“ What a wonderful, inspiring gig the Barbican tonight with the new 3rd Orchestra! A 100% standing ovation for 20 extraordinary musicians who refuse to be button-holed. But in the end the 3rd Orchestra is about one thing: Peter Wiegold’s brilliant musical imagination-and-leadership. ”
- Andrew Ward
Chair of NMC Recordings and
Dartington International Summer School
The Third Orchestra - Immerse
BEYOND GENRE
The Third Orchestra draws exceptional musicians from divers world traditions: from art, folk, jazz, contemporary and popular backgrounds; mixing co-creation with improvisation. Working from skeleton scores, Peter Wiegold directs and blends in live events, giving shape and form to the shared voice while maintaining the many sensibilities and sounds of these wonderful musicians. This is not fusion- but a 360º prismatic array of what the voices of the world can sound like when all are valued and given space to create and sound.
The usp of the orchestra is to travel with a core of their global musicians, and evolve new Third Orchestras- collaboration with regional and international artists and local communities in a celebration of their distinctiveness, richness and diversity.
Launched at the Barbican Centre, London, in 2019. Co-curated by Peter Wiegold and the late John Cumming (- 25 years director of the EFG London Jazz Festival and production house Serious). This is a very different kind of orchestra.
IBC Accelerator Programme
Since taking part in a number of research projects with King’s College London and Magic Beans, using new immersive recording technologies, we have been working with IBC, on both ‘Proof on Concept’ sessions and our own Accelerator concept recording project ready for the IBC’s September 2026 Immersive Festival Live (IFeL) in Amsterdam. Third Orchestra are honoured to be matched with ground-breaking companies including: BBC, ITV, MIT, Magic Beans, Reprostream and Shure microphones for this project.
EU Horizon Bid
In recognition of our own ethos and collaborative creative processes, we have been invited to join a consortium of contemporary and transcultural musicians furthering ideas of ‘Music Diplomacy’. This team include members in Norway, Sweden, Germany, Poland, Japan, New Zealand and South Korea. Horizon Europe grants award ethical, sustainable and creative work, and are looking to partner Europeans organisation with others around the world.
Club Inégales
Our venue space in Euston, London has been our home for 15 years. This gives The Third Orchestra a sense of home and community. Our most recent concerts at Club Inégales have been with young London-based musicians from multiple diaspora and cultural traditions. A real celebration of new music, of new ideas and celebration of our intercultural home city.
SOAS/The British Forum for Ethnomusicology
Inspired by a collaboration with Delbert Anderson, a Navajo (Diné) jazz trumpeter from New Mexico, Peter conceived of The Healing Circle. This was performed at The Brunei Gallery,SOAS, University of London, and again for the annual conference of The British Forum of Ethnomusicology, at Bush House, Kings College London. Audiences were struck by how different these performances were from each other as is characteristic of this way of working.
SOAS/Tapi
In 2025 Third Orchestra collaborated at SOAS, London in association with South Asian Arts UK, with the Indian ‘indie’ rock band, The Tapi Project.
“ Disruptive and healing. The best gig I have ever been to.”
- Patrick Sandford
Theatre Director
“The Healing Circle transcended the boundaries of concert performance. It became a mirror held up to a world marked by political turbulence, cultural dislocation, and the erosion of collective certainties. The voices—at times fragile, at times urgent—seemed to ask a quiet but insistent question: where are we heading? This was not merely an impressive work of experimental music, but a profoundly जागृत (awakening) experience—one that left its scholarly audience not comforted, but stirred, unsettled, and acutely aware.”
- Dr. Razia Sultanova
Central Asia Forum, Universtiy of Cambridge
Classical:Next
In May 2024, the orchestra opened Classical:NEXT in the Boulez Saal Berlin, collaborating with the improvising/moving Stegreif Orchestra, Zafraan Ensemble and Komische Oper. And joining a debate about the future of global music-making. The show became the iconic image on the congress website. “Your participation was incredibly important in making our dream a reality!”
Recordings
YET THERE IS TIME
A CD is in preparation, for release by NMC Recordings. Recorded at Club Inégales in December 2024, it is entitled ‘Yet there is time’, inspired by a poem by Indian poet Rabindranath Tagore about the urgency of the need for change in the world.
"Peter Wiegold's unclassifiable ensemble recorded the Miles Davis homage Envoi with trumpeter Torbjörn Hultmark. It is based on short scores fleshed out with directed improvisation. Comparing this work to John Zorn's game pieces or the conductions of Butch Morris is to praise rather than to bury some fearlessly in-the-moment music that charts its own course across a wide emotional range under Wiegold's assured guidance, with Hultmark excelling throughout.” *****
(of CD: Envoi, 2011), BBC Music Magazine
Artistic Director: Peter Wiegold
From 2011, Peter’s Club Inégales, Euston, London, in 120 events, brought together a world of artists playing alongside his ensemble/band Notes Inégales. Guests included guitarist Lionel Loueke, radical pop Gazelle Twin, English folk trio, Leveret, Maori shaman Horo Horomona, and The Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment. The Third Orchestra was born from this wonderful crucible.
