Michael Begg Studio
Michael Begg live at Queens Hall
about mb
about michael begg

“Michael Begg is one of Scotland’s most innovative and emotionally affecting musicians. His work bridges science and art, classical and contemporary, breaking new ground while thrilling audiences.”

Alan Morrison, Head of Music, Creative Scotland

Michael Begg on top of Titan
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Michael Begg in Dublin, by Laura Sheeran
Hello

Michael Begg is an award winning composer,  sound artist and musician based in East Lothian, Scotland.


Michael Begg’s music is located in the place where formal composition and electronic erosion meet; a liminal space often coloured by longing and discomfort.


He has released over 20 full length recordings, and has performed in the UK, Ireland, Spain, Germany, France and Poland.


In 2017, he released TITAN: A Crane Is A Bridge,  subsequent to completing a commission from Cryptic for Sonica 2017. The commission comprised an original site responsive work to be situated in the wheelhouse on top of the 150 ft tall Titan Crane in Clydebank, Scotland.


TITAN won the New Music Scotland 2018 Award for New Electroacoustic / Sound Art work.


He contributes to Clodagh Simonds’s Fovea Hex, and is a core member of the performing unit that has appeared in Italy, Germany, UK, Spain, Ireland and, notably, in Paris at the Fondation Cartier at the personal invitation of David Lynch.


His Fragile Pitches collaboration with Colin Potter was commissioned by Edinburgh City Council to be performed in the city’s St Giles Cathedral and subsequently headlined Poland’s Intermediale Festival, and was released as a 2CD in 2008.


He remains closely involved in an ongoing collaboration with Moscow’s blackSKYwhite theatre company. Output from the theatre and gallery work can be found on the recordings Omega and Let The Cold Stove Sing.


Michael’s articles on music and theatre have appeared in Sound on Sound, The Quietus,  Audio Media International, Total Theatre, The Scotsman, Adverse Effect and Paraphilia. The Polish Soundscape Institute translated many of his writings into Polish for their international conference in Krakow, 2015.


In 2016, he was appointed to Creative Scotland’s RFO Artistic and Creative Framework Peer Review panel. He is also included among the portfolio of artist educators at Edinburgh’s Talbot Rice Gallery.


In 2018 he undertook a composer residency at The Mexican Centre for Music and Sonic Arts (CMMAS), Morelia, where he produced the work, Sonambulo, based on the life and paintings of Leonora Carrington. This residency was enabled through Seeing Hearing UK Mexico a three year programme of cultural exchange initiated by CMMAS, Cryptic, Anglo Arts and the British Council.


In 2019, Michael was appointed as Associate Artist in Residence at the Queen’s Hall, Edinburgh, where he currently curates the LIMINAL programme. The residency is enabled through an award from Creative Scotland’s Open Fund empowered by National Lottery funding.


Michael is also the musical director and founder of the Black Glass Ensemble, combining the cream of Scotland based classical players with key figures from the Europen electronic avant-garde. Their debut release, Arise From The Twilight, was released in 2020.


In 2020, with his recognition of his leadership in digital innovation with a Connected Innovator award from Creative edinburgh/University of Edinburgh Creative Informatics, Michael developed a series of software instruments; Witness Engines. These instruments consume live streaming and archival datasets of key atmospheric, climate and envuironmental data and transform the data into music. Read more about this development work at https://witnessengines.com


Discography (maintained by Discogs, so may not be complete)

Interviews (soon)

Reviews (soon)

