The 2018 Oscar nominations for best original score are:

 

Dunkirk, by Hans Zimmer

Phantom Thread, by Jonny Greenwood

The Shape of Water, by Alexandre Desplat

Start Wars: The Last Jedi, by John Williams

Three Billboards outside Ebbing, by Carter Burwell

 

 

I know who my money is on.

 

I recently started a YouTube channel to talk about music from a composer's perspective. One of the things I'm hoping to do is offer constructive advice to younger/less experienced composers about their compositions. If you are one, or you know any composers who'd be interested, please do get in touch. All you need to do is send through a score and preferably also a recording or midi file. If I feel I have something useful to say (always constructively!) I will post a video about it (perhaps alongside a few others) at a later date. Please specify if you'd prefer your submission to be talked about anonymously. My channel is David Bruce Composer and you can send any materials through to my channel name (with no spaces) @gmail.com 

Many years ago I visited the astonishing ruins at Delphi on the Greek Peloponnese. At the end of the visit I went tiredly round the museum, looking at the many interesting if rather worthy exhibits. At the end, having left the building, I suddenly realised that I had missed one of the most important items, the First Delphic Hymn. It is the oldest surviving example of musical notation by a named composer, inscribed on a stone slab found at the site. Of course, I went back to find it. When I did the experience was unexpectedly moving. Genesis.

 

It comes, therefore, as no surprise to me that musicians might be moved to use ancient works as a basis for a musical project. The album Ancient Greece, Musical Inspirations, featuring guitarist Rody Van Gemert and harpsichordist Assi Karttunen is just such a project. 

 

It is an exceptionally well thought-out programme of music, using not just the First Delphic Hymn but also two versions of the oldest surviving complete musical composition, the Seikilos Epitaph, as a frame. Around this are inserted works by Graham Lynch, Harry Partch, Maurice Ravel and Matthew Whittall. The modern works (which, in this context, includes Ravel) are all inspired in some way by the ancient world. Whether because of the redolence of the Greek theme, the felicitousness of the instrumentation or the exotic quality of the music (often rendered strange by the use of unusual tunings), the result is intoxicating. To listen is to gaze once more at that ancient stone. 

 

Navona Records, a subsidiary of PARMA Recordings, has a very healthy back-catalogue that includes many recordings of contemporary music. They have five upcoming releases, all of which can be previewed on their website or on streaming services: Music in the Listening Place, choral works sung by the Vanderbilt University Chorale; Prisma, contemporary works by Lionel Sainsbury, Clive Muncaster, Patricia Julien, and J. A. Kawarsky; Young Prometheus, featuring works by Mark Volker; Small Stones, Modern Piano Music played by Nancy Zipay Desalvo; and Formika, a collection of chamber by Mexican composer Felipe Pérez Santiago.

 

NMC are currently running a 20% reduction on their annual subscription, which means if you pay now you’ll get all of their 2018 releases at a bargain price. They also continue two of their recent projects this month with releases of Ray Lee’s sound artwork Ring Out in their New Music Biennial series and a new collection of Next Waves works by young composers Emma Wilde, Peter Wilson, Alex J Hall, Jack Sheen, Joanna Ward and Robin Haigh. 

 

There are three new contemporary music albums on Naxos: a collection of choral works by Norwegian composer Kim André Arnesen; String Quartets 5–7 by Richard Danielpour; and The Core-Set Project, in which Dame Evelyn Glennie’s ensemble offers a programme of fourteen improvised pieces that ‘push the boundaries of spontaneous music-making.’ Hyperion has released the first two of Tippett’s four symphonies, recorded by Martyn Brabbins and the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra. Number two, especially, is a marvellous work, a must-listen if you don’t know it. They have also released a disk of three concertos by Aaron Jay Kernis, performed by Royal Northern Sinfonia under Rebecca Miller. Bridge, finally, have released Rube Goldberg Variations, an album of chamber music by Dmitri Tymoczko; and Morton Feldman’s For John Cage, for violin and piano, one of a series of works he write dedicated to other artists. 

Photo: Psappha Ensemble

The Psappha Ensemble is supporting a record number of up-and-coming composers this season, making the group’s Ancoats base in Manchester a prime destination for talented young composers from across the UK.

 

Psappha is currently working with 24 composers through its “Composing For…” talent development schemes plus a further 12 composers from the RNCM and The University of Manchester, making an exceptional 36 in all.

