'There Was a Child'

Commissioned to write a piece of music in memory of a teenager who drowned while snorkelling in Thailand, Jonathan Dove has turned a negative into a positive: THERE WAS A CHILD is a joyous, vibrant and passionate celebration of childhood. The 50 minute oratorio uses a sequence of poems—by Keats,Wordsworth, Walt Whitman and others..to trace a young life from childhood to early manhood. The idiom may be unashamedly traditional—Britten,Vaughan Williams and Tippett come to mind, but Dove handles his brief with belief and inspiration. An uplifting evening of choral and orchestral works.