A composer’s inspiration

An illustrated talk by the composer Patrick Hawes

Patrick reveals how carefully chosen texts can develop into musical seeds and then into a symphony.  Specific reference will be made to The Great War Symphony, his most recent work written to mark the centenary of the Armistice.

The talk will show how Patrick has selected certain texts to reflect each year of the war, including Wilfred Owen’s 1914, Siegfried Sassoon’s diary entry on the first day of the Battle of the Somme, Margaret Postgate Cole’s The Falling Leaves, as well as lesser known words from Sydney Bolitho’s Gallipoli and Moina Michael’s We Shall Keep the Faith.

It will include an insight into his musical background and influences, illustrated by Patrick at the piano and through recordings.