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Details
Queen Elizabeth Hall
Southbank Centre
Belvedere Rd
South Bank
London
SE1 8XX
England
Programme
Francois Couperin – Le Rossignol en Amour
Francois Couperin – Le Rossignol Vainqueur
Pēteris Vasks – Wind Quintet no.1 'Music for Fleeting Birds'
Huw Watkins – Five Duos for Clarinet and Violin
Performers
Alexandra Wood – Director
Simon Armitage – Narrator
Jenifer Toksvig – Director
City of London Sinfonia
Other concerts in this Series (+)
Programme Note
One summer’s day I overheard
a mighty war of words disturb
a peaceful & secluded dale;
between an Owl & Nightingale
Poet Laureate Simon Armitage's witty and enchanting version of The Owl and the Nightingale was published in 2021 and is based on a traditional Middle English debate poem in which two birds engage in a fierce verbal contest to prove which is the superior bird.
Performed live on stage, this concert features Simon Armitage as narrator and two actors as the eponymous birds whose argument moves entertainingly from the eloquent and philosophical to the ribald, risqué, and ridiculous! This special performance includes avian-inspired, and argumentative music by Janiquin, Couperin, Watkins, Vasks and Vivaldi performed by City of London Sinfonia.
Touching on universal themes such as competition, the importance of beauty, and what constitutes a valuable contribution to society, Armitage's retelling of The Owl and the Nightingale is as pertinent today as when it was first published.
Presented by City of London Sinfonia in association with Faber Members.
