SONGS OF THE REEF PERFROMANCE

What a special night!! Couldn’t have asked for a better performance of Songs of the Reef by Crouch End Festival Chorus, London Orchestra da Camerw and Finchley Children’s Music Group at Alexandra Palace Theatre

There are so many people to thank for the creation of this piece and I really like to think of it as a culmination of many passionate people which really brought it to life

Firstly thank you David Temple, Genevive Helsby and Crouch End Festival Chorus for trusting me with this commission and giving me the opportunity to compose this piece. It was so enjoyable working with the choir and I have learnt so much.

Thank you again to Steve Simpson and his colleges for providing their recordings of the Reef and being such a big inspiration behind the piece. They’re doing so much work and research to protect our natural world, it was a privilege to help share a message of urgency and hope

Thank you to Cherissma Blackman-Costelloe for writing two beautiful texts for me to use for this piece, sharing the rich culture and stories of her family and the Yidinji people

I’d also like to thank Peggy Polias for doing such an awesome job with the score and helping me get all the parts ready!!

Ultimately I hope that we have not only spread awareness on the challenges that the Reef faces, but also hope that not all is lost, that we can think a little bit differently about how we interact with our natural world to protect it for the future generations to come