Join us as we shine a spotlight on the captivating intersection of visual arts, live music, and much more as a feast for the senses!
Throughout the festival, interactive workshops and engaging talks by accomplished artists and experts in their respective fields will offer insight into the creative process, opportunity to learn new techniques, and discover the stories behind the art.
Don't miss the spine-tingling screening of the classic horror film, Nosferatu (1922), in the atmospheric chapel of Repton School.
This timeless masterpiece of German expressionist cinema tells the haunting tale of Count Orlok, the undead vampire, who preys upon society in search of his next victim.
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Experience the film like never before. Alex Binns, Director of Music at Derby Cathedral, creates a unique accompaniment on the 1929 Harrison and Harrison organ to send haunting melodies and eerie chords echoing around every specially lit shadowy recess of the Gothic Revival architecture, transporting you deep into the heart of the macabre world of Nosferatu.
UTRAN CONVERSATIONS: A Film by Huw Davies & Philip Ranjit Basi
Set against the backdrop of the world’s largest kite festival in Gujarat, India, Utran Conversations documents the preparations for this huge visual spectacle which marks the transition from winter to summer. The Festival serves to bind together different communities and crosses religious divides. It also provides a complex infrastructure for the employment of thousands of homeworkers engaged in the in the manufacture and distribution of kites and associated apparel. However, all of this comes at a major environmental cost, particularly to the local wildlife as the balance of the natural ecosystem is disturbed by the presence of the glass coated threads which are used in the kite flying and fighting rituals, even causing human fatalities. Exploring these themes and issues the film uses a multiple series of ‘conversations’ with key players from kite makers to kite flyers and wildlife NGO’s, set around the event of the Utran Festival itself.
Utran Conversations was supported by Artcore and DMARC and produced as part of an international artists’ research residency at the Reliance Arts Centre, Baroda in January 2019.
All proceeds from this festival event will be donated to India Unseen, a project run by Nottingham residents Val and Terry Leivers. The project, which has been supported by midlands Rotary clubs and individuals for many years, supports the Sri Sai Vidyarthi High School, based in a large slum area of Secunderabad in Southern India. You can visit the Utran Conversations event at any time during the festival free of charge where the achievements of India Unseen will also be on display.
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At 4.30 pm on Saturday 14th October the creators of Utran Conversations, Huw Davies and Philip Basi will deliver an illustrated talk with all proceeds being donated to India Unseen.
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A key part of the Repton Festival mission is to help to make a difference in projects at home and abroad. We hope that you will support the generosity of Huw Davies and Philip Basi in providing this event with your support for India Unseen.
HYMN FOR UKRAINE: AN AUDIO-VISUAL INSTALLATION
Hymn for Ukraine, created by Dr. Philip M Harris, Lecturer in Photography at the University of Derby, is a large-scale immersive artwork created to form a sonic and visual vigil in support of Ukraine and Ukrainians in their time of need. It was first staged on the 17th and 18th March, 2022, in Derby City Centre, four weeks after the invasion of Ukraine by Russian forces.
The work employs a unique and innovative combination of analogue cine film, musical instruments, projected imagery, making reference to the power of music and nature as elements of defiance and symbols of hope.
Cine film footage of blossom, made during the period of the start of the invasion, is interspersed with imagery of
THE GALA BRASS QUINTET
We are thrilled to introduce the Gala Brass Quintet, a group of exceptionally talented musicians comprised of highly skilled individuals, each member bringing their unique musical prowess to create an unparalleled sonic experience. With their virtuosity, precision, and passion, the Gala Brass Quintet promises to captivate your senses and transport you to a realm of musical splendour. Prepare to be mesmerised by the sheer brilliance and depth of their performances as they perform at Repton Festival!
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Ukrainians singing their National Anthem, gazing intensely towards the lens of the camera. Long loops of the film are passed through the mechanisms of film projectors and threaded between the strings of electric guitars, each tuned to a chord of the Ukraine National Anthem. The chords are simultaneously and continuously ‘played’ by the film passing between the strings of the guitars as the film projectors illuminate the room with the images of blossom and singers as symbols of hope, resilience, and rebirth. The result is a dramatic and moving statement of support and solidarity with Ukraine and Ukrainians in the face of the continuing violence against them.
Thank you for joining us to state your support of Ukraine and Ukrainians in their time of need. Donations to the following appeal would be greatly appreciated: www.gofundme.com/helpukraine
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