Herrenhausen Festival

HILDEGARD OF BINGEN Symphonia armonie celestium revelationum
BRITTEN Sacred and Profane
SIR HARRISON BIRTWISTLE Narration: a Description of the Passing of a Year
STEVIE WISHART Out of This World (BBC Commission)

Medieval and modern, mystical and material all collide in this concert which has as its focus songs by the 11th century German Abbess Hildegard of Bingen, performed both in their original versions and as re-imagined by Stevie Wishart. Completing the programme, two modern works which also have their roots in the medieval world – Britten's cycle wittily juxtaposes sacred and secular lyrics and is one of his last works, while Sir Harrison Birtwistle's setting takes words from a source that was to become a well-spring of inspiration in his later career – the legend of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight – and is one of his earliest published pieces.

Robert Hollingworth conductor
BBC Singers
Sinfonye