Glaswegian techno prodigy Alex Smoke has never been one to work inside the square. Now the DJ-producer is teaming up with the Scottish Ensemble for a project fusing electronic and classical music.

Smoke’s new commission for the Ensemble will premiere at Bonar Hall in Dundee.

“For an artist involved in electronic music, and with a passion for classical music new and old, this really is a dream commission,” Smoke reveals in the press speel. “I also have a background in biology, which makes the context especially pertinent.

I had originally toyed with the idea of using the instruments in the context of an electronic performance piece, the ensemble providing the majority of the music, but with an underpinning of live electronic performance. However, I’ve decided instead to go for an entirely classical composition using just the instruments of the ensemble, with the style of the writing alone highlighting my background in electronic music.

My ultimate aim is to write music for film and for orchestra, and to incorporate my background in more experimental genres to create something genuinely new; this commission provides me with the perfect opportunity to do exactly that. It is also an opportunity to expose a younger generation to science and music of a type they’ve probably rarely experienced, and in a less formal context.

There is a current swell in interest in classical music amongst the more adventurous modern producers, as highlighted by Warp Records’ recent concerts with the London Sinfonietta, and it is my belief that this will allow me to reach a new audience and help further expand this movement of musical cross-pollination.”

Hear hear. This one should go in the Suggestions Box for tours in 2008…