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Some sample video clips using the various software tools made to act as compositional aids and musical instruments have been uploaded to a new Youtube channel, Witness Engines. You can access the channel here: https://www.youtube.com/@witnessengines Here's a sample... [...] Read more...
WITNESS: Ambient Chamber Works 2020 – 2024Release Date 19th May 2025Presale Open NOW Order CD now for May 19th release You can also order the CD, or the download edition at Bandcamp:  https://omnepathy.bandcamp.com  New Music Scotland Award winning composer and sound artist Michael Begg announces the release of ‘WITNESS. Ambient Chamber Works 2020-24’, a collection that brings together five years of work exploring sound, science, and the environment. This compilation includes highlights from Begg’s collaborations with scientists, experiments with environmental data, and residencies with the European Marine Board, Friends of the Scott Polar Research Institute and the Ocean ARTic Partnership.The album features selections from the WITNESS series, released as waypoints during the COVID lockdown, as well as pieces from ‘Light Water is Black Water,’ ‘Sounding The Ice Factory,’ and the forthcoming ‘Out of Whose Womb Comes the Ice’.In this five year long development of Begg’s signature ‘data composition’ process we encounter earth monitoring satellites, earthquakes, ionospheric lightning strikes, the clean night air of lockdown, receding Arctic ice, mutated migrations and currents, collapsing glaciers, the cycles of deep time and the collapse of predictable weather cycles. We find a new music that speaks to our growing solastalgia that is true to science and faithful to a convulsing world.WITNESS includes collaborations with Clodagh Simonds (Fovea Hex), Ben Ponton (:zoviet*france:), and the Black Glass Ensemble.The 13 track collection features live recordings and alternative mixes, and the first preview of new work arising from Begg’s two month residency in Antarctica as the Friends of the Scott Polar Research Institute’s first musician in residence.‘WITNESS. Ambient Chamber Works 2020-24’ will be available across digital platforms and in a limited CD edition. CD edition ships in six panel ecopack with full track and production notes. [...] Read more...
https://omnempathy.bandcamp.com/album/michael-begg-live-at-cafe-oto Michael Begg. Solo set from ICR:35, Cafe Oto, London, September 30th 2016 From Cafe Oto listing:The celebration, ICR:35, features 5 solo sets from Michael Begg (Human Greed, Fovea Hex), Jonathan Coleclough, Andrew Liles (Nurse With Wound, Current 93), Colin Potter (Nurse With Wound, Monos) and Paul Bradley (Monos, Twenty Hertz). ICR, the studio, mail order and distribution started by Colin Potter in the early 1980s is an important contributor to the history of British independent experimental music. ICR is 35 years old, and has released over 80 albums to date. Yet it remains a relatively obscure presence to all but the true fans and followers of marginal music. All the more surprising when the roll call of artists involved with the label covers a broad spectrum of eccentric and innovative musical imagination. This event allows 4 key players in the ICR story to celebrate an overlooked landmark of British exploratory music. There will also be 2 special guests – Clodagh Simond of Fovea Hex will be making a rare UK appearance and Paul Bradley. [...] Read more...
Sea And Brittle Stars (Last Refuge) is a commission from "Submersive Atmospheres" a sci-art initiative of Helmholtz Institute for Functional Marine Biodiversity at the University of Oldenburg, The Alfred Wegener Institute Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research, and The Carl von Ossietzky University of Oldenburg. "Unterwasser Kino" commissioned eight artists to work on original AV works with eight scientists to be exhibited publicly in December 2024. Details: https://hifmb.de/transfer/art-science/submersive-atmospheres/ The Southern Ocean around Antarctica is warming faster than the rest of the planet, causing the rise of global sea levels, changes in ocean currents and a decline in the availability of marine living resource.The Weddell Sea is considered one of the last refuges for many marine species dependent upon cold, pristine waters for survival. It is imperative that the region gain the status of a marine protected area (MPA) to try to mitigate the consequences of climate change and prevent future expansion of fishing in this area. However, some countries that are part of the Antarctic Treaty still withhold their support for MPAs due to their geopolitical and commercial interests, thereby failing