Big pop hooks, bigger arrangements – Newland Symphonic Pop bring Dua Lipa’s catalogue to life as a full-blown spectacle, with orchestra, band and dancers all in the mix. We spoke to conductor Matthew Moore to find out more about what to expect from the innovative ensemble.
Let’s rewind a bit – how did Newland Symphonic Pop actually start?
It’s something I’ve always wanted to do, ever since performing in a similar concert with my youth orchestra. One of my first jobs after moving to Sheffield was conducting one of the orchestras at the university, and I was able to do a couple of trial-run concerts there to test the format. Then, over the Covid lockdown, I teamed up with some of the singers to see if we could start putting on concerts of our own. Since then, we’ve been lucky enough to perform Symphonic Pop tributes to a range of artists, including Michael Bublé, Ed Sheeran and Taylor Swift, with our Muse shows in Sheffield and Huddersfield being the most ambitious of all.
Out of all the pop stars you could’ve gone for, why Dua Lipa? Who made that call?
Having just come off our second Muse tribute concert, we wanted to do something a bit different that would appeal to a new audience. If you listen to Dua Lipa’s songs, they’re full of interesting string parts that hark back to that classic 70s disco sound, so performing her tracks with an orchestra just made sense. Plus, there’s a reason she can sell out Wembley – the tunes are genuinely great.
How do you even begin turning that into something symphonic without losing the ‘dancefloor after a few too many shandies’ energy?
You’d be surprised how much ‘too many shandies’ energy an orchestra can bring to the party. First, it’s important to choose a setlist of songs that suit the orchestral treatment – sorry purists, but ‘New Rules’ just didn’t work. Once the setlist is sorted, I listen to the songs a lot to pick out any pre-existing orchestral lines or interesting parts in the arrangement that can be adapted for live instruments.
If Dua herself walked in halfway through the set, which track would you most want her to hear?
Although the orchestra sounds epic on songs like ‘Love Again’ and ‘Dance the Night’, those tracks are already known for their string parts, so I think she’d enjoy hearing how we’ve reinvented some of the lesser-known songs from her first album, like ‘Garden’ or ‘Bad Together’.
For anyone who’s never seen Newland Symphonic Pop before, what actually happens when you put a band, singers, a 20-piece string orchestra and dancers in one room?
You get the true live experience of 20 or so string players, a top-notch band and superb singers all performing together in front of you. Everything in the show is completely live – no backing tracks, loops or pre-recorded vocals of any kind. The dancers are a new addition this time, so I’m just as excited as the audience to see what Georgia and the team have come up with.
You’ve tackled Muse at venues like Sheffield City Hall – how does this compare in terms of scale, drama and sheer musical ambition?
Although the musical style is obviously very different, the process of putting the concert together is much the same. The big difference this time is the added visual element. Our Muse tribute is very much a straight-up concert, where the focus is entirely on those epic Matt Bellamy songs and showcasing the talents of our musicians. We felt the high-energy disco vibe of Dua’s songs needed more of a show, hence the addition of our dance troupe for the first time.
What’s the biggest challenge when blending pop music with orchestral arrangements? Is it about respecting the original or completely reinventing it?
You can go either way, but we’ve always preferred to honour the original songs, with the orchestra there to enhance the experience rather than change it. As mentioned before, a lot of these songs already feature orchestral string parts, so we use those as a basis for the arrangements and aim to create the most accurate interpretation possible. We don’t tend to go down the ‘classical reimagining’ route – Dua Lipa fans will get the songs they know and love, we just happen to bring a 20-piece orchestra along for the ride.
And finally – who’s next? Or is that already a closely guarded secret?
Our Muse tribute remains one of our most popular shows, so we’ll be giving it its third outing in January, this time in Leeds. As for who’s next, there are conversations happening – so watch this space.
Newland Symphonic Pop presents Dua Lipa: A Symphonic Tribute at Sheffield University Drama Studios on 24 May – tickets available here.
