Gregor Riddell – ‘cello, electronics
Adam Teixeira – drums, percussion
“…cello and percussion tussle and tiff, coil together sinuously, coalesce in a chugging groove, or, enhanced with electronics, grow ethereal.” (Julian Cowley, Wire Magazine, reviewing UNDA)
London/Oslo-based duo BirdWorld is a musical partnership between Gregor Riddell and Adam Teixeira. The duo first met during respective Banff Centre for the Arts Creative Residencies where they began improvising together and exploring their collectively field recordings. In combination with a set up of ‘cello, drum set, kalimbas and percussion, their field recordings forms an integral part of their music with an interplay between industrial and natural soundscapes.
The duo has gone on to perform across Europe with highlights including a Union Chapel concert filmed and recorded by NTS Radio, an electronic film score commissioned by London Contemporary Orchestra and collaborating with Sanskriti Shrestha, Streifenjunko, Harpreet Bansal, James Kitchman and Alex Stuart as well as video artist Ioana Sisea, among others. ‘After Rain’ featured in The Wire Tapper No 47 playlist and subsequently BirdWorld performed at LSO St Luke’s ‘Open Ear’ series live recorded by BBC Radio 3.
On the 2019 Autumn Equinox, BirdWorld released their debut album UNDA on Focused Silence followed in 2021 by reworks on the same label featuring 12 renowned artists including Qasim Naqvi, Fran & Flora, Olefonken, Emilie Levienaise-Farrouch and Robert Ames.
BirdWorld started developing material for their second album remotely throughout the pandemic when they also both became fathers.
In autumn 2022 they participated in the Seanse artist residency in Volda (Norway) to hone ideas which they proceeded to record with Øyvind Røsrud at Flerbruket Studio (Norway) in early 2023. Featuring an array of instruments and guest artists – including Harpreet Bansal, Maria Dybbroe and Sara Övinge – this album is a significant leap from the sound of UNDA taking their creativity into a more intimate, lyrical realm.