to secure the safety of this unique and increasingly fragile habitat.The music in this work is born from a dataset of 180 benthic species (creatures that dwell on the seafloor) whose presence and absence were recorded in the Weddell Sea between 1983 and 2011. The data and accompanying imagery, processed through the artist’s electronic palette, speaks to the mystery and vulnerability of this precious territory, the last refuge. Sea and Brittle Stars (Last Refuge) is a collaboration between Michael Begg, Katharina Teschke and Flavia Bellotto Trigo. Katharina Teschke is a marine ecologist from Germany. She specialises in marine spatial planning in the Southern Ocean. She works with German ministries to translate scientific findings into policy and is leading the proposal for the Weddell Sea Marine Protected Area Phase 1 for the German delegation to the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources.Flavia Bellotto Trigo is an ecologist from Brazil, now based in Oldenburg, Germany. She is supporting the establishment of the Weddell Sea Marine Protected Area Phase 1 by curating and analysing biodiversity data to identify priority areas for protection. [...] Read more...
I'll be performing an edit of Out Of Whose Womb Comes the Ice with live accompanied film footage at Glasgow's Sonica Festival on 27th September 2024, as part of a double bill showcase at The Glad Cafe https://sonic-a.co.uk/events/out-of-whose-womb-comes-the-ice-isa-gordon The performance will then feature in Poland's Intermediale Festival, Legnica, on October 26th. https://intermediale.com/pl/intermediale-2024/ There will be a screening of the short cut (25 minutes) at Nordic Music Days in late Oct/early Nov in Glasgow Intermediale 2024 [...] Read more...
I presented a keynote address to a wonderful event, hosted by the Geological Society of London. Earth's Canvas brought earth scientists, musicians, and artists of every kind together to explore commonalities, collaborations and possible futures. My talk, A Score In Ice: composing deep time in Antarctica, reflected on how many collaborations begin with the idea f increasing public engagement, but can often go on to provide new perspectives in research, and new approaches to music and sound making. “I cup my hands and scoop into a moment in time, lift the moment and present it with all the authenticity I can muster, then I return the moment back into the flow.” https://www.ism.org/event/the-geological-society-earths-canvas-exploring-geology-in-creativity Geological Society: https://www.geolsoc.org.uk [...] Read more...
From January - March 2024 Michael was in Antarctica as the first Friends of the Scott Polar Research Institute musician in residence. He was hosted by the Royal Navy aboard the ice patrol vessel, HMS Protector. The residency enabled him to record and film in numerous locations, including South Georgia, Detaille Island, Deception Island and the Ukrainian research station, Vernadsky  View the Project Page for more details, links and video trailer. [...] Read more...
The University of Edinburgh recently hosted the International Arctic Science Committee's Arctic Science Summit week. https://assw.info I gave a talk on the relationship between sonic arts, composition and climate science on the 25th March, and also presented an installation, Zooplankton Nocturne, for the duration of the summit. Thanks to Neil Banas of Strathclyde University for organising a full cultural programme into the summit. [...] Read more...
I am excited to accept the position of Musician in Residence aboard HMS Protector in the upcoming Antarctic season. A huge debt of gratitude is due to Friends of the Scott Polar Research Institute and The Royal Navy for making this incredible opportunity possible. I will join the crew of Protector in early January and will be stationed in and around Antarctica until mid-March. During my time I will gather a range of field recordings and begin the process of creating new works that will be closely related to earlier residencies with the European Marine Board and the Ocean ARTic Partnership. It is envisaged that this will feed into a comprehensive release of my polar related works from 2020 - 2024. And it is hoped that a number of live performances, both solo and with the Black Glass Ensemble will follow. Information on the residency can be found on the Friends of SPRI website: https://www.spri.cam.ac.uk/friends/musicianinresidence/ [...] Read more...
