Sonic Arts Week Returns to Middlesbrough This Summer

5 Minute Read

Nell Catchpole 1 – image by Rachel Deakin

Music

Now in its fourth year, Sonic Arts Week descends on Middlesbrough from the 24th June to the 4th July 2026, ten days of experimental sound, participatory theatre, live music and genuinely unpredictable happenings across the town’s public spaces and beyond. Delivered by the team at The Auxiliary, SAW26 is bigger, louder and more hands-on than ever.

Expect a grand piano rewired to receive electromagnetic signals from the surrounding environment, a duo who’ve strapped an upright piano and double bass to bicycles, and wheelie bin DJs. Sound meets science, spectacle meets participation. It’s the kind of programme that makes you glad you left the house.

The Auxiliary’s exhibition strand, Moments in Sound – Expanding Instruments, brings together international artists Vivienne Griffin, Floris Vanhoof and Nell Catchpole. Vanhoof’s award-winning Antenna showcases a grand piano transformed into a receiver of electromagnetic waves, pulling in signals from the invisible infrastructures humming around us at all times. Catchpole, meanwhile, brings steel gongs forged by local blacksmiths that have been sounded across Teesside communities. Resonant objects that carry memory, place and ecology in equal measure.

Nights are handled by Auxiliary Presents, five ticketed evenings of experimental and adventurous music delivered in collaboration with Industrial Coast and Mozzenjammer. The lineup includes internationally acclaimed trio Saint Abdullah & Eomac, grindcore pioneer Mick Harris performing as Blare Weight Unit, and Teesside Dub Club holding it down for the locals. New for this year is a Maker Hub, a drop-in workshop space where you can build DIY instruments, get into the tech behind the performances, and generally make a mess in the name of sonic exploration. No prior experience required.

Full programme, listings and tickets are available at https://www.sonicartsweek.com