

Originally from Chattanooga, Tennessee, USA, Mason Neely is a Cardiff-based record producer, orchestral arranger and multi-instrumentalist who has worked with artists as diverse as; Lambchop, Cerys Matthews, Gruff Rhys, Sufjan Stevens, Diane Birch, Martyn Joseph, Julian Ovenden, Colorama, Hayley Westenra and Aled Jones.

Tickets for the Workshop are £10 / £5 and tickets for the evening Concert are £25.

Book your tickets now via Shetland Box Office in Mareel and Islesburgh, over the phone on 01595 745 555, or online at www.shetlandboxoffice.org