Small seeds can grow into sturdy plants. SPNM and Trinity College of Music in Greenwich have joined forces with The Space to launch a New Composers Series of concerts on London's Isle of Dogs. The Space is a multi-cultural resource centre for the population living near Canary Wharf, and it houses events of many types in an attractively converted former chapel, an intimate venue with a friendly restaurant-bar upstairs. It is ideal for small scale chamber music, though can be somewhat overwhelming with a jazz group, or a concert grand piano in full cry, but most people nowadays take that in their stride.

This is a project worth watching. It was launched on a Sunday afternoon at the sensible time of 3 p.m., so not to have too much competition with more prestigious events, always a problem for London concert promoters. Some forty people came to fill The Space and encourage two young composers, one selected by SPNM, the other a composition student at Trinity, just across the river. After giving their pieces an airing, the quartet took on one of the peaks of the string quartet repertoire, Beethoven's Op 59 No 3, which must have convinced the student composers that they have far to go!

The Archaeus Quartet played first a dirge entitled Doloroso, which must have suggested to those people who came along to take a chance on an unusual entertainment that chamber music is a very serious matter. The pieces were announced, but without any information about the composers or their works. What made the first one so dolorous, a personal tragedy or concern for the state of the world? Or - perish the thought - was it merely that slow music can tot up a few minutes music with fewer notes and less labour? The other piece, entitled C-Girt, whatever that might mean, was a rhythmically lively piece, with dance basis and some piquant 'wrong note' harmony, with suggestions of Copland, Stravinsky and early Tippett, showing that its composer had listened to a good deal of modern music, and has some idea where he is going. No rising genius to hail, but that is not the object of the exercise.

For future events it will be important to supply some background, whether spoken or printed. An opportunity for 'workshop' dialogue with composers and players might be more fruitful than taking up the rest of the time with a major work from the canon of established masterworks?

This is a good time to be a music student, and opportunities to hear their composition exercises performed by established professionals before paying audiences are an invaluable part of the learning process. The Space is to be congratulated for hosting this venture, and all eyes will be watching and listening to how it develops.

Details of New Composer concerts on The Space's lively website at http://www.space.org.uk

Peter Grahame Woolf