Europa String Choir

History

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Cathy Stevens grew up in a musical family (she is the daughter of composer Bernard Stevens) and studied violin and viola at the Yehudi Menuhin School and the Royal Academy of Music. In 1975, she became a professional orchestral player, working with the London Sinfonietta and Fires of London among others. Between 1983 and 1992, Stevens worked as one half of the improvised music duo Pool of Sound (with cellist Chas Dickie, a former member of Van der Graaf Generator and a veteran of the improvised music scene).^[2]

By 1982, Stevens had also graduated as a practitioner of the Alexander Technique, and it was in this capacity that she began working with Robert Fripp's Guitar Craft courses in 1989. On one of these courses she met guitarist Udo Dzierzanowski.^[2] In 1991 Stevens and Dzierzanowski formed a viola-and-guitar duo called The Annexe performing both self-penned and classical music, which toured with fellow Guitar Craft graduates California Guitar Trio.^[3]

On a subsequent residential music course in 1993, second guitarist Alessandro Bruno joined the project, which took on the new name of Europa String Choir.^[3] The ensemble's first album, The Starving Moon, was recorded for Fripp's Discipline Global Mobile label later in the same year. In 1996, Europa String Choir recruited a fourth member - Chapman Stick/Warr Guitar player Markus Reuter, another Guitar Craft student.

Over the next four years, the quartet would intermittently tour Europe and the USA.^[4] Europa String Choir's second album Lemon Crash was released by DGM spinoff label DGMLive.^[4] A more composed and pre-structured work, reflecting the ensemble's classical leanings, it was produced by David Bottrill. Marching Ants, a second album of improvisations from the Lemon Crash sessions and tour was eventually released in 2003 on the Burning Shed label.

During the next decade, Europa String Choir continued to record and perform intermittently, predominantly as a duo of Stevens and Dzierzanowski.^[2] Celtic harp player/cellist Susan Nares (from the Poole-based Soundways project) was recruited for the ensemble's trio lineup in 2003.

In 2013, Stevens and Dzierzanowski relocated the Europa String Choir from south-west England to a location near the Alps on the German/Austrian border. In 2014 the ensemble released their first album in eleven years (the ambient/improvised recording Eye of the Beholder). In November 2014, they announced that Austrian bodhran player Wolfgang Maier would be the new third member of the performing trio.

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Other musical activities

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The band members are active within the worldwide network of Guitar Craft / Guitar Circle, founded by Robert Fripp. They organize, lead, and participate in workshops in Germany, Italy, and Spain. In 2025, for example, they took part in a concert with The Orchestra of Crafty Guitarists, featuring more than 100 guitarists from around the world, as well as performances with The League of Silence and Electric Radius.

The English guitarist Robert Fripp, known for his work with King Crimson and David Bowie’s “Heroes”, also contributed to one of the band’s releases and was partly responsible for the band’s name.

The Established Music Workshop, founded by Europa String Choir, is currently held at regular intervals in Italy and Germany: 𝗟𝗜𝗦𝗧𝗘𝗡. 𝗖𝗢𝗡𝗡𝗘𝗖𝗧. 𝗖𝗥𝗘𝗔𝗧𝗘. - THE BASICS OF MUSICAL COLLABORATION & IMPROVISATION

Key Elements

silence
circulation
polyrhythm & body beat
Alexander Technique and Qigong
improvisation

𝐅𝐢𝐥𝐦𝐦𝐮𝐬𝐢𝐜

The ensemble members have contributed to several film projects with film music.

These three award-winning films deserve special mention:

𝐃𝐨𝐜𝐮𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐫𝐲 “𝐌𝐚𝐪𝐮𝐢𝐥𝐚𝐬”, 𝐈𝐭𝐚𝐥𝐲 𝟐𝟎04

Directed by Isabella Sandri & Giuseppe M. Gaudino

Song “Maquilas” written by Alessandro Bruno, performed by Epsilon Indi

Further information: https://www.gaundri.com/pages/film.php?lang=eng&nomepagina=ilfilm&unifil=3

𝐒𝐡𝐨𝐫𝐭 𝐟𝐢𝐥𝐦 “𝐌𝐞𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐜𝐤𝐞” 𝐆𝐞𝐫𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐲𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟏/𝟐𝟐

From ”Toloselowtrack Film Berlin”, Andreas Wieland (English and German)

Song „Ten Years“ from the album “RealPromoDemo” written by Markus Reuter, performed by Europa String Choir

Further information: https://toloselowtrack.jimdofree.com/meilicke/

“𝐖𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐧 𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐩𝐢𝐜𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞𝐬 – 𝐂𝐡𝐫𝐨𝐧𝐢𝐤 𝐞𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐬 𝐧𝐢𝐞 𝐠𝐞𝐦𝐚𝐜𝐡𝐭𝐞𝐧 𝐅𝐢𝐥𝐦𝐬 (𝐏𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐨)” (𝟐𝟎𝟎𝟏-𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟒)

film, art and research project from “Toloselowtrack Film Berlin”, Andreas Wieland (English and German)

Songs: “Waterfall” (album “Lemon Crash”), „Ten Years“ from the album “RealPromoDemo”, “Woodentops” by Udo Dzierzanowski

Further information: toloselowtrack.jimdofree.com/das-neue-written-over-pictures-porto/

𝐎𝐮𝐭𝐥𝐨𝐨𝐤: 2026 a live film-premier performance at “Kulturhafen”, Gross Neuendorf an der Oder, Germany is planned.

Absolute highlight as Markus Reuter will be reunited with Cathy Stevens, Udo Dzierzanowski and Alessandro Bruno after 20 years.

Both Stevens and Dzierzanowski are also members of contemporary improvised music ensemble ZAUM (now 2AUM), founded by the late improv/power drummer Steve Harris in 2001 ^[5] and collaborate with visual artist Frances Hatch (as Frozen Orchestras of Lost Sound).^[6]

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Europa String Choir

History

Other musical activities

Personnel

Current members

Previous/additional members

Discography

External links

References

Wikiwand - on