UNESCO Week of Sound. Edinburgh. 17th Oct, 1100 I’m giving a talk, and answering questions, on my data composition work with researchers in Antarctica and the Arctic over the past few years, including the Ocean ARTic Partnership (Light Water is Black Water), and European Marine Board (Sounding The Ice Factory) "Beginning with the proposal that in the 21st century data has become the common vocabulary of science and art, Michael describes the processes through which he arrives at his compositions, considers the differences between data sonification and data composition, and invites discussion around what value or insight may be revealed through consideration of sound and music in research activity. He will also explore solastalgia, the acute anxiety arising from living through climate change, and what these new forms of musical expression may contribute to addressing that condition for listeners, and for researchers." [...] Read more...
From the archive... "Commemorating the 350th anniversary of the Great Fire of London. Watch London 1666 burn on the river Thames (no commentary version). Designed by David Best in collaboration with Artichoke (producers of Lumiere London). Original music composed by Michael Begg. Part of the London's Burning festival of arts and ideas for Great Fire 350." This production, featuring original music by Michael Begg, was broadcast on BBCTV on Monday 5th September 2016. https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b07v642t Interest in the soundtrack was so great that the producers released an "Uncut" version of the broadcast with no commentary or interviews. Below is the archive of the full broadcast, hosted by Lauren Laverne. [...] Read more...
The Elsewhere Garden, Semple Begg’s garden for art therapy charity, the Teapot Trust has won a gold medal at RHS Chelsea Flower Show. In collaboration with Kathy Hinde we contributed an eight channel soundscape representing the underground, undergrowth and tree canopy layers of the garden. The soundscapes were dynamically enhanced by live data from weather services and environmental sensors on site. Interactive elements included a sensitised plant, wired to ECG monitoring, which would respond to human touch, and a watering can that, when spoken into, would provoke the imps and elves within the garden to stir in the long grass. Three of Kathy's water tipper gongs gave an additional dimension of movement and sound, inviting the eye and ear up, into and through the space. By far the most technically demanding work I have been involved with, and so it is just as well that everyone involved was just so damn good at what they do. A quite extraordinary alignment of skill, talent, imagination and, on occasion, brute strength. The public reaction from young and old to this most audacious project has been nothing short of overwhelming. After Chelsea the garden will be brought to its permanent home at Glasgow’s Royal Hospital for Children where it will play an active role in nurturing transformative art therapy activity for children, young people and their families. 1 in 4 children and young people in the UK live with the pain and stigma of chronic health conditions that cause anxiety and depression. Almost a third of those aged under 21 who take their own lives have a long-term chronic illness. Typically, young patients with chronic conditions need regular invasive tests, injections and treatments. They often feel misunderstood, saying others don’t believe they’re in pain because their condition is “invisible”. Through the gentle process of art therapy, Teapot Trust supports them to express and process their feelings about their diagnosis, their treatment regime, and how this affects them day-to-day. Through transformative art therapy they find effective coping tools which builds their resilience, with 92% reporting to have made progress towards their goals and no longer feeling defined by their condition. None of this work would have been possible without the remarkable work of Project Giving Back and their Gardens For Good Causes initiative… Kathy Hinde's documentary video of The Elsewhere Garden “The long-shadow of the pandemic, the cost of living crisis, the climate crisis, global political tensions and the war in Ukraine are the bigger picture that we’re all operating against and it is so often charitable organisations that step up to restore the environment and support people and communities in need at times like these. Do not underestimate the hope and optimism gardens for good causes will bring people.” Hattie Ghaui, CEO Project Giving Back. Pictured in repose at the completion of the build are garden designers Nicola Semple and Susan Begg along with the creators of sound art, interactives and kinetic sculptures, Kathy Hinde and Michael Begg. Charity: The Teapot Trust https://www.teapot-trust.org/teapot-trust-elsewhere-gardenSupported by: Project giving Back