 

Each of Psappha’s Composing For… schemes focus on a different instrument or instruments, with guzheng (Chinese harp), French horn, violin & cello, and flute & clarinet featured this year. The composers work with a Psappha musicians over a period of six months, leading to the creation of 24 new works. The schemes culminate in a series of filming days where Psappha makes multi-camera HD films of each new piece. Psappha’s workshops at The University of Manchester and at the RNCM support advanced students of composition to write for small ensemble in various instrument combinations.

 

Psappha’s Artistic Director selects works from the various schemes to be performed as part of Psappha’s Manchester season, meaning that places are much in demand. On 15 February 2018 Psappha will give performances of six works from the ensemble’s 2016-17 talent development schemes and Radio 3 will also record the concert. 

 

Tim Williams, Psappha’s Artistic Director, says: “Last year our Composing For… schemes focused on writing for flute, piano, trombone and percussion and the composers found the support we provided really beneficial….It’s really exciting to be able to discover new voices and to continue the relationship for the longer-term by recommending the composers to other organizations and by performing their work.”

 

A participant in Psappha’s 2016-17 Composing For Flute scheme said: “This was an excellent composition scheme to have taken part in. Having the time to develop a piece over several months, attend workshops, and develop a working relationship with the performer is the ideal composition scenario. Receiving a professional film and recording is hugely valuable to have as evidence of my work.”

 

Four composers from last year’s Composing For… schemes have gone on to be selected to write works based on pieces of art from the Whitworth collection, supported by a Grants for the Arts Award from Arts Council England as part of the Here and Now wellbeing project. The pieces will be premièred on 17 May 2018 as Psappha invites audiences on a musical adventure through the Whitworth Art Gallery.

 

Psappha is also currently supporting jazz musicians Mike Walker (guitar) and Iain Dixon (reeds) to write a new work for the ensemble through a series of development workshops which began in July 2017. The premiere of this work will take place on 20 April 2018 at the Stoller Hall in Manchester.

Photo: Google Maps

It has been reported that Bingley Grammar School charges children £5 per week to take GCSE music lessons after school. The decision was described by the Incoporated Society of Musicians as ‘shocking and deeply troubling’, whilst Andrew Lloyd Webber told The Stage that ‘the arts have never been as vital as they are today and they should be free.’ 

 

Head Teacher Luke Weston defended the school’s decision, saying that this has ‘nothing to do with funding, it's really allowing our kids to have an extra GCSE at a time that suits them.’ He also said that the new system has led to increased interest in the subject, with 25 studying this year, and that the school is still paying ’99.9% of the bill. The GCSE cost is not £5 a week, it’s significantly more than that.’

 

Whilst I have every sympathy for a school trying to do the best by its pupils—and I’m sure that that is what is happening here—this is, nevertheless, a cause for concern. First of all, whilst this particular development might be, in the (intentionally oxymoronic?) words of Norman Lebrecht, a ‘rogue precedent’, there has been other evidence of music being belittled as an academic subject during the last twelve months, including, last March, Charlotte C. Gill’s attack on music notation and, in June, the news that the Joyce Franklin Academy in Essex had removed music from year 7 and 8 (ages 11–13) timetables in an effort to balance their budget. I wonder how many examples we are not hearing about? I think, therefore, where this sort of story appears it is important to call it out. How else are we to stop the rot?

 

I also think it is disingenuous for the Head Teacher to claim that charging money for pupils has ‘nothing to do with funding.’ In which case, why charge them? Curiously my own experience in school was rather similar to that of Bingley Grammar School. No place could be found in a crowded curriculum for GCSE music, but the school, and its music teacher, moved heaven and earth to lay on extra lessons. Whilst we didn’t take it after school but in our games lesson, there was certainly no extra charge.

 

The Head Teacher also claims that the school covers 99.9% of the cost of GCSE music lessons. A little maths reveals the truth. If each pupil in a class of 25 pays £5 each, that is £125 per week. Let’s extrapolate that out to the whole year, which would consist of roughly 39 weeks. That is £4875. My guess is that that covers a very significant percentage of the course costs. Certainly not 0.1%, unless the Head Teacher was previously paying £4,875,000 to lay on GCSE music, in which case he probably needs to shop around.

