Students from the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland have been selected to perform and showcase their work to a global audience in Glasgow in November as part of the cultural programme surrounding the COP26 climate change conference.

An ensemble of emerging artists from Scotland’s national conservatoire will take to the stage at Glasgow Science Centre in a creative collaboration that will blend music and film inspired by the climate crisis.

The performance on Friday, November 12, from 4-5pm, takes place at the Science Show Theatre. It will feature classical guitarists Tim Beattie, Finlay Hay, Dominika Dawidowska and Leonard Rannallo who will perform works by Leo Brouwer, Eddie McGuire and Philip Glass with each work purposely reflecting the constancy of change.

Leo Brouwer’s Cuban Landscape with Rain and Philip Glass’ Metamorphosis will be performed alongside a newly commissioned film, inspired by the music, created by Rosslyn McCormick and Rhona McCalman, students of the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland’s film school.

The concert is part of COP26’s Green Zone, managed by the UK Government to offer a platform for the public, youth groups, civil society, academia, artists and business to have their voices heard through events, exhibitions, workshops and talks that promote dialogue, awareness, education and commitments.

The Royal Conservatoire of Scotland performance, titled Hope Springs Eternal – A Sonic Landscape, will be the culmination of a specially commissioned, year-long series, Hope Springs Eternal, which has seen students from across the conservatoire create new work inspired by landscape, nature and climate change.

Themes of adaptation, resilience and nature are also at the forefront of the series, a partnership between the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland’s Artistic Planning team and Scotland House, Scotland’s international enterprise network.

Professor Jeffrey Sharkey, Principal of the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, said: “In a year of reflection, and focused on the goals of COP26, the special partnership between RCS and Scotland House has delivered a multi-disciplinary programme of new works from the community of young artists at RCS.

“Hope Springs Eternal shares how a new generation of artists can respond to what is happening in the world, and help us understand it, question it, mourn it, celebrate it, and learn from it. We are very proud to be part of the Green Zone programme of activity.”

Watch Hope Springs Eternal concerts 1-6 on the RCS Green Room

Following the Green Zone debut, the performance will also head on tour, travelling by bicycle, to small venues and schools in and around Glasgow.

It will also feature in the British Council-supported Climate Portal on the RCS campus. The ten-foot, golden shipping container features a life-size screen that connects to other portals around the world, bringing together people who would never otherwise have a chance to meet, and creates the sensation of being in the same room.

The Climate Portal is a creative collaboration between RCS, Shared_Studios, HarrisonParrott and Scottish Ballet. The portal is home to an exciting arts and digital exchange programme with portals across the globe, including Bamako, Erbil, Gaza, Nakivale, Mexico City, Kigali and more to be announced.

For more information on Hope Springs Eternal – A Sonic Landscape, Green Zone performances and how to book tickets, visit the COP26 website.