Shakespeare’s Musical Brain
Great Hall, King’s Building, Strand, 16th April 2016, 10am-6pm

Student rate: £35                                                                                                            Full price: £95

Unsurprisingly, reflecting the immense influence and inspiration that Shakespeare’s work has brought to all the various art-forms over the centuries, 2016’s commemorative activities will include many operas, ballets, orchestral and choral works, chamber music recitals and exhibitions, that draw upon his plays and poetry. This conference, however, aims to turn the subject through 180° so as to explore the vital importance of music to Shakespeare himself and the role it played in his and his company’s creative processes as well as in the experience of audiences then and now.

The conference will consider the relationship between words and music in aesthetic and scientific terms. Expert speakers in the relevant fields of literature, music and cultural history will be joined by peers concerned with the sciences. The conference will look at how music effects the relationship between actor and audience then as now. Bill Barclay, Director of Music at the Globe Theatre, will explore the Music of the Spheres, both as this relates to Shakespeare and its meaning from ancient times through to modern physics. Prof Michael Trimble, behavioural neurologist, will examine the similarities and differences in the conception and reception of words and music, understanding their distinct and mutual importance better through the medium of Shakespeare himself. Actors and musicians will take a leading part, illustrating and responding creatively to the lectures, joining in discussion and ending the event with a performance of music and readings that reflect the themes of the day.

The Musical Brain is a registered charity founded in 2010. Its objectives are to encourage, foster, assist and promote the advancement of public understanding of the effects of music and other art forms upon the human mind, brain and body, including the scientific, historical and cultural context of music and its potential therapeutic value.

Register here. Please direct enquiries to shakespeare@kcl.ac.uk.