Edinburgh Festival Guide

Listings: Talks & lectures

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Cest Gelabert Conversation

Choreographer and solo performer Gerhart Bonher on the making of Im (Goldenen) Schnitt I.

Edinburgh Festival Theatre

Sun 18 Aug

Free / 0131 473 2000

Part of Dance Odysseys.

Contemporary Classics Conversation

Christopher Hampson and Jane Pritchard, Curator of Dance at the V&A, inž conversation.

Edinburgh Festival Theatre

Sat 17 Aug

Free / 0131 473 2000

Part of Dance Odysseys.

Conversations: Bang on a Can All-Stars

Members of New York City’s Bang on a Can All-Stars discuss making music new with Edinburgh-based composer John Harris.

The Hub, Edinburgh

Fri 23 Aug

£6 / 0131 473 2000

Part of Conversations with Artists.

Conversations: Marco Stroppa and Pierre-Laurent Aimard

Electronic music composer Marco Stroppa and pianist Pierre-Laurent Aimard talk to BBC Radio 3 presenter Tom Service about their pioneering work.

The Hub, Edinburgh

Mon 19 Aug

£6 / 0131 473 2000

Part of Conversations with Artists.

Conversations: Meredith Monk

Meredith Monk explores the artist’s relationship with the environment, in conversation with Philip Campbell, editor of Nature magazine.

The Hub, Edinburgh

Thu 15 Aug

£6 / 0131 473 2000

Part of Conversations with Artists.

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Conversations: Nicola Boud and Kristian Bezuidenhout

Australian clarinettist Nicola Boud and fortepianist Kristian Bezuidenhout discuss their Queen’s Hall recital with Richard Morrison, chief music critic of The Times.

The Hub, Edinburgh

Thu 15 Aug

£6 / 0131 473 2000

Part of Conversations with Artists.

Conversations: The Wooster Group

Elizabeth LeCompte and company members talk to Andrew Quick about their complex interpretation of Hamlet.

The Hub, Edinburgh

Mon 12 Aug

£6 / 0131 473 2000

Part of Conversations with Artists.

Discussion: Lines Lost

Artist Stuart McAdam and Claudia Zeiske, Director of Deveron Arts, will lead a discussion with a panel of experts about the relationship between art and walking, and the history of the railways in Scotland. This event is the culmination of a guided walk that McAdam will lead earlier in the afternoon along the Innocent…

Royal Scottish Academy, Edinburgh

Thu 1 Aug

Free / 0131 225 6671

Part of Edinburgh Art Festival.

  • 16:00 – 17:30

The Edinburgh University Festival Lecture: Art, Mind and Machine

Nigel Osborne, composer and former Reid Professor of Music, explores the complexities of music, mind and the application of technology in a therapeutic setting. Chaired by Raymond MacDonald, Professor of Music Psychology and Improvisation, and introduced by Dorothy Miell, Vice Principal and Head of Humanities and Social…

The Hub, Edinburgh

Fri 30 Aug

£6 / 0131 473 2000

Part of Edinburgh University Events.

Franz West Exhibition Talk by Dominic Paterson

Dr Dominic Paterson, Lecturer in Art History at the University of Glasgow, will give a talk on the exhibition Mostly West: Franz West and Artist Collaborations. Free admission, booking essential: ihevents@rbge.ac.uk or 0131 248 2971.

Inverleith House, Edinburgh

Sat 17 Aug

Free / 0131 248 2971

Part of Edinburgh Art Festival.

  • 14:00 – 15:00
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Franz West Exhibition Talk by Lisa Le Feuvre

Lisa Le Feuvre – curator, writer and Head of Sculpture Studies at The Henry Moore Institute, Leeds – will give a talk on the exhibition Mostly West: Franz West and Artist Collaborations. Free admission, booking essential: ihevents@rbge.ac.uk or 0131 248 2971.

Inverleith House, Edinburgh

Thu 1 Aug

Free / 0131 248 2971

Part of Edinburgh Art Festival.

  • 14:00 – 15:00

Guided Tour: Staple Matter

Artists Kjersti Sletteland and Despina Nissiriou will give an exclusive guided tour of their exhibition at Patriothall Gallery, providing insights into the works on show and the history of the building which the works respond to. All are welcome.

Patriothall Gallery, Edinburgh

Sat 10 Aug

Free / 0131 226 7126

Part of Edinburgh Art Festival.

  • 15:00 – 15:30

How a Pipe Organ Works

Organist extraordinaire John Kitchen of the University of Edinburgh describes and demonstrates the technology behind the magnificent four-manual 63-stop Usher Hall organ.