Peter has been commissioned by the BBC - including a piece for 150 musicians for the Albert Hall Proms - and the London Symphony and Royal Philharmonic orchestras, London Sinfonietta and Composer’s Ensemble.As a noted conductor of new music he has given over 100 premieres.
He trained a generation of workshops leaders in the ‘Performance and Communication Skills' Dept. of the Guildhall School of Music, London. Gillian Moore, CBE, formerly Artistic Director of the SouthBank Centre, said recently of Peter that he was, ‘not only the inventor of the workshop method in this country, but remains its best exponent’. He has trained many orchestras and organisations around the world in creative workshop and leadership techniques, including those mentioned above. He has led 20-piece, ‘creative ensembles’, within the LSO, RPO and the Royal Scottish National Orchestra.
At the age of 30, uncomfortable with his conventional career, he took some 15 years time out in order to study and research musical practice composition/improvisation/leadership/collaboration/social function - around the world. He continued this as Professor, Head of Music Research, at Brunel University, (2003-18).
Recent Members have included
Namvula (voice, guitar), Rouhangeze (voice), Merit Ariane (voice), Issa Loyaan Farrah-Kelly (writer, spoken voice), Kalia Lyraki (voice, nay), Emilia Mårtensson (voice), Ursula Rucker (performance poet), Alice Zawadzki (voice, violin), Colin Alexander (cello), Rihab Azar (oud), Max Baillie (violin), Alina Bzhezhinska (harp), Colin Chow (violin), Klaus Janek (bass), Melody Ji – (guzheng), Bakr Khleifi (oud), Jano Kružliak (violin) Preetha Narayanan (violin), Kirpal Panesar (dilruba), Jaak Sooaar (electric guitar), Shri Sriram (bass), Stevie Wishart (hurdy gurdy), Wang Xiao (erhu),Cheng Yu (pi’pa-guqin), Lucy Zhao (pi’pa). Iain Ballamy (sax), Sören Birke (duduk, harmonica, jew’s harp), Anna Durance (cor anglais), Luke English (clarinet), Hyelim Kim (taegŭm flute), Shima Kobayashi (harmonica), Diane McLoughlin (sax), Cathy Milliken (cor anglais), Gregor Schulenburg (flutes, duduk), Fiona Troon (contra-bassoon, Mark van de Wiel (Clarinet), Pete Wareham (sax), Wei Wu (sheng). Hanna Mbuya (tuba), Anoushka Nanguy (trombone), Ifeoluwa Ogunjobi (trumpet), Dennis Rollins (trombone), Byron Wallen (trumpet). Matthew Bourne (piano/Moog). Christophe Fellay (drum kit), Simon Limbrick (drums/percussion), Antonio Romero (Arabic/flamenco percussion), Bernhard Schimpelsberger (drums). Ravi Srinivasan (tabla and percussion). Matt Brombley (electronica).
“The film really captures everything you say you want to achieve. A real united nations, and a new approach to music. I just love the way that there's so many people who all find their place with so much freedom to play.”
- Benjamin Zephaniah
Poet, writer and performer
“Peter was not only the inventor of the workshop method in this country, but remains its best exponent.”
- Gillian Moore, CBE
former Artistic Director of the SouthBank Centre, 2021
“This band can turn on a penny”
- Will Self, novelist and journalist
other responses
“While I was listening, I could understand the beauty of chaos, the wonder of being different”.
“I travelled to many places, some familiar, some unfamiliar, but then I felt like a bigger person afterwards”.
“Thank you so much again for a brilliant workshop day last week. I haven’t been in a rehearsal situation in a long time and it was such a pleasure to exist musically in such a liberated atmosphere!”
- Kate Telfer
Young workshop participant
Fabulous gig! Huge congratulations. Gorgeous sound and amazing playing.
Judith Webster: CE, Association of British Orchestras
The Third Orchestra was absolutely fantastic, what an incredible thing you've created. Absolutely loved it. So many congratulations!
Netia Jones: Opera Director, Lightmap
“The inspiration of the third orchestra is just what we need today: great musicians and great ideas brought together under an all embracing, generous spirited banner, called unity in diversity. A genuine example for the world.”
- Marshall Marcus
Director, EU Youth Orchestra
“It was sublime and ineffable, this concert seriously changed my life. By listening. I couldn't understand how I should feel. I was shocked and didn't know whether to laugh or cry. This was the best concert and experience I have ever had”
— Audience Survey respondant: Turner Sims, Southampton
“I just wanted to thank you for letting me be a part of this incredible project for the last few days. Each of you is so inspiring musically and personally. With love and admiration”.
-Mary Javian: Curtis Institute of Music
“It was like hearing old souls whispering”
— 8 year-old audience member
“Still reeling from last night's Third Orchestra outing - divergent, congruent, utterly compelling music-making, grabbing the audience by the scruff of the neck. I won't forget it. Thank you, it was a privilege to be there.”
- Sarah Gabriel
Singer and writer
Absolutely gripping, magical and inspiring performance with Peter Wiegold and an impressive lineup of musicians crossing so many cultures. Taking the spirit of collaboration and co-creation to a whole other level.
Manus Carey
Director of Performance, Royal Northern College of Music