Presumably when Matt Hancock, the new UK Culture Secretary, compared the creative industries to a woolly mammoth on Tuesday, he meant ‘big’ and and not muddle-minded. We can only hope he is listening to the concerns of Global Future, who have published evidence that Britain’s creative industries want to retain freedom of movement after Brexit. 

 

It would be easy to accuse the government of woolly thinking on Brexit, but on this subject at least they have been fairly consistent—free movement will end when the UK leaves the EU. It will require, therefore, either a rethink on the part of the government, or for Jeremy Corbyn to whip his MPs to support any Single Market Commons’ rebellion. Neither scenario seems likely.

 

From the Global Future Website:

 

A GLOBAL FUTURE REPORT DECEMBER 2017

Leading figures in Britain’s Creative Industries fear a hard Brexit will damage a sector of the economy that the Government itself estimates is worth more than £87 billion a year.

 

A survey for the Global Future think tank with 50 of the most influential figures in creative Industries is published today.

 

IT REVEALS:

• The single highest priority for government action now is preserving the right for Freedom of Movement between the UK and the European Union. This is seen as more important for securing growth and vibrancy in the future even than government funding for the arts or securing trade and investment.

• The creative leaders were almost unanimous (46 out of 50) in saying a hard Brexit that ended free movement would have either a negative or devastating impact on their industries.

• A similar number of respondents said cultural diversity was one of the chief reasons behind Britain’s creative success on the world stage (42), that there was now a big risk for the UK’s soft power and creative reputation (46) and that morale in their sector had fallen since the European referendum last year (41).

 

GURNEK BAINS, CEO OF GLOBAL FUTURE, SAID:

“Britain’s Creative Industries employ more people than our financial sector and make a hugely important contribution to our economy, as well as driving our soft power in the world. Until now their voice has not be heard properly in the debate about our future.”

“But this survey shows that leaders in this industry regard a hard Brexit, which would severely restrict their ability to hire the talent needed to thrive, now threatens one of the things that makes Britain great.”

 

Respondents included: Sarah Alexander, CEO, National Youth Orchestra; Nick Capaldi, CEO, Arts Council Wales; Mike Pickering, A&R, Sony BMG; Nitin Sawhney, Musician, Producer and Composer; and Alex Beard, CEO, Royal Opera House.

The Government has released its Creative Industries Report prepared by the Department for Exiting the EU. You can read it here.

 

The opening paragraph makes it clear that this is not a sectoral impact study, so don’t expect ‘excruciating detail.’ It also covers a number of sub-sectors, so music is rather infrequently mentioned. A few interesting statements from it, however:

 

1. Apparently, amongst the creative industries, ‘Music, performing and visual arts have the lowest proportion of EU nationals working in the sector, with 4.1%.'

 

2. ’The Creative Industries exported £14.7bn worth of goods in 2015, 38.6% more than in 2010, and this represented 5.2% of total UK goods exports.’ Of these  ‘“Music, performing and visual arts”, “Crafts”; and, “Publishing”’ were the highest export sub-sectors.

 

3. Whilst total exports to the EU are 39.4 (i.e. 60.6% to the rest of the world), in the realm of all Creative industries the ratio is 45% to the EU, 55% to the rest of the world. This rises to a whopping 56% to the EU in the case of ‘Music, performing and visual arts.’ 

 

The first statistic misses the point, I think—most musicians are coming and going and not settling in the UK i.e. they are still making use of freedom of movement. So this wrongly suggests that Brexit will not have a big impact on the sector. The second points to the relative strength of music, amongst others, as a sub-sector. We should be mindful of this when making our voices heard. That last statistic is perhaps the most troubling; because more than half of the sector’s exports go to the EU, it suggests that musicans may have greater exposure to the consequences of Brexit. 

After writing the C:T review of 2017, I found myself reflecting on the things that were predicted to happen in 2017 but didn’t. Chief among these was that a wave of populism would engulf Europe, with the possibility that other countries would follow the UK out of the EU. 

 

Though this did not happen, we must be wary of complacency in 2018. In Europe problems persist: Angela Merkel still struggles to form a government and there are challenges in the east. And the UK still has big decisions to make about its future with the EU. If musicians want to preserve a spirit of cooperation with our friends on the continent it is vital we make our voices heard. The UK may be leaving the EU, but the manner of doing so is still up for grabs. 

