Hidden Orchestra

Hidden Orchestra is the solo studio project of Joe Acheson, a multi-instrumentalist, composer and producer who builds recordings from individually captured performances. Formed in Edinburgh, the project brings together guest musicians from varied backgrounds, with Acheson assembling their parts in the studio to create the scale and interplay of an orchestra. His productions combine field recordings with bass, drums and percussion, placing acoustic detail alongside electronic processing.

The debut album, Night Walks, arrived on Tru Thoughts in September 2010. Its music drew together jazz, classical composition, drum and bass, rock and hip hop, folding natural sounds into electronic effects. BBC Radio 1 selected the record as Album of the Month, and Denovali issued a deluxe vinyl edition in January 2011. Further releases have included Archipelago, Reorchestrations, Dawn Chorus and Dawn Chorus Remixes, alongside EPs such as Flight and Wingbeats.

Archipelago incorporated references to Sufi music, modal jazz and progressive rock, alongside recordings evoking birds and wind. The album's reception led to two remix albums. Although Acheson constructs the core recordings in the studio, Hidden Orchestra also performs live with an assembled group. Regular members include Poppy Ackroyd on violin and piano, plus drummers Tim Lane and Jamie Graham, whose instrumentation also includes trombone. In 2020, Hidden Orchestra composed the soundtrack for Creaks, the video game developed by Czech studio Amanita Design and released that July.