Happy New Year to all! Here’s a little preview of what 2012 holds for contemporary music, minus December (for my thoughts on that, see here). I don’t pretend for a minute that this is comprehensive; details are harder to come by as the year progresses, many of my selections are subjective and, besides, I am bound to have missed some pearls…
January
13th Alexander Goehr world première of When Adam Fell (BBC commission), UK première of Castiglioni Concerto for Orchestra. Barbican, BBCSO conducted by Oliver Knussen.
24th Wolfgang Rihm at 60. A celebration of his work given by the London Sinfonietta. Queen Elizabeth Hall, London.
28th-29th Total Immersion: Jonathan Harvey. The BBC Symphony Orchestra celebrates the life and work of the composer with concerts, films and talks at the Barbican, London.
February
1st-2nd Welsh Composers’ Showcase. The BBC National Orchestra of Wales play works by emerging Welsh composers. BBCNOW conducted by Jac van Steen with Simon Holt in collaboration. Hoddinott Hall, Cardiff.
3rd Sean Clancy world première of Findetotenlieder. Birmingham Contemporary Music Group. CBSO Centre, Birmingham.
17th The BBC Symphony Orchestra première orchestral works by Embedded composers Jack white, Yuko Ohara and Laura Bowler. BBC Maida Vale Studios, London.
24th-26th Off The Page. The UK’s only literary festival devoted to music criticism and audio culture. Produced by Sound and Music. The Playhouse Theatre, Whitstable.
25th-9th March. English National Opera presents the London premiere of John Adams’ The Death of Klinghoffer.
March
12th Judith Weir UK première of opera Miss Fortune. Royal Opera House, Covent Garden conducted by Paul Daniel.
13th Harrison Birtwistle world première of Fantasia on all the Notes. Nash Ensemble at Wigmore Hall.
15th John Adams world première of Absolute Jest. Davies Symphony Hall, San Francisco Symphony Orchestra.
16th World premières of music by Missy Mazzoli Violent, Owen Pallett and Nico Muhly. Britten Sinfonia, Barbican.
17th Total Immersion Brett Dean. A celebration of the composer’s work given by the BBC Symphony Orchestra.
17-25th Circus Tricks by Michael Henry and Adey Grummet. Presented by Tête à Tête opera. Riverside Studios, Hammersmith.
17th New Music, including many premières, from New Zealand and Australia. BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra. City Hall, Candleriggs.
31st Maxwell Davies UK première of A Reel of Spindrift, Sky. Dundee Symphony Orchestra, Caird Hall.
April
26th Gerald Barry European première of The Importance of Being Earnest. Birmingham Contemporary Music Group conducted by Thomas Adès, Barbican.
28th Arvo Pärt Total Immersion. The BBC Symphony Orchestra celebrates the life and work of Arvo Pärt in a day of concerts, films and talks at the Barbican.
28th Richard Ayres. A Hear and Now composer focus concert with the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra. City Hall, Candleriggs.
May
10th Kalevi Aho Trombone Concerto (UK Premiere). Jorgen van Rijen (trombone), BBC Symphony Orchestra conducted by Alexander Vedernikov.
12th George Benjamin Portrait. A concert of the composer’s music given by the London Sinfonietta. Queen Elizabeth Hall. ht
24th Philip Glass at 75, with the UK première of Symphony No. 6. BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra conducted by Nicholas Collon. City Hall, Candleriggs.
24th Harrison Birtwistle UK première of In Broken Images as part of a portrait concert of the composer. London Sinfonietta conducted by David Atherton. Queen Elizabeth Hall, London.
30th-10th June. Bath International Music Festival.
June
1st IRCAM Festival, Paris. Opening concert given by the Orchestre de Paris and inaugurating a large portrait of Philippe Manoury in celebration of his 60th birthday.
8th-24th 65th Aldeburgh Festival of Music and the Arts.
22nd-27th St. Magnus International Festival.
July
7th-25th Buxton Festival 2012. Will include a performance of Britten’s Turn of the Screw.
7th-26th August. Schleswig-Holstein Musik Festival.
18th-18th August. Bregenz Festival. Preview of programme available on their website.
13th-to 8th September. BBC Proms. Full programme available April, though some information available here.
August
9th-2nd September. Edinburgh Festival. Usually is plenty to interest musicians, though details are limited on the website preview page.
Tête à Tête Opera Festival. Dates to be confirmed.
September
North Wales International Music Festival. Dates to be confirmed.
Vale of Glamorgan Festival. Dates to be confirmed.
October
El Festival Internacional de Música Contemporánea de Tres Cantos, Madrid. Dates to be confirmed. Plenty of interest last year (see here).
Sound: North East Scotland’s Festival of New Music. Dates to be confirmed.
22nd Wien Modern Festival begins.
November
16th-25th Huddersfield Contemporary Music Festival.