Grand Union Orchestra and its youth players team up with the BBC for special Hackney Empire concert

The Grand Union Orchestra and its youth players promise to thrill crowds at the Hackney Empire on March 6 when they team up with the BBC Concert Orchestra.

The three orchestras have created a concert called Trading Roots about ideas of trade and travel and taking inspiration from ancient songs and modern musical styles at the same time.

The GUO, which is based in Wentworth Street, is well-known for its performances of an eclectic range of classical, jazz and world music and their youth players will also take to the stage,

Completing the accomplished line-up are virtuoso performers from Africa, India and China including Zhu Meng Xiao (Chinese harp), Baluji Shrivastav (sitar and dilruba) and Yousuf Ali Khan (tabla).

The concert will also premiere a piece written by Grand Union composer Tony Haynes and commissioned by BBC Radio Three called “The Golden Road, The Unforgiving Sea”.

Combining the sumptuous textures of the BBC Orchestra’s string, wind and brass players with the jazz patternings of the GUO, Tony’s work also features four fine world vocalists.

Players from the youth orchestra, aged 14 to 25, will be rehearsing their own piece with members of the two adult orchestras in the BBC Fusion Group from Sunday to Wednesday, ahead of taking their music onto the Empire stage.

Tickets costing between �8 and �16 are available from hackneyempire.co.uk and the concert will be broadcast on Radio Three on March 8.