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Britten Sinfonia: 1945 – A Kind of Haunting

,Milton Court Concert Hall
Musicians from Britten Sinfonia performing on stage

80 years after the end of WWII, we hear musical responses from then and now. 

You can feel the tension of 1938 in Martinů’s concerto, written when he had left his native Czechoslovakia for Switzerland. Strauss writes from a different perspective, his 1945 elegy lamenting the destruction of Germany and its culture.

With sung and spoken texts by poet Jacqueline Saphra, scholar Marianne Hirsch and the composer himself, A Kind of Haunting explores why and how the trauma of the Holocaust holds such a grip on both the children and grandchildren of victims and survivors. Jewish composer Michael Zev Gordon draws on his grandmother’s memoir, which details the final traces of his grandfather’s life before he was shot in a remote Polish forest. Why is there such an interest in re-visiting, or making present, what was lost many years before?

Tagged with: Classical music Young Barbican Britten Sinfonia

This performance will finish at approximately 9.30pm, including a 20-minute interval

Promoted by Britten Sinfonia

Programme

  • Bohuslav Martinů   Double Concerto for two string orchestras, piano and timpani
  • Richard Strauss   Metamorphosen
  • Michael Zev Gordon   A Kind of Haunting (world premiere)

Performers

  • Britten Sinfonia  
  • Jonathan Berman   conductor
  • James Newby   baritone

Milton Court Concert Hall

Location
Milton Court Concert Hall is located within the Guildhall School of Music and Drama and is approximately a 5 minute walk from the Barbican entrance on Silk Street.  

Address
Milton Court
Silk St, London
EC2Y 9BH

Nearby public transport
We are within walking distance from a number of London Underground stations, the closest being Barbican, Old Street, St Paul’s and Moorgate. The nearest train stations are Liverpool Street and Farringdon. Bus Route 153 runs directly past the Barbican along Chiswell Street

Car and bicycle parking
We have free bicycle spaces and paid car parking spaces available