 

The world is an unstable and difficult place, but despite this the arts scene is as vibrant as ever. My little preview of 2018, below, is ample evidence of this. There are celebrations to mark the hundredth birthday of Leonard Bernstein; major premieres from Philip Sawyers, John Adams, James Macmillan, Philippe Manoury, Nico Muhly, Esa-Pekka Salonen, Mark Simpson, David Matthews and many others; and the usual round of festivals, of which I present a small portion here.

 

I will expand upon this preview in the months to come—do check in for my regular roundups. In the meantime I wish you and all C:T member and visitors a peaceful, happy and musical New Year!

 

January

18th Stephen Pratt, Symphonies of Time and Tide (World Premiere), Royal Liverpool Philharmonic, Philharmonic Hall, Liverpool, UK.

20th Huw Watkins, New Work (World Premiere), Brangwyn Hall, BBCNOW, Swansea, UK.

25th Sebastian Currier, New Work for String Quartet (World Premiere), Lincoln Center, Rose Building, NYC, US.

27th BBCSO Total Immersion, Leonard Bernstein. Barbican, London

 

February

6th–11th Festival Présences with a portrait of composer Thierry Escaich. Paris, France.

8th Symphony Without a Hero (World Premiere), Seattle Symphony Orchestra, Benaroya Hall, Seattle, US.

15th Helen Grime, New Work (World Premiere), Ruby Hughes (Soprano) and Joseph Middleton (Piano), Wigmore Hall, London, UK.

23rd Nico Muhly, Organ Concerto, (World Premiere). Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra, Walt Disney Concert Hall, Los Angeles, US.

23rd Composition Wales Culmination concert. Hear the latest in composition in Wales, as composers worthy of wider exposure have the opportunity to hear their works performed by the BBCNOW.

25th Philip Sawyers, Violin Concerto (World Premiere). English Symphony Orchestra, St. Peter’s Square, Hereford, UK.

 

March

2nd–4th Peninsular Arts Contemporary Music Festival 2018. The theme is Decoding Life.

4th André Previn The Fifth Season, for violin and piano (World Premiere). Anne-Sophie Mutter, Lambert Orkis, Carnegie Hall, NYC, US.

10th Gary Kulesha, Double Concerto (World Premiere). Toronto Symphony Orchestra, Roy Thomson Hall, Toronto, Canada. 

21st Judith Weir Piano Quintet (World Premiere). Schubert Ensemble, Wigmore Hall, London.

21st–25th LONDON EAR festival of contemporary music.

29th John Luther Adams, Become Desert (World Premiere). Seattle Symphony Orchestra, Benaroya Hall, US. 

 

April

6th Michael Daugherty Concerto for Orchestra (World Premiere). Virginia Symphony Orchestra, Ferguson Centre, Virginia, US.

11th James MacMillan Saxophone Concerto (World Premiere). Perth Concert Hall, Perth, UK.

13th Esa-Pekka Salonen New Work (World Premiere). Walt Disney Concert Hall, Los Angeles, US.

17th–25h Lucerne Festival at Easter.

19th Helen Grime New Work (World Premiere). 

18th Panufnik Composers Scheme Workshop. LSO St Luke's, London.

21st Mark Simpson Cello Concerto (World Premiere). Bridgewater Hall, Manchester, UK.

 

May

3rd Elvind Buene New Work (World Premiere). Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra, Oslo Concert Hall, Oslo, Norway.

9th David Matthews Symphony No. 9 (World Premiere). English Symphony Orchestra, St. George’s, Bristol, UK.

9th–16th Vale of Glamorgan Festival 

11th–27th Bath International Music Festival.

11th–27th Norfolk and Norwich Festival.

15th–3rd June Prague Spring International Music Festival.

17th–20th Northern Chords Festival.

20th Adam Vidiksis Concerto Grosso (World Premiere). The Chamber Orchestra of Philadelphia, Kimmel Centre, Philadelphia, US.

25th–3rd June St. Davids Cathedral Festival.

 

Also in May (details tbc)

 

The English Music Festival.

 

June

1st Josef Bardanashvili, Ex Animo (World Premiere). Orchestre National de Lyon, L’Auditorium de Lyon, Lyon, France.

5th Charles Wuorinen Eros and Nemesis (World Premiere). The MET Orchestra, Carnegie Hall, NYC, US.