https://www.givingback.org.uk/The build: Stewart Landscape https://stewartlandscape.co.uk(with special mention for onsite co-ordination from Rachel Sampson https://rachelsampson.co.uk )Water feature construction: Water Artisans https://waterartisans.comPlant growing: Kelway Plants https://www.kelways.co.ukSound art / Interactive / Kinetic water sculptures: Michael Begg and Kathy Hinde (https://kathyhinde.co.uk) Tech Spec for sound component:8 channel audio delivered wirelessly. Soundscapes comprising located sound, field recording, modular and granular synthesis, mimetic composition. Sound modulated with sonified environmental sensors (humidity, temperature, moisture, electrical capacitance) and weather data (air temp, air pressure, wind speed and direction, humidity). Dynamic processing of voice microphone and touch sensitive piezos / ECG. The Elsewhere Garden illustration by Sandra Dieckmann http://www.sandradieckmann.com/ Wireless headphones/transmitters supplied by Silent Disco King: https://sales.silentdiscoking.com Other photography © Andrea Jones https://www.andreajones.co.uk / https://www.gardenexposures.com/index , Kathy Hinde, Michael Begg. [...] Read more...
There is an interview with me (in French) web magazine, 4'33. Forming new shapes of music to uncover and address the endemic sense of solastalgia is discussed, alongside differences between data sonification and data composition. Read the article here: https://www.4-33mag.com/michael-begg-ma-musique-ne-donne-pas-dordres/ [...] Read more...
Sounding The Ice Factory is a recording of ambient chamber works composed, programmed and assembled during my residency with the European Marine Board. The recordings are offered exclusively on Bandcamp which is the only platform that allows me to offer the work on a free/pay what you can basis. Sounding The Ice Factory also includes a work from the Black Sea Music series and A Zooplankton Nocturne - the result of my PRS Foundation funded collaboration with Dr Laura Hobbs at the Scottish Association of Marine Sciences. Find the work here: https://omnempathy.bandcamp.com/album/sounding-the-ice-factory [...] Read more...
On January 28th I will be one of three presenters at the Max Meetup run by Music Hackspace. I'll be giving a brief overview of how I came to embed data within my work as a form of activism, and the processes I apply within Max to transform climate data into compositions. "Max / Data / Activism: Uncovering an authentic voice for a world in crisis" Max Meetup 28 Jan 2023 - 1600 (UTC +0) Free registration: https://musichackspace.org/events/max-meetup-january/ [...] Read more...
An extensive interview with Tobias Fischer in 15 Questions was published in 3 parts at the end of 2022. Part One: https://15questions.net/interview/michael-begg-about-data-composition-and-music-human-survival/page-1/ Part Two: https://15questions.net/interview/michael-begg-about-his-biography-sound-and-sounds-he-cant-bear/page-1/ Part Three: https://15questions.net/interview/michael-begg-about-sonic-creativity-and-tenderness-groaning-metal-beasts/page-1/ [...] Read more...
My sound artist residency with the European Marine Board has been recognised & credited as an action within the EU's Mission: Restore Our Oceans And Waters. Specifically contributing to the enabler “Public mobilisation and engagement” [...] Read more...
Was Ist Das have released a double cassette edition of Human Greed's Black Hill: Midnight at the Blighted Star. The edition features the full album on one cassette, with an additional cassette of rare material originally prepared for a vinyl edition that failed to materialise. Was Ist Das: Was Ist Das? is very proud to be reissuing Human Greed's classic 2008 album in a new special edition with the previously unreleased companion album 'Moonsuite'. The plan is to follow this with similar treatment for "Fortress Longing" and "World's Fair" and then at the end to offer a nice box to put them all in.  With guest appearances from from David TIbet (Current 93), Julia Kent (Anthony and the Johnsons), Clodagh Simonds (Mellow Candle, Fovea Hex) and Fabrizio Palumbo (Larsen).  The music of Human Greed creates a haunted world which owes as much to classical music as it does to the otherworld landscapes of gateway openers like 'Soliloquy for Lilith', 'Astral Disaster' or even 'In den Gärten Pharaos'  "Black Hill occupies a realm that is somewhere between the gorgeous drones of Stars of the Lid and the haunting and solemn “Symphony No. 3” by Henryk Górecki... This is powerful stuff and takes a while to fully digest it. The oily darkness that the music conjures up gets deeper and deeper with every listen, a resonant and otherworldly tremor that is at once human and sublime." Brainwashed Was Ist Das ships from the United States: https://wasistdas.bandcamp.com/album/black-hill-midnight-at-the-blighted-star-moonsuite-edition For listeners in the UK (or Europeans prepared to take the risk on post Brexit duty fees on packages) a few copies are available via Omnempathy: https://omnempathy.com/product/black-hill-midnight-at-the-blighted-star-moonsuite-edition/ [...] Read more...
