Clive Whitburn
Clive Whitburn is a composer and musician based in Sussex, writing choral, instrumental and orchestral music alongside work for theatre, film and visual art.
Clive's music has been performed throughout the UK, America and Australia, and broadcast on BBC Radio. His work is often driven by stories, places and ideas that fascinate him — from the sea in Messages from the Sea to dementia in The Here and Now, and wider social themes explored in In Time of Pandemic, To Those Who Pass Through My City and Who Is My Neighbour?
He is particularly interested in where and how music is performed. He enjoys placing musicians in unexpected spaces and exploring the relationship between sound, architecture and audience. Music for Rooftops, premiered by world renowned Onyx Brass on the roof of Eastbourne's Congress Theatre, is one example. His work has also included collaborations with visual artists, including four film collaborations presented at Towner Eastbourne.
Recent performances include Remember Me for soprano, harp and orchestra at the International Composers Festival at the De La Warr Pavilion, and Watson, for which Clive composed the music. Watson has been performed at the Edinburgh Fringe and on tours in the UK, Australia and America, including Off-Broadway.
Clive is also an experienced performer and collaborative musician. He was a founder member of the duos Loggerheads and 5th Quarter and now performs with Radius, a trio combining guitars, vocals, percussion, mandocello, saxophone and keyboards. Radius performs reworkings of classic and alternative music alongside original compositions.
A choral singer, Clive has performed with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, London Symphony Orchestra and BBC Symphony Orchestra at London's Royal Albert Hall, Royal Festival Hall and The O2 Arena.
He plays oboe, saxophone, guitar, keyboards, mandocello and sitar.
At the heart of Clive's work is a curiosity about music, people and place — and a desire to find new ways for them to connect.