Usher Hall, Edinburgh

Thu 22 Aug

£6 / 0131 473 2000

Infinite Possibilities: Drama on the Radio

Jeremy Howe, Commissioning Editor BBC Radio 4, dramatist Jonathan Myerson and writer and theatre critic Octavian Saiu explore the influence radio has had on drama and its development as an artform.

The Hub, Edinburgh

Wed 28 Aug

£6 / 0131 473 2000

Part of Beckett at the Festival.

Interfaces: How Art Intersects with Technology in Cinema

Moshe Kam of Drexel University, Philadelphia, discusses the neverending cycle of advancements in cinema, that provide for expanded artistic freedom and in turn lead to new technological opportunities. Chaired by Sir John Arbuthnott, President of the Royal Society of Edinburgh.

The Hub, Edinburgh

Tue 13 Aug

£6 / 0131 473 2000

Part of Interfaces.

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Interfaces: Is the Internet Making Us Smarter?

The Internet is the greatest store of human knowledge that has ever existed. But it is also a shopping mall, a video arcade and a Pandora’s Box. Tom Standage, digital editor of The Economist, and Emily Bell, director of the Tow Centre for Digital Journalism at Columbia University, discuss the Internet’s effect on…

The Hub, Edinburgh

Tue 13 Aug

£6 / 0131 473 2000

Part of Interfaces.

Interfaces: Language in a Technological Age

As we spend more time online or attached to a mobile device and with increasing amounts of information being generated and captured, Jon Oberlander, Professor of Epistemics at the University of Edinburgh, explores the cost to privacy of this new technological power. Chaired by Guardian journalist Aleks Krotoski.

The Hub, Edinburgh

Sat 10 Aug

£6 / 0131 473 2000

Part of Interfaces.

Interfaces: Making Sense of the New Unrest

Author and broadcaster Paul Mason outlines the ways in which technology has enabled global protest movements and asks how the old political models of ruling and resisting are being undermined. Chaired by Professor William Sweeney. Speech-to-Text Reported event.

The Hub, Edinburgh

Mon 12 Aug

£6 / 0131 473 2000

Part of Interfaces.

Interfaces: Mind Change in the 21st Century

British scientist, writer and broadcaster Susan Greenfield asks us to consider how technologies may be changing the human brain, both for good and for bad. Chaired by Alison Elliot, Convenor of the Church of Scotland Guild. Speech-to-Text Reported event.

The Hub, Edinburgh

Wed 14 Aug

£6 / 0131 473 2000

Part of Interfaces.

Interfaces: Technology and the Soul

Psychiatrist Andrew Powell explores the ways that technology affects relationships. As depression rapidly becomes the greatest burden of illness in developed countries, he examines safeguards for emotional and spiritual well-being. Chaired by Reverend Richard Coles, writer of TV comedy Rev. Speech-to-Text Reported event.

The Hub, Edinburgh

Wed 14 Aug

£6 / 0131 473 2000

Part of Interfaces.

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Interfaces: The Internet and Free Will

Aleks Krotoski, social psychologist and presenter of Radio 4’s Digital Human, untangles the World Wide Web, asking how much of a revolution it really is. Are we in danger of letting Google and Facebook take over our lives, and can we reclaim control over the machine? Chaired by Robert Dawson Scott. Speech-to-Text Reported…

The Hub, Edinburgh

Sun 11 Aug

£6 / 0131 473 2000

Part of Interfaces.

Interfaces: The Leisure Revolution

Jesse Schell, Distinguished Professor of Entertainment Technology, Carnegie Mellon University, and technology entrepreneur Chris van der Kuyl discuss the gamification of design and its potential for widespread influence. Chaired by writer Ben Hammersley.

The Hub, Edinburgh

Sun 11 Aug

£6 / 0131 473 2000

Part of Interfaces.

Interfaces: The Moleskine Diaries

Author and journalist James Harkin uses the Moleskine diaries phenomenon to explore what our desire to identify with niche product, media and culture brands can tell us about ourselves. Chaired by Robert Dawson Scott.

The Hub, Edinburgh

Thu 15 Aug

£6 / 0131 473 2000

Part of Interfaces.

Live Music Now talk

Ian Stoutzker, co-founder with Yehudi Menuhin of Live Music Now, discusses the organisation’s distinctive work and Menuhin’s vision with Director of Live Music Now Scotland Carol Main.

The Hub, Edinburgh

Thu 29 Aug

Free / 0131 473 2000

Part of Cafe Concerts.

Movements: Cybraphon

Cybraphon, the autonomous and emotional robot band, joins the permanent collection of National Museums Scotland, and Alexander Hayward is joined by Professor Simon Kirby of FOUND, Mark Daniels of New Media Scotland, and Alison Taubman of National Museums Scotland to welcome it to its new home.

National Museum of Scotland, Edinburgh

Wed 21 Aug

£6 / 0131 473 2000

Part of Movements.

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