The Lisbon Poetry Orchestra is a multidisciplinary collective formed by musicians and poets who invite other artists to celebrate and interpret poetry in a unique journey towards the discovery and reinvention of the spoken word.
The collective’s first steps were taken in 2015, the year in which LPO presented the show “From Lisbon to the World” at the Centro Cultural de Belém. This concert was accompanied by an exclusive edition of a CD with the same title. In 2017, LPO published the book/CD “Poetas Portugueses de Agora” (Abysmo edition). This work presents a very unique creative methodology in which five poets (Valério Romão, Paulo José Miranda, Cláudia R. Sampaio, Filipa Leal and Daniel Jonas), based on a set of musical themes and inspired by them, wrote for an edition that includes the participation of the artist Daniel Oliveira.
Five years later, in 2022, the collective returns to editions with “Os Surrealistas”, dedicated to a group of artists and poets who, in a grey Portugal, realized the urgency of freedom. It is from the extraordinary legacy of this artistic movement that the LPO seeks the material to construct a book/CD with paintings by João Alves and photographs by Vitorino Coragem, as well as a show that is also a journey through the work of some of its most illustrious representatives.
António José Fortes, António Maria Lisboa, Alexandre O’Neill, Mário Cesariny, Fernando Lemos, Henrique Risques Pereira, Carlos Eurico da Costa, Pedro Oom, José Augusto França, Vespeira, António Pedro and Mário Henrique Leiria are some of the poets who inspired the LPO to develop an aesthetic and musical imaginary with a contemporary vision, where the techniques and style of this movement will be its main influence.
In addition to the dozens of shows that have taken the LPO across the country, the group has also served as a vehicle for the development of themed shows where music and poetry go hand in hand. “Poema Mundi – 1000 Words for Peace” (2022), “Cidade Nua – Poems for an Imaginary City” (2023), “Journey to Silence” (2022, an approach to the work of Miguel Torga with the Orquestra Domus), “O Mundo de Sophia” (2019) and “Se Eu Fosse Uma Nuvem” (2020, about the work of João de Deus) are some of the commissioned shows that the Lisbon Poetry Orchestra has presented in recent years on stages such as the Capitólio (Lisbon), CCB, or the Teatro de Vila Real.
Liane Halton graduated from Rhodes University in South Africa in classical guitar performance and composition. She is active in the Beijing music scene, having performed her own solo compositions as well as in bands of numerous styles, including pop, surf, punk, and noise. In addition to Poetry x Music, her other bands, past and present, include SEED, Boss Cuts, Juniper, Backseat Bingo, Xiao Wang 小王, and Kuduvillands.
Anthony Tao has lived in Beijing for the past 16 years. He is the author of the full-length poetry collection We Met in Beijing, and his poetry has appeared in publications such as Rattle, Prairie Schooner, Frontier, NPR, etc. He has worked an assortment of editing and writing jobs, and previously coordinated multiple editions of the Bookworm International Literary Festival. He publishes new poetry on his Poetry From Beijing newsletter (anthonytao.substack.com).
Ryan Etzcorn hails from Michigan and lives in Beijing. Before coming to the capital, he was a visiting scholar at Jinan University in Guangzhou and Beijing University’s School of Transnational Law in Shenzhen. Previously, Ryan lived as a professional touring drummer for the band Frontier Ruckus, performing across the U.S. and Europe. His current other bands in Beijing include Kuduvillands and Macondø.
Mike Fox is an English musician with 15 years of experience across many different genres. Since arriving in China in 2014, he has played with a host of different outfits, from punk to prog and contemporary to classical.
Poetry x Music explores the interplay between words and notes, combining original poetry by Anthony Tao with original music by Liane Halton. The Poetry x Music Band — featuring Ryan Etzcorn (drums) and Mike Fox (bass) — has performed in venues across Beijing, and is excited to present its work at the Macau Literary Festival.
The “Writing Myth” performance will include pieces inspired by Chinese philosophy (“Zhuangzi Dreams of a Butterfly”), modern folklore (“Kangding”), and timeless themes of family, history, and love (“Christmas alla Romana”). These are pieces rooted in the experience of individuals against the backdrop of tradition. The centerpiece is a suite of songs about the various stages of a relationship, from its uncertain yet passionate conception to its poignant and heartbreaking conclusion.