Michael Begg's new solo release, Moonlight and Sentiment, is now available. A CD edition has been published by Klanggalerie (Vienna) (http://www.klanggalerie.com/gg412) and digital download and streaming versions are generally available on all major - and minor - platforms. “Captivating and majestic splendour... A beautiful fusion of dark ambient, field recording and neoclassical music… Begg knows how to take you completely in his hold”Jan Willem Broek, The shadow Cabinet (NL) You can find the CD version in your favourite online stores in UK, EU and USA. The download/streaming versions can be found on apple, Spotify etc - and also Bandcamp where you can download the recording in your format and resolution of choice: https://omnempathy.bandcamp.com/album/moonlight-and-sentiment “This music does not create a song for our ears. It is a ‘state’, such as moonlight poured over the fields.” Leonard Huizinga  It is the authentic sound of moonlight suicides, Christmas midnights and a representation of a certain kind of recovered memory that ruins your sleep. Don’t wake the children. Don’t trust the confession. We may still see snow. [...] Read more...
Michael and the Black Glass Ensemble performed a two day showcase of original material at the 2022 Edinburgh International Fringe Festival as part of the Made in Scotland showcase programme. The events were hosted by The Queen's Hall Go to the Projects page for more details, including reviews: https://michaelbegg.studio/blackglassinpieces/ [...] Read more...
In April, I was appointed to one of two artist residencies supported by the European Marine Board. The initiative, EMBracing The Ocean, affords me the opportunity to continue working with Lukrecia Stulik and Thomas Rackow, and extend the range of activity to embrace Yoshihiro Nakayama of Hokkaido University. Together we are going to work on new compositions, utilising data from their various projects based in the Southern Ocean and Antarctica. I am very grateful to th eEuropean Marine Board for enabling this new work. The other artist appointed is dancer/choreographer Emily Lartillot who will produce a new work focusing on mangroves as major social economic systems. More detail about both residencies can be found on the EMBracing the Ocean page: https://www.marineboard.eu/embracing-ocean [...] Read more...
The Mac TV production for BBC Alba featured extensive footage of me wandering among the Scots Pines in East Lothian, recording rain, discussing personal discomfort, the Ocean ARTic Partnership, the beauty of the downpour and climate change. It was broadcast on 13th April. The feature also plays an excerpt from LIGHT WATER IS BLACK WATER It is available on BBC iPlayer for a limited time: https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/m0016fdj/an-tuisgerain-stories-series-1-2-beo-leis-an-uisgeliving-with-rain [...] Read more...
Thanks to the support of the UK's PRS Foundation, I have been able to realise a new work, Moonlight and Ice: A Zooplankton Nocturne. The work, the result of a collaboration with Dr. Laura Hobbs from the Scottish Association for Marine Science, focuses on her emergent research into the behaviour of Arctic zooplankton in the winter night. The zooplankton, perhaps due to diminished ice cover in the winter months shows indications of adapting to lunar cycles, by deep diving during periods of the full moon. This behaviour suggests an impact upon the food chain, and further direct impact of climate change in the Arctic. [...] Read more...
The date for the re-scheduled premiere of LIGHT WATER IS BLACK WATER has been announced. The event will now happen on Saturday, June 4th at The Queen's Hall, Edinburgh. Tickets are now on sale and can be purchased here: https://www.thequeenshall.net/whats-on/light-water-black-water LIGHT WATER IS BLACK WATER was a commission from the Ocean ARTic Partnership comprising Creative Informatics, People Ocean Planet, MASTs, and Blue Action EU. With collaborators based at the University of Edinburgh and the Alfred Wegener Institut in Germany, new compositions were derived from climate model data showing explicitly how a reduction in Arctic Sea Ice could have catastrophic impact on the climate at lower latitudes. [...] Read more...