How Bristol’s Fantasy Orchestra grew from quirky theme nights into a global community of joyful, messy, psychedelic music-making.
By Linda Geddes
Drenched in colour, brimming with eccentricity, and frequently dusted with glitter, the Fantasy Orchestra refuses to be mistaken for any ordinary ensemble.
Part community project, part psychedelic big band, it is at once a celebration of great music and a playground for amateur and professional musicians. But how did this kaleidoscopic symphonic brigade come about?
The roots of the Fantasy Orchestra extend back to 2000, when its founder and leader Jesse D. Vernon was running themed music nights in Bristol under the banner The Greatness of the Magnificence. Each night revolved around a musical icon or concept. “We did Nina Simone, Bob Dylan, The Velvet Underground, David Bowie, Leonard Cohen,” Vernon recalls. “And then we did more general things, such as the wind, or Canada, or all sorts of stuff like this.”
These events, staged in venues such as the Cube Cinema, Seymour’s Family Club and the Trinity Centre became known for their playful themes and collaborative spirit.
Then in 2011, Vernon decided he wanted to perform a tribute to the Italian composer Ennio Morricone. “I realised I couldn’t do it with the same sort of backing band as before, because I’d need far more than just a guitar, bass and drums to put it together. So, I just asked everyone I knew who played any instruments,” he says. “I was also running a choir, so I got them involved, and I transcribed a whole set of Morricone tunes.”
The result was a 25-piece orchestra performing Morricone’s sweeping film scores at the Cube Cinema. The concert was a revelation: “It was completely different to what we’d done before, because it took a lot more organisation to put it together,” Vernon remembers. “But it was really lovely – everyone loved doing it, and I loved doing it.”
Buoyed by this success, the musicians decided to continue. At first, they kept the long-winded name The Greatness of the Magnificence Orchestra. But when the Cube staged a large-scale fundraiser at Bristol’s Old Vic to help secure its building, Vernon sensed a rebrand was in order. “The name wasn’t very catchy,” he admits. “I came up with the name Fantasy Orchestra, because it’s kind of my fantasy to run an orchestra, and it’s every amateur musician’s fantasy to be in one. Plus, we’re playing a lot of fantastical music – so the Fantasy Orchestra was born.”
From the outset, the orchestra distinguished itself from more traditional groups. Instead of auditions, anyone who wanted to play was welcome, no matter their instrument or experience. “We might have 15 clarinets and one violin, or someone with an unusual instrument like a baritone clarinet,” Vernon explains. “I’ll just write the arrangements for whoever is in the orchestra.”
This inclusivity has produced a signature sound: “It’s pretty messy, pretty psychedelic, and pretty fun,” says Vernon.
Over time, the model has spread beyond Bristol. Parallel Fantasy Orchestras have sprung up in Calderdale in West Yorkshire, and across the Channel in Nantes and Paris, where Vernon currently lives. A ‘Ramshackle Fantasy Orchestra’ recently emerged in Hull. Despite their distance, each uses the same scores and maintains the same spirit: “If you go up to Calderdale, or visit Paris, it’s the same vibe and the same atmosphere,” Vernon says. “I think it’s because of the material and the kind of people who are drawn to taking part.”
For Vernon – a professional musician who first made his mark in the 90s with the indie psych-rock band Moonflower, later co-founded This Is The Kit, and launched his long-running solo project Morningstar (now Morning Star Music Club) the Fantasy Orchestra has always been about more than making music. “For me, and for most people, it’s important to be part of something bigger than yourself. The Fantasy Orchestra is an automatic community.”
The weekly rehearsals are often more important than the gigs themselves. “Every time I do a choir rehearsal, I come out feeling invigorated,” says Vernon. “It feels important for my physical health.”
More than two decades since those first Bristol theme nights, the Fantasy Orchestra has become a living experiment in joyful, inclusive music-making. Messy, psychedelic, and above all communal, it embodies what Vernon set out to create: a space where musicians and audiences alike can share in the fantasy.