Guitarist and composer Bill Orcutt has been described as “thrillingly original” (Will Ainsley, Bandcamp Daily) as "a go-for-broke guitar improviser," (Ben Ratliff, New York Times) “creating a new language” (Mark Masters, Pitchfork) whose playing would "make Derek Bailey do a double-take" (Lars Gotrich, NPR). Orcutt tours actively, appearing at festivals worldwide, including Rewire (The Hague), Presences Electronique (Paris), Jazz em Agosto (Lisbon), Goner Fest (Memphis), Musique Actuelle (Victoriaville), Big Ears (Knoxville), Music Unlimited (Wels), Le Guess Who? (Utrecht), Nouveau Festival du Centre Pompidou (Paris), Unsound (Krakow), a Maida Vale session for BBC 3 (London) and a Tiny Desk concert for NPR.

“The San Francisco-based guitarist has been on one of the great creative tears in his chosen instrument’s vaunted history.” Grayson Haver Currin, Pitchfork

“No one is playing acoustic guitar like Bill Orcutt right now. No one.” Lars Gotrich, NPR

“Quite awe-inspiring, and unlike anything else I can think of.” Byron Coley, The Wire Magazine

“When Bill Orcutt starts playing the acoustic guitar, it's clear there are still so many new things to be said with it.” Ben Beaumont-Thomas, The Guardian

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Ailbhe Nic Oireachtaigh is a viola player exploring the tonal possibilities of gut strings and wood in both amplified and acoustic contexts. Amalgamations of influences from improvised, traditional and early music styles can be heard on solo recordings Oreing (Fort Evil Fruit 2017), The Rounds (KRUT 2021) and most recently Live At Sonic Acts (Scatter Archive 2023). She lives in Glasgow where she plays in free-improv quartet Dome Riders with Fritz Welch, Armin Sturm and Mike Parr-Burman.

An active collaborator, Nic Oireachtaigh has toured with experimental Irish bands Woven Skull and Cian Nugent & the Cosmos and has performed internationally with artists Josephine Foster and Circuit des Yeux. She has created music for theatre works by Isadora Epstein and collaboratively with Pat Thomas and Rhodri Davies.

In May 2022 she composed New Mountain, Reaching Plane, a surround sound piece for orchestral and gamelan musicians as a commission for BBC Scotland’s Tectonics Festival. Recent performances include a newly commissioned work by Natalia Beylis and a premier of Eliane Radigue’s Asymptote Versatile(1963-64) at Huddersfield Contemporary Music Festival 2023.

Other passing/recurring musical companions include Jorge Boehringer (in viola duo Swiss Barns), Andrew Cheetham (free style drum/viola duo Lus), Cal Folger Day, Josh Thorpe, David Lacey, Aonghus McEvoy, David Donohoe, Anna Clock.

Access Guide and Tickets for Personal Assistants

You can view/download The Glad Cafe's Access Guide here. If you require a ticket for a Personal Assistant/Gig Buddy (at no extra cost), please contact kim@thegladcafe.co.uk.