The Glasshouse

• GemArts is an award-winning arts organisation based in the North East of England and nationally recognised leader in the South Asian and diversity arts sector.
• GemArts joins four existing Artistic Partners – Corinne Bailey Rae, Maria Włoszczowska, The Unthanks and John Wilson’s Sinfonia of London – who over the coming years will create new work, champion the music of emerging artists, and work alongside The Glasshouse’s Make Music education team to inspire and engage local young people.
• All five Artistic Partners are being supported to curate major projects across the region in the coming months.

The Glasshouse, currently celebrating its 20^th birthday and most creatively ambitious era yet, today welcomes GemArts as new Artistic Partner.

Joining four existing Artistic Partners – Corinne Bailey Rae, Maria Włoszczowska, The Unthanks and John Wilson’s Sinfonia of London – the partners are supported to curate and create new work within the North East. This growing family of Artistic Partners shows how The Glasshouse is a real home for artists. It’s a place where they can try new things, create fresh work and connect directly with audiences.

GemArts is an award-winning arts organisation and nationally recognised leader in the South Asian and diversity arts sector. No stranger to The Glasshouse, GemArts and the venue share a relationship spanning more than 20 years, with concerts programmed even before the building first opened. Together they’ve collaborated on the long-running Riverside Ragas series, presenting world-class Indian classical musicians alongside South Asian artists working in folk, jazz and contemporary genres, while also nurturing and celebrating regional talent across the North East. Through the partnership, The Glasshouse will host six performances per year, including during the Masala Festival.

On Saturday 27^th September, The Glasshouse and GemArts welcome their biggest co-production yet, with Orchestral Qawwali Project. Widely regarded as the biggest step forward in Sufi music in decades, the Orchestral Qawwali Project captivates audiences through its unique combination of Sufi poetry, Indian Classical Dance and orchestral arrangements. Written and directed by critically acclaimed composer, Rushil Ranjan, the project features the soaring vocals of Abi Sampa – widely regarded as the UK’s first female Qawwal. Early booking is encouraged for this critically celebrated ensemble after a series of sell our performances across the UK.

As Artistic Partners, GemArts’ popular Riverside Raga series continues with Tar Rang – 100 Colours, 100 Strings, a spellbinding jugalbandi (a kind of duet) between Satwinder Pal Singh (sarangi) and Kaviraj Singh (santoor and vocals) (Friday 19 September); Ghazal Lounge, an ensemble bringing a new contemporary approach to Ghazals in the UK with hypnotic melodies, soul-stirring rhythms and unforgettable energy (Friday 10 October); and Sanskrati Wahane and Gurdain Rayatt, young sitar prodigy and one of the UK’s foremost tabla players (Friday 28 November).

Vikas Kumar, Director at GemArts said: “We’re thrilled to be joining The Glasshouse as an Artistic Partner. We’ve worked together for many years, but this partnership takes things to a new level, giving South Asian artists a platform on one of the region’s biggest stages and connecting even more people through music. It feels like the right moment to build something really exciting together.”

As with GemArts, all of the Artistic Partners have projects unfolding throughout the region in the coming months:

Grammy and MOBO award winning artist Corinne Bailey Rae will lead a music and dance project in Brighton Avenue School in Gateshead. Inspired by the transformative impact of her own school music lessons, this project will bring together dancers and musicians to explore improvisation and creative freedom in a series of workshops throughout September and October. The project will culminate in a live performance for the school and invited guests on 16 October.

The Unthanks, the North East’s folk torchbearers, launch their eclectic new event: The Friday Night Club on Friday 26^th September. Curated and hosted by the band, the first of what will be quarterly shows features singer-songwriter Clara Mann, author Fiona Mozley, musician Tim Dalling and members of Royal Northern Sinfonia – the home orchestra of The Glasshouse.

Gateshead-born conductor John Wilson returns with his own orchestra Sinfonia of London this autumn with a feast of English music – Ralph Vaughan Williams’s Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis, Benjamin Britten’s Serenade for Tenor, Horn and Strings, Arthur Bliss’ Music for Strings, Frederick Delius’s Late Swallows and Edward Elgar’s Introduction and Allegro (Friday 17 October). They return on Thursday 18 December with A Christmas Songbook – a swinging evening of festive classics and Big Band hits from Let’s Face the Music and Dance to Winter Wonderland.

Maria Włoszczowska continues to amaze audiences throughout the region. She joins musicians from Royal Northern Sinfonia and guest soprano Hilary Cronin for two mighty pieces of music distilled down for performance more intimate settings – Richard Strauss’ Metamorphosen and Morgen!, and Mahler’s Symphony No. 4 (Saturday 27 September). Maria and Royal Northern Sinfonia will also visit Sunderland and Kendal with Brahms’ passionate and demanding Violin Concerto (Thursday 16 October, The Fire Station; Saturday 18 October, Westmorland Hall).