6th–31st Munich Opera Festival Nationaltheater and other venues in Munich.

8th–24th Aldeburgh Festival. 

12th David Bedford at 80. David Bedford, Symphony No. 1; Robin Rimbaud New Work (World Premiere). BBC Concert Orchestra, Southbank Centre, London, UK.

16th Pascal Dusapin New Work (World Premiere). Château de Versailles: Royal Opera House, Paris, France.

30th–26th August Schleswig-Holstein Music Festival

 

Other June festivals (dates tbc):

 

St Magnus International Festival.

 

July

1st Samuel Carl Adams Concerto Grosso (World Premiere). Australian Chamber Orchestra, Sydney Opera House, Sydney, Australia. 

8th Philippe Manoury Concerto for Flute and Orchestra (World Premiere). Gürzenich Orchestra, Philharmonie, Cologne, Germany. 

8th–21st Soundscape. Maccagno, Italian Alps.

6th–22rd Buxton Festival. A marriage of opera, books and music, including some by contemporary composers. Buxton, Derbyshire.

 

HERE:

 

13th-8th September BBC Proms. Programme not currently available, but there will be premières aplenty. Royal Albert Hall, London.

20th–30st August Salzburg Festival. Salzburg, Austria.

 

Other July festivals (dates tbc):

 

Schlern International Music Festival

Tête à Tête Opera Festival. Described as ‘our most imaginative opera laboratory’, the festival focuses entirely on new music. 

‘Aix en Provence Festival. ‘Aix en Provence, France. 

 

August

3rd–27th Edinburgh International Festival. Programme not yet available, but there is usually a good selection of new music.

6th–18th High Score Festival. Contemporary music festival and classes. Pavia, Italy.

23rd–28th Presteigne Festival. Artistic innovation, musical discovery and, of course, new works in the Welsh Marches. Presteigne, Powys. 

30th Carl Vine Symphony No.8 (World Premiere). Arts Centre Melbourne: Hamer Hall, Melbourne, Australia.

 

September

13th–22nd Oslo Contemporary Music Festival.

21st Richard Mills Island Signal Island Song (World Premiere). Melbourne Symphony Orchestra, Melbourne Town Hall, Melbourne, Australia. 

23rd Ruta Vitkauskaite New Work (World Premiere). COMA London Ensemble, Kings Place: Hall One, London, UK.

30th Lisa Illean New Work (World Premiere). ExplorEnsemble, Kings Place: Hall One, London, UK.

 

Also in September (date tbc):

 

Beethovenfest, Bonn.

 

October

10th  Stephen Goss, Time (World Premiere). Christoph Denoth (guitar), Kings Place: Hall One London, UK.

11th Iain Grandage (World Premiere). Melbourne Symphony Orchestra, Melbourne Recital Centre: Elisabeth Murdoch Hall, Melbourne, Australia.

28th–30th November Wien Modern. Festival that focuses on contemporary music. Vienna, Austria.

 

Dates not yet available:

 

Sound. North East Scotland’s Festival of New Music. Various venues.

 

November

17th–25th Lucerne Festival at the Piano.

 

Dates not yet available:

 

Huddersfield Contemporary Music Festival. 

 

December

Date not yet available:

 

Spitalfields Winter Festival.

I’m at last tucked up with my family in a remote part of West Wales, all ready to enjoy Christmas. December’s arranging work finished ahead of time, the fire roaring, a farrago of seasonal fodder.

 

Christmas Eve in the UK comes, of course, with one contemporary music set-piece: the commissioned work for the Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols at King’s College, Cambridge. This year it is composed by fellow Welshman Huw Watkins, who has set part of the Plygain carol Carol Eliseus. The service is broadcast live on Radio 4, beginning at 3pm.

 

In the meantime, here’s one of the best-known of the many previously commissioned Christmas carols, Judith Weir’s Illuminare Jerusalem, composed in 1985 for the service that year. To all C:T members and visitors, I wish you a very happy and peaceful Christmas.

