Weirdshire presents Henry McPherson

Event information

This is a really unique show - we are so lucky to have this opportunity!
Henry McPherson is a composer-improviser, artist, and researcher from Herefordshire (UK). His work explores human-environment relationships and plant ecologies, through sound, text, movement, and visual media. He is interested in interspecies kinship and forest choreography, moss music and microbiomes, deep sea listening, sonic collage, and dancing with instruments. His developing approach to ‘ecological improvisation’ aims to cultivate inclusive listening and environmental empathy in and through performance.

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Henry's work has been performed and recorded by internationally acclaimed ensembles and artists, broadcast on national and local radio, and presented in festivals, galleries, and performance events across the UK, France, Switzerland, Greece, the USA, the Netherlands, Canada, Brazil, Germany, Austria, Ireland, and China.

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Past premieres include the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra (Uhte, 2016), Scottish Opera (Maud, 2017/2023), Eugene Difficult Music Ensemble (How to play Mariana, 2024), the Glasgow Improvisers’ Orchestra (Foutraque, 2021), Ensemble Modern (Mannequin, 2016), Ed Bennett’s DECIBEL Ensemble (Opening Hands, 2018), and RedNote Ensemble (Tides, 2015). Recent installation and audiovisual works have included Colagens at Fruitmarket Gallery (Edinburgh, 2019) and Despina Gallery (Rio de Janeiro, 2018), Bryographs and Moss Verses at Galérie Analix Forever (Geneva, 2024), More Than One Thing at hcmf// (Huddersfield, 2021), and How to be a forest at Fox Yard Studios (Lowestoft, 2024),

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In recent years, Henry’s focus has shifted from large ensemble composition toward more intimate, process-led collaborations with other artists - often improvised, site-specific, and interdisciplinary - where listening, place, and shared creativity guide the development of the work.



Recent collaborative projects include IMMERSIONS (2022), an eco-arts residency with dance artists Kirstie Simson and Michael Schumacher exploring improvisation in sites at risk of sea level rise (supported by Creative Scotland); Herbarium (2023), an exploration of botanical illustration notation with Austrian composer Florijan Lörnitzo (supported by Stadt Wien and AustroMechana); Dancing with Colours (2022), an inclusive improvisational sound, movement, and painting production directed by JoAnne Haines, and produced by Mind The Gap; and Empty Dreaming (2025, forthcoming), a co-composition for piano with Joshua Brown, focusing on the performer's sensibility towards cyclical gestures and experiences of stretched time.