Collaborative Projects
Collaborating with other artists on bigger projects is one of my favourite things to do. I love the unexpected creations that result from working with different people from different artistic disciplines. It often pushes me to create music that I would never have expected to make. Check out pictures, videos and audio from some of these projects below. Also see The Colour Foundry site for more collaborative work.
UNSPUN
UNSPUN was a rich and immersive installation which we (The Colour Foundry) created in collaboration with 509 Arts and performed at Salts Mill, Shipley. To accompany the vibrant projections (Fabric Lenny, Urban Projections) I composed the original score which blended archive sounds, spoken word, song, and brass. We also performed the piece live three times a day over the duration of the installation.
Some audience reactions:
“Stunning piece of work. Loved it all and the musicians made it extra special. Wonderful! Thank you.”
“I am from Bradford - I found it really emotional - I've lived this story. Visually beautiful and sonically too.”
“Simply stunning! Thank you!!”
“Mesmerising visual and audio, fascinating stuff. Could have watched it for hours!”
“Extraordinary. I was entranced and remained so for the duration. Thank you!”
“Never has an audiovisual work opened to me before - this one I got! Fabulous, thank you. Truly amazing.”
The Glasshouse
I worked with the Wayne Sables Project team to create an interactive installation of light and sound. I composed an interactive score which subtly alters when interacted with and also plays notes when touched at the 6 interaction points, So you can affect the original score and also play along with it, effectively making it into a big collaborative instrument.
The piece toured throughout Yorkshire in late 2023 and there are currently plans for it to tour again in winter 2024.
The Coppergate Woman
For the York Theatre Royal production The Coppergate Woman, I worked with a fantastic creative team and community performers to create music for an epic two hour show which blended Norse myths with modern day tales. I composed music for three different on-stage vocal groups, a 50-strong community choir and a live band. I also worked as musical director and co-conductor (alongside vocal conductor Madeleine Hudson) for the rehearsals and performances.
“An excellent creative team ... the music is a credit to Nicolas Lewis”
“A solid, imaginative piece of musical theatre”
“The orchestra, choir and musical background were the final touch which took this Community production to a new level. Congratulations must go to Nicolas Lewis and his team.”
Wrestling the Walrus
“Hayley Youell, James Dey and Nicolas Lewis provide first-rate music that not only underscores the action on stage but completes it. Musically and lyrically it’s hopeful, joyful, upsetting, strong, and fragile.” - Sam Lowe, The Reviews Hub
A 154 Collective and Royal Exchange Theatre co-production – winner of the 2018 Hodgkiss Award.
Wrestling the Walrus was a play about companionship, connections and the millions of tiny memories that make up a person’s history.
Listen to a playlist of the music here and have a look at the trailer and a music video from the show below.
Rabbit Girl & The Search For Wonder
Something impossible has happened, something no one saw coming. So Rabbit Girl and her Dad have done what they do best - pulled on their boots, packed their tent and headed off into the wilderness.
A family show with music, animation and puppetry, Rabbit Girl & The Search for Wonder toured extensively throughout England . Have a listen to the music I wrote for Rabbit Girl here and check out photos and the show trailer below.
Photos by Yvonne Roberts
The Incarceration of Nellie Bly
The Incarceration of Nellie Bly is a 154 Collective show currently in development and scheduled to tour in Winter 2022. It's based on the true story of investigative journalist Nellie Bly (1864 - 1922) who willingly got herself incarcerated in an infamous Women's Lunatic Asylum in New York to expose its deplorable conditions.
The music will be written and performed be Me, Hayley Youell, and James Dey.
The video below shows a piece of music I wrote alongside an animation by Matthew Watkins during an initial R&D for this piece.
Stirring Up The Past
A storytelling walk around Leeds city centre for everyone aged 9+
Working with Theatre Company Blah Blah Blah I did the sound design and music for this beautifully written historical, dramatised audio walk.
Check out the walk’s website here and have a listen to some of the stops on soundcloud.
The Doctors of Whitworth
This ongoing, collaborative project with artist Fabric Lenny is an exploration of the Taylors of Whitworth. the Taylors were a family of farriers-turned blacksmith doctors in the 19th century. Through images and song, we have been telling the lesser-known stories of this incredible family. Check out Fabric Lenny's blog for more info, and listen to one of my song sketches below.
Under the Bed
Under the Bed was a collaborative studio theatre show in which the narrative was told through live action, music, animation, and film. Hayley Youell, James Dey and I created the music for this show and performed it live at each venue.
Listen to some of the music here and check out the trailer below.
Walter Lemonface
Ever wanted to control what happens in a cartoon? Now you can in this fun-filled experience for the whole family – there’s no such thing as too much joining in! Join adventurer, fearless inventor and connoisseur of carrots, Walter Lemonface as he hunts for Rhubarb Ogres, battles ghosts and finds a new adventure around every corner.
Walter Lemonface is an interactive, improvised cinematic experience.
Storyteller Dan Mallaghan creates a narrative out of thin air and audience suggestions whilst visual artists Fabric Lenny and Benjamin Rabe animate everything live onto a cinema screen using iPads. I create live music to accompany all the action using only a guitar, keyboard, and a loop pedal.
Colour Forms
To accompany Lenny and Whale's sculptural walk in Wentworth Castle Gardens and Cannon Hall, Hayley Youell and I created soundscapes which were played in different areas of the walk.
The Chorões
The Chorões were a Brazilian street music band in which I played the guitar and Cavaquinho. We played at private functions, festivals, and venues such as the Southbank Centre, the Royal Albert Hall’s Verdi Room, and the Royal College of Music.
Cardboard Joe
This show is part cartoon, part play that brings together animation, performance, music and loads of joining in! A fun-filled family adventure which toured venues across Yorkshire and North Lincolnshire.
I created live music for these shows, partly precomposed and partly improvised.
Murmuration
Murmuration was a multi-disciplinary light installation combining sculpture, music and projection mapping to create an interactive experience for audiences at the DN Festival of Light 2021.
I created a score based on community sound recordings for this work by Wayne Sables and Patrick Amber.
Check out videos showing the recording process for this piece below.
Intense Attachment
For Wayne Sables's interactive dance and technology piece Intense Attachment I had the pleasure of working with Hayley Youell to create and perform an original soundtrack for this experimental show. The piece focused on the performances of two dancers (Keira Martin and Chris Bradley) as an expression of relationships and attachment. It also included film work (Wayne Sables), interactive installations (Invisible Flock), and evocative lighting (Huw Williams).
The Musical Botanist
A marvellous and mesmerising market stall where you can make your own music just by touching the magical, musical plants.
I worked with Hayley Youell and Dan Mallaghan to create this musical market stall crammed full of singing and beatboxing plants. After it's creation for Bradford Festival, we did a couple of mini tours across the North of England.
Tiny Shoes
Tiny shoes was a site specific audio drama produced by the West Yorkshire Playhouse in conjunction with the Bronte Parsonage in Haworth.
Carrie has made a huge mistake and has run away to Haworth. She needs to wrap herself in the stories that entranced her as a girl and, of course, to talk things through with Charlotte. But Charlotte has her own opinion about what Carrie has done and she isn’t in a forgiving mood.
Working to Emma Adams’ beautiful Bronte-inspired script, I used a combination of recordings, synthesised sounds, binaural mixing and a subtle music score to create the sound world for this headphone experience. It was available to listen to at the Parsonage, the Leeds Playhouse, or online.