 

2016 was viewed by many in the music world as one to forget. There were the deaths of Boulez, David Bowie, Peter Maxwell Davies and Prince and the twin political earthquakes of Brexit and the election of Donald Trump. In fact, the prevailing attitude by the end of 2016 was rather summed up by this cartoon:

 

© Nick Seluk theawkwardyeti.com. Used with permission.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

So, as we approach the end of 2017, how did we get on? It’s time to take stock…

 

January started happily enough, with a BBC Total Immersion Day celebrating the birthday of Philip Glass, who turned 80 on 31st. Celebrations to mark this milestone continued throughout 2017. In Hamburg, the opening of the stunning Elbphilharmonie concert hall (below) made London’s foot-drafting over its own new venue all the more bewildering. On 20th Donald Trump was inaugurated President of the United States.

 

The Elbphilharmonie Hall

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

February started with the good news that George Benjamin had been commissioned to write an opera following the enormous success of his Written on Skin, whilst on 8th February C:T marked the birthday of the film music legend, John Williams.

 

On International Women’s Day in March I reflected on the position of women composers in my country—much progress made but still a way to go. Tristan Murail turned 70 on 11th March, whilst I found myself in Japan attending the International Musicological Society conference, where I was lucky to hear a number of interesting speakers, including composer Toshio Hosokawa. At the end of the month Charlotte C. Gill’s article Music education in now only for the white and wealthy caused a huge controversy that rumbled well into April.

 

Jim Aitchison and I penned our own contribution to the debate over the Gill article as a response by pianist Ian Pace had gathered over 500 high-profile supporters, including Sir Simon Rattle. David Bernard over at the Brooklyn Symphony, meanwhile, was giving a much better example of how children might be taught to appreciate music. In everyday life I found myself glued to the Brexit news. One story felt grimly ironic: it was announced that the PRS had won funding from the EU to run its European Keychange programme to empower female musicians. 

 

At the beginning of May Donald Trump’s Muslim ban led to the detention of American composer Mohammed Fairouz at a US airport. Back in the UK the schedule for the BBC Proms had been announced, seemingly with fewer new works than ever.  Simon Rattle’s few eloquent words on Brexit, meanwhile, were widely reported in the British press. In France Emmanuel Macron won a healthy victory against Marine Le Pen—the populist tide seemed to be turning.

 

June saw the momentous events of the UK general election. When the dust settled in the morning, however, not so much seemed to have changed. Theresa May walked back into Downing Street with a speech that indicated that it was ‘business as usual.’ It left me wondering whether we were heading for political gridlock.

 

On 9th July French pioneer of noise music, Pierre Henry, died. He was one of those few composers able to exert an influence outside the field of contemporary art music. C:T talked to the founder of Idagio, Till Janczukowicz, about his new music-streaming app dedicated to classical music. A few days later there was controversy at the Last Night of the Proms, when Daniel Barenboim gave an address that appeared to be inspired by his opposition to Brexit. The reaction of the British press was febrile. By now Brexit seemed to be everywhere, including at the Tête à Tête Opera Festival.

At the beginning of August  Anne Midgette at the Washington Post wrote a piece that seemed to suggest that opera was doomed. I wondered what all the fuss was about. On 18th came the news that Donald Trump’s Committee on the Arts and Humanities had resigned en masse. In a typically Trumpian twist the White House claimed that they were going to disband it anyway.

The beginning of September brought the sad news that two renowned British composers, Derek Bourgeois and John Maxwell Geddes had died. Then East Midlands airport was given a roasting for suggesting that performers work for free. I wondered if it would have been quite so ferocious had they asked the same of composers. At the end of the month I was heartened to hear that an 82-year-old composer had made a sudden career break-though. It’s never too late…

 

On 2nd October we lost Swiss composer, Klaus Huber and then there was more Brexit gloom in October, with the announcement that the European Union Youth Orchestra was moving out of London. The shortlist for the British Composer Awards was announced at the end of the month. I was delighted when one of the judges invited me to the award ceremony in December. It felt like I was off to the Oscars.

 

We lost several fine musicians in November: the composers Jean-Jacques Werner and Ladislav Kubík and then the baritone Dmitry Hvorostovsky. Ghastly news also for the composer Philippe Manoury, who had 40 pages of drafts for a new string quartet stolen on a train between Strasbourg and Mannheim. Nico Muhly’s new opera opened in London on 18th, to mixed reviews.

 

After enjoying part of a Stockhausen weekend in Ghent I headed to London for the British Composer Awards on 6th. It was quite something to witness such an array of composing talent in one room. December also saw Theresa May finally able to move the Brexit negotiations onto phase two. Given the difficulty she has encountered so far, I think we can expect 2018 to be a rocky ride.