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Music Matters returns to Free Thinking as Tom Service explores the festival's theme 'The One and the Many' in terms of musical relationships.

In partnership with the Music and Science Lab from Durham University, Tom Service and members of Royal Northern Sinfonia we explore how performing together affects a string quartet's movements - do they interact as one ensemble or as 4 individuals?

The Finnish conductor Susanna Mälkki is acclaimed across the world for her work with both symphony orchestras and new music ensembles - she talks to Tom about why a conductor's job is to bring people together, whether that's musicians or audience members, and also considers the conductor's relationship with the many composers in their lives.

Talking of composers, Tom is joined live by composer Laura Bowler, whose new piece /ˌfɛmɪˈnɪnɪti/. was premiered earlier in the week by the Manchester Camerata - she talks about the curious process every composer goes through of creating music alone, that then must be performed by a whole orchestra of musicians. How does a composer translate that personal vision into something to be consumed by thousands of other people?

And Tom looks at how we interact with music today - as more and more music listening is done solely on headphones and less in the concert hall. Are we losing something if we listen to music alone rather than with others?