Colin Currie Group & JACK Quartet Perform Xenakis
Two bold ensembles unite to mark the centenary of a pioneer who unleashed the forces of the universe in music.
Iannis Xenakis crammed a lot into his 78 years, from being sentenced to death as a revolutionary to designing buildings in the architectural office of Le Corbusier.
But the Romanian-born, Greek-French polymath saved his most extraordinary visions for music.
Xenakis unleashed the natural forces of rhythm, pitch and texture like no other composer. Almost every one of his uncannily physical, mathematical and elemental works carves out its own space in musical history.
Marking a hundred years since the composer’s birth, the JACK Quartet and Colin Currie Group present some of Xenakis’ most radical, beautiful creations.
Psappha reimagines the ancient Greek poetry of Sappho as a brittle stream of repeating rhythmic cells. Pléïades, scored for industrial-scale glockenspiels that have to be specially built, takes listeners on a unique and embracing rhythmic adventure fusing space and time.
In his string quartet Tetras, Xenakis imagined the four players of a string quartet as one: a continuum of timbral connections and microcosmic virtuosity.
Performers
- Colin Currie Group
- JACK Quartet
Repertoire
- Xenakis: Psappha for percussion; Ikhoor for string trio; Tetras for string quartet
- Interval
- Xenakis: Mikka for violin; Mikka `S' for violin; Pléïades for 6 percussionists
Need to know
For ages 7+
Find out more about the music with our free programme.
View the programme
Dates & times
Price
- Standard entry£15 – £45*
- Concessions25%**
* Excludes £3.50 booking fee.
** Limited availability. Read about concessions.
Tickets can only be sold through the Southbank Centre and our authorised agents, and can't be resold. You can return your tickets to the Southbank Centre for a credit voucher up to 48 hours before the event. Tickets resold on any third-party platforms will become invalid.
Get presale tickets
Members get the first chance to book our entire programme of events, including go-down-in-history gigs, concerts with world-class orchestras, and talks from cultural icons and political giants.
Multi-buy discount
Classical Music: Autumn/Winter 2022/23
As part of our classical music multi-buy offer, book multiple Autumn/Winter concerts in the same transaction to receive a discount:
- 3 – 4 events: 10% discount
- 5 – 7 events: 15% discount
- 8 – 10 events: 20% discount
- 11 – 14 events: 25% discount
- 15+ events: 30% discount
Discounts apply to selected events from September 2022 until January 2023 inclusive. Offer can't be combined with Spring/Summer multi-buy.
Venue
Queen Elizabeth Hall
Our number one priority is the health and wellbeing of our visitors and staff.
Open 90 minutes before an event until the end of the event. Closed at all other times.
Our address is: Southbank Centre, Belvedere Road, London SE1 8XX. The nearest tube and train stations within 5-7 minutes walk are Waterloo (Northern, Bakerloo, Jubilee and Waterloo & City lines) and Embankment (District & Circle lines). There are also lots of bus routes with stops 2-5 minutes from our venues. For more information on getting here by road, rail or river.
Pre-booking online is recommended. Check our website on the day for returns. There’s no need to print your e-ticket – just show your phone to our Visitor Assistants on entry.
Some free events don't require a ticket. Found an event labelled FREE on our website with no way to book? Simply turn up on the day.
If you don't receive your e-ticket
Your e-ticket will be sent to you seven days before the event date from [email protected]. If you don't receive your e-ticket, and it's not in your junk or spam folder, please get in touch.
More information
Find out all you need to know about tickets, including concessions, group bookings, returns, credit vouchers and more, via the link below.
Get an overview of the seating layout of Queen Elizabeth Hall by downloading our seating plan.
Toilets
An accessible toilet is located in the foyer.
A Changing Places toilet is located on Level 1 Royal Festival Hall next to the JCB Glass Lift, for the exclusive use of disabled people who need personal assistance to use the toilet.
The facility includes a height-adjustable bench, tracking hoist system, a centrally-placed toilet, a height-adjustable basin and a shower. The key for this room is available from the Welcome Hub on Level 2, Royal Festival Hall. The facility is open daily 10am – 11pm.
Cloakroom
The Queen Elizabeth Hall cloakroom is closed. You won’t be able to bring any bags over 40 x 25 x 25cm into the Queen Elizabeth Hall, so please leave large bags at home.
We're cash-free
Please note that we're unable to accept cash payments across our site.
For step-free access from the Queen Elizabeth Hall Slip Road off Belvedere Road to the Queen Elizabeth Hall auditorium seating (excluding rows A to C) and wheelchair spaces in the Rear Stalls, plus Queen Elizabeth Hall Foyer and the Purcell Room, please use the Queen Elizabeth Hall main entrance.
To reach this entrance, enter the Royal Festival Hall via the Southbank Centre Square Doors. Take the JCB Glass Lift to Level 2 and exit to the Riverside Terrace. Turn right to find the Queen Elizabeth Hall main entrance.
You can also use the external lift near the Artists' Entrance on Southbank Centre Square to reach Mandela Walk, Level 2.
For access to the Queen Elizabeth Hall auditorium seating rows A to C and wheelchair spaces in the Front Stalls, please enter via the Artists' Entrance in the Queen Elizabeth Hall Slip Road (Level 1).
Talk to a member of staff at the auditorium entrance if you have a disability that means you can’t queue, or you need extra time to take your seat. They can arrange priority entry for you as soon as the doors open.
From a snack with coffee to cocktails and fine dining, plus some of London's best street food – it's all here on the Southbank Centre site.