Alongside concerts, these artistic partnerships open up opportunities for young people and communities across the region to make music with leading artists.

Wendy Smith, Creative Director at The Glasshouse said: “Having five Artistic Partners at once is a huge step for us and it’s a clear sign of the artist-led, creatively ambitious era we’re in. Each of these partnerships brings something different, from folk to classical to international sounds. Together they show The Glasshouse is all about world-class music rooted here in the North East, made accessible to everyone.”

Tickets for all concerts are on sale now at www.theglasshouseicm.org/whats-on/

-ENDS-

Media contacts:
Orla Noble, Premier Comms – orla.noble@premiercomms.com | 07808282795
Beverley Knight – beverley.knight@theglasshouseicm.org | 0191 443 4583

Images here

Listings

Fri 19 Sep 2025 | 8pm | Sage Two
Riverside Ragas: Tar Rang – 100 Colours, 100 Strings

Fri 26 Sep 2025 | 8pm | Sage Two
The Friday Night Club – The Unthanks

Sat 27 Sep 2025 | 7pm | Sage Two
Strauss & Mahler – Maria Włoszczowska, RNS & Hilary Cronin

Sat 27 Sep 2025 | 7:30pm | Sage One
Orchestral Qawwali Project

Fri 10 Oct 2025 | 8pm | Sage Two
Riverside Ragas: Ghazal Lounge

Thu 16 Oct 2025 | 7.30pm | The Fire Station, Sunderland
Brahms Violin Concerto – Maria Włoszczowska & Royal Northern Sinfonia

Fri 17 Oct 2025 | 7:30pm | Sage One
Sinfonia of London with John Wilson

Sat 18 Oct 2025 | 7.30pm | Westmorland Hall, Kendal
Brahms Violin Concerto – Maria Włoszczowska & Royal Northern Sinfonia

Fri 28 Nov 2025 | 8pm | Sage Two
Riverside Ragas: Sanskrati Wahane and Gurdain Rayatt

About GemArts

GemArts is an award-winning arts organisation based in the North East of England. A leader in the South Asian and diversity arts sector, GemArts creates and programmes high-quality concerts, performances, events, festivals, workshops, and commissions with regional, national, and international artists across all art forms.

About The Glasshouse International Centre for Music

The Glasshouse International Centre for Music is a home for live music lovers.

It’s a place where you can hear rock legends or pop icons on the same night as folk trios or string quartets. Where new musicians are nurtured and showcased on the same stages as platinum-selling performers. And where youth choirs and tambourine-shaking toddlers practise in the same spaces as its acclaimed orchestra, Royal Northern Sinfonia.

Because as an international centre for music they’re focused on creating and celebrating outstanding music – whether that’s unearthing or growing talent from the region or bringing the world’s best artists to their stages. And as a charity they’re focused on making sure all of that is available to anyone – no matter where you’re from, how old you are, how much money you have, or what challenges you face.

Which is why every year more than 2 million people are able to join for top-notch gigs, concerts, and classes – in their venue at Gateshead Quays, out in communities across the North East, and through livestreamed performances and digital lessons.

Whether you’re making it up or taking it in, you’ll find music lives and grows there.

More about The Glasshouse International Centre for Music

• Since opening in 2004, The Glasshouse has hosted over 10,000 performances, welcoming nearly 5 million audience members and a total of 8 million visitors through its doors. It would take more than 27 years to see every show if you attended one every day.
• Over two decades, the charity has delivered around 233,000 music lessons, reaching young people and adults 2.8 million times across its education programmes (1.8 million of which were young people).
• As its resident orchestra, Royal Northern Sinfonia has toured globally, performing across four continents and livestreaming to audiences across five. Royal Northern Sinfonia also continues to bring world-class music to communities across the country, with 58% of performances in “levelling up for culture” areas.
• The Glasshouse has supported the careers of thousands of artists like Ward Thomas who have worked their way from free stages to headline shows in its main hall, achieving national and global recognition.
• A recent report quantified its annual social value through education, inclusion and community programmes at £14.1 million.
• Since 2004, The Glasshouse has welcomed over 400,000 delegates for conferences and events, hosting organisations such as Greggs, NHS, and British Engines. Through conferences and events it has generated £10.6 million, helping to fund the venue and support live music and education programmes.
• Over the past two decades, The Glasshouse has generated £681.2million to the UK economy with £38.6m each year in ongoing impact. It supports 700 jobs directly and indirectly.
• The iconic building, designed by Foster + Partners, has 630 panes of glass and stands 40 metres tall. In its opening year, it was exhibited at the Venice Biennale and won the RIBA Inclusive Design Award in 2005.

Celebrating 20 years – In December 2024, The Glasshouse marked its 20th birthday. Over the next year, the charity will reflect on two decades of achievements and look ahead to its third decade, with major initiatives like the Music Academy and Music Pass for newborns, making music accessible to all.