scapegoat
scapegoat is an experimental saxophone and percussion duo.
Close creative collaboration and multi-media projects form the basis of their pursuit for artistic innovation and expression.
Programmes are designed to broaden and challenge the musical experience of the audience, through original works featuring live electronics, performer-controlled sonic and visual amplification, video and lighting design, and improvisation.
Formed in Paris in 2013 by Australian saxophonist Joshua Hyde and Canadian percussionist Noam Bierstone, scapegoat has performed in France, Germany, Norway, Switzerland, Canada, Australia, the US & the UK. They have completed residencies at Harvard University’s Radcliffe Institute, New York University, Monash University (Melbourne), the Sydney Conservatorium of Music, the Royal Northern College of Music (Manchester), Spread Art (Detroit) & the University of Liverpool, and have performed at festivals and venues including Ultima (Oslo), Huddersfield Contemporary Music Festival, wasteLAnd (Los Angeles), Darmstadt Ferienkurse, City University (London), Constellation (Chicago), Spectrum (New York), IGNM Basel, Unerhörte Musik (Berlin), Kompakt (Zurich), NO HAY BANDA (Montreal) & the Grant Street Theatre (Melbourne).
scapegoat’s 2017/18 season featured new commissions of composers Pierluigi Billone and Michelle Lou funded by the Ernst von Siemens Music Foundation, with residencies and performances as part of an Australian tour, a Californian tour, and at the Ultima Festival (Oslo). 2019 saw collaborations with Sabrina Schroeder, Hanna Hartman & Sam Salem, and the release of their debut album featuring music by Mauricio Pauly and Santiago Díez Fischer, along with texts and drawings by writer Renee Gladman. In 2020 their recording of Pierluigi Billone’s ‘2 Alberi’, commissioned by the duo with the support of the Siemens Foundation, won the Italian Music Critic’s Prize. Their collaboration with No Hay Banda on the recording ‘I had a dream about this place’ in 2022 received widespread critical acclaim.
scapegoat will be in residency at the 2025 Zagreb Biennale, collaborating with Hanna Hartman, Anthony Tan & Zeynep Toraman
Joshua Hyde is a French/Australian saxophonist, composer & improviser based in Paris. An active performer of new music he performs with soundinitiative, Musikfabrik, Klangforum Wien, Ensemble Intercontemporain, Nadar, & Contrechamps, he is also creates new improvised music with Ben Carey, Vitrio & Replicant.
A graduate of the Paris Conservatory (CNSMDP), Joshua gained international recognition after winning first prize and audience prize in 2011 at the 3rd International Jean-Marie Londeix International Saxophone competition in Bangkok. He was also first prize winner at the 5th International Saxophone Competition in Nantes and was awarded a Stipendiumpreis at the 2014 Darmstadt Ferienkurse. In 2014 Joshua’s first solo record was released on Integrated Records; he can also be heard on recordings on the Wergo, Torpor Vigil, Kairos, NMC, Integrated Records, & maat labels.
Since 2020 Joshua is teaches saxophone, contemporary chamber music and as part of the performer-composer program at the Geneva Music University (HEM).
Noam Bierstone is a Canadian percussionist, improviser, curator, and producer dedicated to modern artistic performance. Committed to the creation and development of new music, Noam’s primary artistic ventures include the Montreal concert series and performance collective NO HAY BANDA, the saxophone and percussion duo scapegoat, the Montreal-based percussion quartet Architek, and the Rimouski-based trio Bascaille. Noam pursues ongoing collaborations with various composers and artists, with a particular interest in works that expand the notion of percussion playing through new techniques, hybrid instruments, theatrical and choreographic elements, and performative electronics. Noam is regularly invited to perform at international festivals, and his discography includes releases on No Hay Discos, KAIROS, New Focus Recordings, Ambiances Magnétiques, NMC, and Cantaloupe Music.
