All posts from February 2023

Discovering Grace Williams: a neglected Welsh composer

A violin with a bow on top of it, with a sunset behind it

“I was looking for another work by a female composer for our Spring concert,” says Thomas Payne, Musical Director of the London City Orchestra. “I stumbled across Grace Williams’ violin concerto on YouTube. I’d never heard of her or the concerto. It’s very rarely performed. “So I started listening and after about three or four […]

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Celebrating Ethel Smyth: composer and Suffragette

When you look at photos of composer Ethel Smyth from the early 20th century, she cuts a distinctive figure. Iconoclastic, queer and a Suffragette, she had to fight to have her compositions heard at a time when female composers were relegated to musical footnotes. Conducting with a toothbrush My favourite story about her is the […]

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