Stories
Five Reasons to Love Janáček's Jenůfa
There’s lots to love about Jenůfa, the opera that propelled Czech composer Leoš Janáček to fame, from its dramatic plot and multi-dimensional characters, to the colourful, folk-inspired music.
Theories of Forgetting: Hollie Harding
On Saturday 14 January at LSO St Luke’s, composer, curator and LSO Jerwood Composer+ participant Hollie Harding presents an evening of music inspired by time and memory including the world premiere of her brand new piece Theories of Forgetting. Here Hollie explains her approach to curating the evening, and how each piece connects itself back to the impermanent yet enduring nature of memory over time.
Joel Thompson on To Awaken the Sleeper: 'Baldwin asks us to build a new world'
Joel Thompson is an Atlanta-based composer, artist and educator best-known in the US for his 2015 choral work Seven Last Words of the Unarmed, that sets the final words of seven Black men who were killed by police or authority figures. On 6 November at the Barbican, London, we perform another of his pieces in the UK for the first time, To Awaken the Sleeper, written for orchestra and narrator. Joel introduced this new piece, and the inspiration behind it, to us.
André J Thomas on marking Black History Month with the LSO
Announced as LSO Associate Artist in May 2022, André J Thomas is a world-leading expert on choral and American gospel music. He has already brought his passion for gospel to two concerts with the LSO (March 2020 and May 2022), and this Autumn he does it all again, paired with a second concert of orchestral works from contemporary US composers Joel Thompson, Carlos Simon and Wynton Marsalis.
Read on to find out more about each concert.
Tangram's Naomi Woo: What, where and why is silent music?
On 28 and 29 August at LSO St Luke’s, Tangram present Our Silence is Your Silence, a concert exploring the boundaries between sound and silence in music on the 70th anniversary of John Cage’s pioneering silent piece, 4’33”. In preparation for the performance, Naomi Woo reflects on many facets of silent music, including Cage and beyond.
Introducing Our Soundhub Associates (Part 2)
On Wednesday 15 June four LSO Soundhub Associates present a composer-curated evening of music at LSO St Luke’s. We recently caught up with Arthur Keegan-Bole and Marilyn Herman to find out more about their creations, compositional style, experiences working with the LSO and what’s coming up next for them. Read on to find out more.
A Lifelong Love of the Trumpet: Håkan Hardenberger
Interview by James Drury
'It is vital we protect them'. LSO viola Steve Doman on keeping bees
Friday 20 May is World Bee Day, a worldwide celebration of bees and beekeepers. It aims to raise awareness of how bees contribute to food security, sustainable agriculture, biodiversity, the mitigation of climate change and the conservation of the environment.
Meet Tangram, Associate Artists at LSO St Luke's
As humans become more global, living outside places of birth or inhabiting multiple cultures, trailblazing collective Tangram’s mission will feel familiar to many. The group explores ideas of ‘transnational identity’ through celebrating Chinese and Western cultures in music. But their aims are deeper than that. The group wants to break down the idea that China and the West are mutually exclusive entities and connect both ancient traditions in multiple ways.
Silvestrov's Prayer for Ukraine: a musical response to war
On Wednesday 18 (LSO St Luke’s in London) and Thursday 19 May (Brighton Festival), we perform works by Lili Boulanger, Marc-André Dalbavie and Tchaikovsky conducted by Marta Gardolińska. Marta has decided to add a short work to the programme, Silvestrov’s Prayer for Ukraine, a work which is now receiving performances all over the world as an expression of solidarity with Ukrainian people.
Artist Spotlight: Insights from LSO Principal Flute Gareth Davies
On Friday 13 May LSO Principal flute Gareth Davies takes to the stage at LSO St Luke’s to perform some of his favourite chamber music for the instrument alongside recital partner Michael McHale, in a concert in partnership with BBC Radio 3. We spoke to Gareth about his instrument and what to expect from the concert.
André J Thomas: The Gospel of Gospel Music
One of the world’s greatest experts in choral and American gospel music, André J Thomas, spoke to James Drury about his passion for this hugely influential genre as he prepares for a celebration of its variety on Sunday 29 May at the Barbican, with the LSO and the massed voices of choirs from across London, including the London Community Gospel Choir, British Gospel Arts Choir and London Symphony Chorus.
