PLAY! Festival 2026

Hear the bassoon like you have never heard it before. To mark the start of a three-month collaboration with some of Royal Holloway's most inventive music creators, bassoonist Lauren Martin invites you into her sonic laboratory.

This workshop is the culmination of a dedicated process in which composers from the Department of Music have written new works specifically for Lauren and her instrument. Expect the unexpected: extended techniques, reimagined textures, and a bassoon that might just growl, sing, or whisper in ways you did not think possible. This event offers a close-up look at how new musical ideas take shape when performers and composers work side by side. No concert dress. No formal stage. Just fresh sounds and fearless curiosity.

Venue

This event is taking place in the Boilerhouse Tank Room (0-07). 

Car parking

When you arrive for a College event at our Egham campus, please park in car parks 12 or 4.

Car park 12 can be accessed by turning right as you enter the main College gates and is located next to the tennis courts. If this car park is full, please drive further onto our campus to car park 4, which can be accessed by turning left at the mini-roundabout behind the Students’ Union. We would advise that you bring the College map to campus with you and give yourself plenty of time to park.

Blue Badge holders can find designated parking spaces in Car park 1W, as well as between Gardeners Lodge and the Williams Annexe. You can find these locations by looking at our campus map opposite. If you require any assistance on arrival, please contact our premises team in advance of your visit by emailing: premisesadmin@royalholloway.ac.uk and they will be happy to help.

Please note that we operate an Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) system on certain parts of our campus, however if you are here for an organised event, parking is unrestricted for event guests in car parks 12, 4 or 14 (or display your blue badge permit if parking in a disabled bay). If you have any questions about parking, please email: premisesadmin@royalholloway.ac.uk