BEAU Stocker's improvised percussion will combine with live electronics by Ben Eyes on Friday at in an unusual musical performance that will bring York's historic spaces together as part of the University of York's Spring Festival of New Music 2015.

Sites such as the Hospitium, Treasurer’s House and the Guildhall will be recreated electronically by musicians Beau and Ben, who visited five York landmarks to capture the ‘acoustic fingerprint’ of each one.

“Normally, most of us aren’t consciously aware of the acoustic character of the spaces around us, but they have a profound impact on us," says Beau. "It's only when we experience them unexpectedly that we think about their special character.”

Canadian percussionist Beau, a PhD student in music performance at the University of York, has put together a performance using live instruments and electronics that will simulate playing in each space. The seven pieces draw on East African rhythms from South Sudan and North Sudan, contrasting these rhythms with more familiar jazz and western styles.

“We’re used to the space around the musicians going unnoticed," says Beau. "I wanted to make these special places an integral part of the work. When musicians play, they're always responding to the auditory experience of being in the space. We want to explore this more fully.”

Beau does so by experimenting with the sounds and timbres that can be produced on a drum kit and un-tuned percussion; Ben will perform with live electronics and electronic instruments. Box office: 01904 658338 or ncem.co.uk