Composer Julian Anderson on the Thoroughly Good Classical Music Podcast

Ahead of its BCMG world premiere performance, composer Julian Anderson joined Jon Jacob of the Thoroughly Good Classical Music Podcast to discusses his new, semi-autobiographical Sound Investment work Life Cycle. Conducted by Stephan Meier, and featuring soprano Anna Dennis, BCMG's Life Cycle concert also included Charlotte Bray’s Reflections in Time and the premiere of Serpentine by Birmingham composer Marcus Rock. 

At the heart of this conversation, though, is Anderson’s Life Cycle: eight songs (four of which are BCMG Sound Investment commissions) that span English, French, Spanish, German and Gaelic traditions, exploring themes of identity, memory, belonging, life and death. For Julian, it’s both a deeply personal project – shaped by family, friendship, and loss – and a vision of music that travels freely beyond nationality. It’s also a project that began life in an unusually unexpected way.

Julian and Jon discuss the early encouragement that set Julian on the path to composing, how musicology sharpened his creativity, and why he believes memory and play sit at the core of everything he writes.

Listen to the Podcast

What is Sound Investment?

Both Julian Anderson's Life Cycle and Marcus Rock's Serpentine are commissioned in part with the assistance of BCMG's Sound Investment supporters. Sound Investment is BCMG's crowdfunding commissioning scheme that allows you to chip in to help cover the cost of commissioning new music from the world's best living composers. In exchange for your support, you receive thanks in the score of new works, invitations to rehearsals and the chance to meet our musicians.

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